wow a chrysler, issshhh. didnt vw have a minivan that was never sold in the states, the sharan it was a vw with the 1.8t engine in it i drove one once not bad. Why it was not sold in the states who knows.

Are 13 cup holders really needed or is that even a big selling point of minivans? That many cup holders just seems absurd for a van that probably holds only 7 or 8 passengers. Beyond that though, it looks like every other minivan out right now. Hopefully, as stated, the fit and finish, and handling characteristics will be there to set this one apart from the others.

On second thought:
For the most part VW's are driven by women so a minivan is only a natural addition to this brand

Come one VW, buy your own brain!!!!! It is extremelly similar than the Honda Odyssey. The Honda one has a 3.5 litre engine with 270 hp. Can this one compite against this engine???????

Bring it with a TDI badge on it and I'm in. If it had a diesel in it, they could put 20 more cup holders in it and I wouldn't care.

I know minivans are used to carry people but regardless of who's in them they're never driven fast. What's the point of a 270hp engine in a minivan. It's almost an oxymoron. Put a 2.0L - 2.4L 4 cylinder engine in it and call it a day. Consumers will appreciate the better fuel economy and they'll still be just as slow.

I second the TDI comment. I've been waiting for a diesel minivan to come along. The minivan is all about functionality, seems like diesel would be a logical choice. Even better, a series hybrid with diesel powerplant...

Just bring the european small van over, with the diesel. Using a chrysler product is not going to help you get the quality up.

God, they are even using Chryslers horrible engines.
VW is so not in the ballpark.

@ D!:

The first point of having a 270 hp 3.5 liter engine is that the van can get out of its own way if it needs to.

The second point is the smaller engines are no more efficient than the larger ones in moving larger vehicles around. All of the anecdotal evidence I've heard suggests that the 3.8l v6 in the caravan is more fuel efficient than the 3.3, which is more efficient than the 3.0, which is more efficient than the 2.4. The engine has to run higher all the time to produce the power to keep the vehicle moving.

I'm totally with JC, though: bring the 2.5 V6 TDI engine and its 28-36 mpg, and sell a million of 'em over here!

If you wanted to know how low VW can go...there using Chrysler crap

Its a Honda???

It is a Honda???

omg, Vw must be stupid or what,

Today, i saw the new dodge in I-95, omg that thing was fugly. It was like a big ass brick like the old scion xb.

good job vw for rebadgine something and not amkeing it looked slapped on in a day [2009 galant anyone] but it is the first US minivan that i would consider buying best is the the taraga/estima only sold in japan and australia

This thing looks like a Chrysler Minivan clone. Look at the sides of it and backend it looks almos exactly like the new boxey looking Chrysler Minivan.

Am I the only one that actually read the entire article? Of course it looks like a Chrysler! It shares the same body design and unibody platform and the Chrysler. I don't think I'd really compare the 4.0L to the Honda 3.5. I mean it's all Honda really has. It's the same engine that goes into their "truck".... I'd bet on the low end the 4.0 is a more torquey engine, while the 3.5 would be better at highway speeds. And like most everyone pointed out, the vast majority of minivans I meet on the road I get to pass. If you wanted a people mover, and you want it fast, and money isn't the object, there are a lot of over priced euro performance suv's out there.

? This seems kinda pointless? Brings nothing new to the market.

I know people who have and love older VW vans. (Vanagons, Westfalias, etc.) They aren't fast, handle like shopping carts loaded with cinder blocks, and CONSTANTLY break down.

However, they get good mileage, carry a ton of stuff, and, in camper form, are compact and very functional.

That's what I expect in a VW van. That's unique in the marketplace. If VW brought that to the market now, without the reliability issues, they'd sell like hotcakes. (Bratworst?)

But THIS? Pointless.

@ Matt

A 4 cylinder engine should be standard with the 6 cylinder being an option. In Europe VW sells a minivan called the Sharan with 6 different engine options: 3, 4 cylinders (1 being flex fuel, 1 turbo charged, and 1 naturally aspirated), a 6 cylinder, and 2 TDI's.

Minivan drivers don't usually drive fast. Remember the Toyota Previa? It was marketed as a sporty minivan, had good weight distribution due to it being mid-engined, and even though it had a 4 cylinder standard, there was a supercharger option.

This just doesn't seem like VW. They make nimble, efficient cars, not land yachts. The logical market demographic is the same as a sports wagon, and they already make the Passat wagon. I guess they couldn't turn down the markup potential.

It seems underpowered compared to other engines of similar size, and gas mileage will still suck compared to sports wagons like VW's own Passat, the Mazda3's and 6's, BMW's or the Volvo V-series. Of course the fun factor is near zero, too. Stay out of the fast lane please.

VW – What a disappointment. This is nothing more than a repackage Honda Odyssey. It no longer has the soul of a VW van. No headroom and no utility. I own a 93 Eurovan and have been waiting a long time. I guess I will have to convince the wife the Sprinter is our only choice for a camping/family van capable of carrying soccer teams, bikes and sheets of plywood. Why build the same vanilla Van like everyone else, when there is a big appetite for functional Van for active families, who don't need 13 cup holders and a video screen?

Someone should make a fast minivan. I don't have a family now, but if I could get an AWD 350+hp minivan w/ a stick shift once I had one it would be sweet. Of course, I'd be one of only 150 people worldwide interested in such a vehicle. Imagine getting burned from a stoplight by a minivan loaded down with a cargobag, bicycles on the back, luggage in the hatch and a 7 person family. That would be my American stupidity at it's best!

Am I the only one that sees VW taking parts from Chrysler as a step up for VW? They make absolute shitbox vehicles. Chrysler isn't much better, but it is better than VW. I don't understand how they are even still around.

Larry:

VW – What a disappointment. This is nothing more than a repackage Honda Odyssey. It no longer has the soul of a VW van. No headroom and no utility. I own a 93 Eurovan and have been waiting a long time. I guess I will have to convince the wife the Sprinter is our only choice for a camping/family van capable of carrying soccer teams, bikes and sheets of plywood. Why build the same vanilla Van like everyone else, when there is a big appetite for functional Van for active families, who don't need 13 cup holders and a video screen?

Larry, don't confuse an Odyssey with a chrysler product. Chrysler and VW could only hope to be so lucky.

This seems like a desperate attempt for VW's mission to compete with Toyota in sales volume. This is a relatively low buck investment for VW to reenter the minivan segment. That said, the Chrysler underpinnings are not class competitive and the interior materials are a class below the competition. (We have new Chrysler minivans in our company's fleet). Honda, Toyota and Kia/Hyundai pretty much own the minivan segment for good reason. They offer competitive powerful engines (between 240-265hp), superb interior materials and packaging and innovative features.

There goes the R&D for the updated Phaeton.

@ longdxcommuter,
A fleet vehicle is no comparison to a consumer vehicle. They are designed with cheaper material to make them more competitive for bulk orders.

I have seen the new Dodge and Chrysler Minivans and they have done a great job in improving the look and feel. It makes sense for VW to use them for an American people mover.

If they abandon the US market with this vehicle, consumers will still have parts of this van through Chrysler. (as long as they don't dissolve themselves.)

I cant believe VW is pairing up with the worst car manufacture in North America. Chrysler engines are the biggest peices of shit ever. Anytime I am driving and see a car burning oil its a Chrysler. When I am driving and see a car on the side if the road its a Chrysler. They are garbage and I am embaressed to say that i own a Vw. I have been waiting for a tdi van for years and the best they can do is this. Vans are not sports cars and should not be designed to have big engines and compete on pinks down the quarter mile, they are for point a to b transporting passangers in a safe manner and should be fuel efficient.. If you want to go fast buy a sports bike or car not a god dam mini van. After this poor decission Vw has made I will never buy Vw again. Now Vw is just in the market of building volume and making money than concentrating on quality and a peoples car. Fuck Vw and Fuck Chrysler they are both shit and deserve eachother.

I cant believe VW is pairing up with the worst car manufacture in North America. Chrysler engines are the biggest peices of shit ever. Anytime I am driving and see a car burning oil its a Chrysler. When I am driving and see a car on the side if the road its a Chrysler. They are garbage and I am embaressed to say that i own a Vw. I have been waiting for a tdi van for years and the best they can do is this. Vans are not sports cars and should not be designed to have big engines and compete on pinks down the quarter mile, they are for point a to b transporting passangers in a safe manner and should be fuel efficient.. If you want to go fast buy a sports bike or car not a god dam mini van. After this poor decission Vw has made I will never buy Vw again. Now Vw is just in the market of building volume and making money than concentrating on quality and a peoples car. Fuck Vw and Fuck Chrysler they are both shit and deserve eachother.

I cant believe VW is pairing up with the worst car manufacture in North America. Chrysler engines are the biggest peices of shit ever. Anytime I am driving and see a car burning oil its a Chrysler. When I am driving and see a car on the side if the road its a Chrysler. They are garbage and I am embaressed to say that i own a Vw. I have been waiting for a tdi van for years and the best they can do is this. Vans are not sports cars and should not be designed to have big engines and compete on pinks down the quarter mile, they are for point a to b transporting passangers in a safe manner and should be fuel efficient.. If you want to go fast buy a sports bike or car not a god dam mini van. After this poor decission Vw has made I will never buy Vw again. Now Vw is just in the market of building volume and making money than concentrating on quality and a peoples car. Fuck Vw and Fuck Chrysler they are both shit and deserve eachother.