Upgrading to a Transporter

[swingn]

Hi All

Well the little Caddy (MY09 TDI Manual) is just not big enough for my work requirements anymore. So we're going to stick with the VW family & go for a SWB TDI, standard roof Transporter.

Unlike the Caddy, there are just so many options available in regards to transmissions, engines, etc etc etc. Question is, considering the price jump, if there any benefit in going to the twin turbo TDI over the single turbo?

For work I generally don't carry massive weight (On average the Caddy would carry 400kgs when full - Assuming I'd fit close to double that in a Transporter...?) & even then the van would only be carrying that amount of weight every so often.

Also looking at DSG this time around so anyone & everyone can drive the van if required... Would also love to go 4Motion, but I'm not sure if that will give any real benefit in day to day driving or when carrying a load (Especially with the additional costs for it) - Sure it would be awesome in the wet though ;)

So if anyone can give me some advice it would be much appreciated :)

Cheers!

[IN2VWS]

If you are going to carry weight regularly, go for the twin turbo.
My previous T5 was the 77kn 1.9tdi. When the van was empty, she was great, but with a full load, she was a bit of a slug. I now have the twin turbo, and haven't looked back.

[T5Pete]

I drive the 132 lwb van as my daily drive, I'm not a tradie either. I fill it with general man stuff live surfboards, motorbikes etc. I love it, so easy to drive long distance. wife still isn't 100% but after easter when we went away with, 2 pushies, 1 scooter, 10 surfboards, 6 kties, her hair products, chairs, esky, and god knows what else she see's the better side! hehe. only problem is no mirror on the passenger sun visor! major problem apparently. this will be rectified by installing a full length mirror in the back just to make a point.

[swingn]

So generally speaking the single turbo will be fine (On paper it's general performance is the same as my current Caddy TDI) but with a good size load it will probably struggle... More so then the Caddy I'm guessing as you are able to physically carry more + it is a large van.

This may sound really stupid... But how much more diesel does the twin turbo go through? I've found a really give my Caddy a lot of right foot action to make it move & therefore it uses a bit more in town, although I'm still getting around 8.5L p/100kms :) With the slightly larger motor + the twin turbo, I'm guessing I wouldn't have to give it quite as much gas & (Fingers crossed) it may be able to get similar miles per tank as the Caddy...?

[The_Hawk]

I just got home from a ~1,000km trip with 4 adults, 2 kids + luggage in the 103kW Multivan, our consumption went up only slightly on the trip from normal so the load seems to cancel out the longer distance and it all averages out :P

We are averaging around 9L/100km although on it's first run from Melbourne to to Sydney it was down near 8L/100km.

I will say that you can definitely feel the extra load in the van and the extra power really wouldn't go astray if you had a load in regularly, but with just the wife and two kids on day trips it's fine. When overtaking I know I was leaving extra time and space to get round things, especially when hauling uphill, downhill it still picked up brilliantly ;)

I think next time round I will seriously look at the extra dollars on the more powerful engine.

[IN2VWS]

My 132kw DSG LWB is averaging 8.5l/100km. On a trip this will come down to 7.8l/100km.
Towing a tanden car trailer with a Beetle on it, she gets 11l/100km. (that was to Shepparton and back).

FYI, my 77kw was averaging around 6.4l/100km.

[The_Hawk]

Interesting that I use more fuel, but then consumption can vary wildly depending on driving patterns (and I tend to drive on the less conservative side of the scale ;)).

Good to get the comparison to the 1.9TDI, it is probably the best to look at the % change, which is +33% going from the Caddy to the T5.2

[swingn]

So the more powerful engines seem to remain fairly frugal in town, but are that little bit more efficent on the open road :) Plus they are obviously better (More drivable) when carrying a fairly large load.

So looks like I'll have to see what deals I can screw on a twin turbo then aye :) Last time I looked there were some awesome deals on the single turbo which ment there was an approx price difference of 10K between the single & twin turbo models :(

Any comments regarding 4Motions models? I know in the manuals "crawl mode" was an advantage, but does it really give you an advantage in general drivability &/or when carrying large loads? On road, not off road I'm talking about... Off road would only happen when I go for a fishing trip ;)

[Cousin]

swingn, as far as 4 motion goes, I considered it recently when getting my Multi.
I decided not to for the following reasons,
It's not constant four wheel drive, the drive transfers around depending on which wheels loose traction, so you basically have a front wheel drive for everyday bitumen driving
It adds another 100 kgs of weight to the van
On paper, fuel consumption goes up around half a litre per hundred ks. But someone here might be able to confirm that
I don't have the need to go bush where 4 motion is a must
And over the 800,000 ks I've done in two Transporters and one Multi I've only ever come across one spot I got stuck, up a very steep driveway. Could not get traction. So I turned the van around and went up backwards, so all the weight was on the front wheels. Easy (sort of!).
And they cost more.

So for me I just don't need it and 'having it there' gave me no real benefit.

Also, if you only plan to load up just occasionally, the single turbo 103kw could be the better bet
I've heard some here say they really can't pick much differenc test driving the 103 and the 132
So for the odd time with some weight, do you really nead to pay the extra?
I'm driving a 128kw Highline and love the power, but I bought it second hand
New, I may have opted for the lesser power
The last Transporter I had was a 2004 turbo diesel 79Kw, and I just adapted to it's power and drove accordingly (keep the foot flat!!)


M

[T5Pete]

103kw + chip. comes up a fair bit. The brakes on the 132kw are serious bits of kit! in tact, they are too powerful for normal unloaded driving. if you can't get your heel on the floor before pressing the brake pedal you soon know about it

[swingn]

^^^

Was considering chipping, but then that may cause issues with potential warranty claims :(

Just to clarify, do you mean the twin turbo is inclined to spin wheels when not carrying a load?

[Dennisg51]

Just sold my Kombi Camper and am wanting to buy a T5 Camper (Trakka or Kea) - with no experience driving either, many comments in these posts and articles I've found say the 103kw is ample for most use.

Any thoughts on the fact the Transporter will have the extra weight of the camper fitout? (Gw approx 2,500kg)
Would really appreciate hearing from any T5 camper owners out there!! - thanks Dennis