People’s Kombi shows it still has zest

A sense of familiarity resulted in this writer lighting up like the proverbial candle (too soon?) on the recent local media launch of the Volkswagen T6.1 Kombi.

In what has become an increasingly popular departure from norm, the unveiling of a South African icon came in the form of a weekend road trip from Port Elizabeth down the Garden Route with stopovers outside Mossel Bay and then a backtrack to Knysna.

The comfort of familiarity

Without doubt one of the picturesque stretches of road our country has to offer, the two-fold sense came in the shape of being back in a place where I spend almost 25 years of my life, and being back behind the wheel of Wolfsburg’s never ending story after recently sampling the Caravelle.

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Then there is the route itself. The winding ribbon of tar that is the N2 is almost always seen as the gateway to Cape Town, but which passes through some incredible scenery and now renown towns often perched high above the ocean with simply stunning views.

Volkswagen T6.1 Transporter rear view

It is a road I have travelled on numerous times over the last 30 years that straddling it blindfolded wouldn’t be a problem. That same notion of having an understanding of your surroundings can be seen as having passed on to the T6.1, albeit perfected over the last 71 years.

Transporter or Kombi?

In this sense, Volkswagen has opted to integrate the Kombi with the Transporter line-up, thus resulting in the “Kombi” badge on the tailgate being replaced by “Transporter” whilst the Caravelle remains.

Kombi badge has made way for the Transporter designation

As with previous generations though, the Kombi slots-in below the Caravelle and while still resplendent with the same restyled facia, adopts a more workhorse-like appearance with different alloy wheels, halogen as opposed to LED daytime running diodes, less chrome and single-tone instead of the optional two-tone colour palette.

Basic isn’t always bad

The most prominent departure from the Caravelle is of course the interior. Providing seating for eight instead of seven, the Kombi also comes with the more basic 6.5-inch Composition Media infotainment system as well as manual captain’s style front seats, conventional air-conditioning and a traditional analogue instrument cluster.

Volkswagen T6.1 Transporter interior

As evident by the blacked-out switches to the left of the ventilation dials, the Kombi also loses out on the electric doors and tailgate of the Caravelle, but does retain the dual sliding doors as well as the overhead display and vents for the air-conditioning.

Despite the comparatively basic look, the Kombi doesn’t hold back in the quality of the materials and switchgear, with the basic infotainment system being easy to use and the cabin still festooned with storage areas.

A small heart that beats strong

At launch, we were privy to only a single model; the mid-range Trendline outfitted with the seven-speed DSG and producing 110kW/340Nm from its single-turbo 2.0 TDI.

Eye-catching in Copper Bronze

A lesser 81kW/250Nm model paired to a five-speed manual ‘box starts the range off with the flagship featuring the same bi-turbo 146kW/450Nm engine as the Caravelle, together with the all-paw 4Motion all-wheel-drive system.

In spite of the seemingly modest outputs, the TDI showed little strain in carting the almost the two-ton Kombi up and down the N2, with the biggest highlight being the level of refinement as noise intrusion hardly registered.

It feels just right

Most impressive though was the ride. Despite the N2 being largely smooth, imperfections drew little attention as the suspension soaked sudden surface changes with up ease without lasting any after effects.

Aside from the commanding driving position, the six rear seats proved incredibly comfortable with, unsurprisingly, acres of head and legroom.

Step inside

This, together with the engine’s prowess, was reflected on the return run from Knysna to George where all eight seats were occupied, the boot filled and the air-conditioning switched on, potential hillocks the Kombi simply brushed off even when the terrain got hilly.

Where can I put this?

In fact, the biggest disappointment was a complete lack of rear cupholders for the second and third rows, as well as only dual front airbags. Provided though are mesh blinds sliding out of the base of the door and window, but it is highly unlikely that these will make-up for the lack of drinks holders.

Volkswagen T6.1 Transporter’s eight seat layout

Another frustration were the two Type-C USB ports which will require an adopter to play media items from as neither support the much thicker tipped and more popular flash drives.

Conclusion

As much as the lack of cupholders and the annoying USB ports are likely to be viewed as nit-picking, curtain airbags are optional, the overall package that it’s the Volkswagen T6.1 Transporter 2.0 TDI Kombi Trendline SWB DSG to give it its full name is really a tough act to beat.

Aside from the allure that is the Volkswagen badge and its history, the Kombi is not only comfortable regardless of driving or sitting in the back, but saddled with a surprising drivetrain and satisfactory levels of standard kit for its R755 300 asking price.

Add-in safety and driver assistance tech such as Automatic Post Collision Braking, a tyres pressure monitor, Hill Start Assist and the optional Crosswind Assist, the Kombi once again rates as the quintessential large mover for the people.

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