Volkswagen Multivan and California get new PHEV power
Tue, 01 Jul 2025
A new four-wheel-drive plug-in hybrid system is now available on both the Volkswagen Multivan and Volkswagen California.
Both come with the firm’s 4MOTION all-wheel-drive system, matched with a 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol engine and a 19.7kWh battery pack, giving a pure electric range of 59 miles. The battery pack also offers 50kW rapid DC charging, allowing a 10% to 80% boost in 26 minutes.
The system produces a combined total power output of 241bhp and 250Nm of torque. Both the Multivan and California PHEV also come as standard with an electric stationary air conditioning feature, which allows them to be cooled, ventilated and heated when the vehicles are charging, parking or camping.
Volkswagen says it has designed the PHEV system to run on electric power as much as possible, with the front motor taking priority over its rear-mounted counterpart or the petrol engine.
The engine is used to generate electricity, driving the wheels only when the battery is flat, or when gearbox kickdown is activated in sitiuations such as overtaking or joining motorway sliproads.
The rear motor is also decoupled from the powertrain above 81mph to improve energy efficiency.
The new four-wheel-drive powertrain replaces the Multivan’s previous 1.4-litre PHEV option.
Both new models are on sale now, with the Multivan PHEV priced from £54,525 (inc.VAT) and £71,295 (inc.VAT) for the California PHEV.
