TheVolkswagen Transporter,based on theVolkswagen Group's T platform, now in its seventh generation, refers to a series of vans produced for over 70 years and marketed worldwide.
| Volkswagen Transporter | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Overview | |
| Manufacturer | Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles |
| Also called |
|
| Production | November 1949 – present |
| Assembly | Germany:Hanover |
| Body and chassis | |
| Class | Light commercial vehicle/Large MPV(Multivan/Caravelle) (M) |
| Body style |
|
The T series is now considered an officialVolkswagen Group automotive platform.[1][2]and generations are sequentially named T1, T2, T3, T4, T5, T6 and T7. Pre-dating theT platformdesignations, the first three generations were namedType 2,indicating their relative position to theType 1,or Beetle. As part of theT platform,the first three generations are retroactively named T1, T2 and T3.
The Transporter is the best-selling van in history with over 12 million units sold worldwide,[3]and it comprises a gamut of variants includingvans,minivans/minibuses,campervans,andchassis cabandpickup trucks.Competitors include theFord Transit,Toyota HiAceandMercedes-Benz Vito.
Type 2
editT1 (1950)
editInitially derived from the Volkswagen Type 1 (Volkswagen Beetle), theVolkswagen Type 2 (T1)was the first generation ofVolkswagen's Transporter family.
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T1 (front) -
T1 (rear)
T2 (1967)
editTheVolkswagen T2platform[2]was marketed from 1967 through 1979 model years, with aVolkswagen Type 4 engineoptionally available from 1972 on.
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T2 -
T2b Camper
T3 (1979)
editTheVolkswagen (Type 2) T3 Transporter,also known asT25in the UK orVW Vanagonin the United States, was introduced in 1979. The T3 Transporter was one of the last all-new bodied Volkswagen platforms that still used anair-cooled,rear-engine design.
Compared to its predecessor, (the T2), the T3 was sturdier and heavier, with a slightly larger, much more square and boxy body, that offered more usable interior space than the original models' rounded front side, roof, and edges. The T3, with its front now folding sharply along a horizontal middle axis, instead of the old model's curve, is sometimes called "the wedge" by enthusiasts, to differentiate it from earlier VW "Kombis".
TheVolkswagen air-cooledboxer enginewas supplanted by awater-cooledone – though still rear-mounted – in 1983. BothPorscheandOettingerbuilt six-cylinder versions of the T3 Transporter in very small numbers, with the Porsche-built version achieving a top speed around 200 km/h (125 mph).
Afour-wheel driveSyncromodel was introduced, premiering in January 1985.[4]
While production of the T3 ended in Europe with the Syncro produced in Austria until 1992, the T3 was also produced in South Africa, until 2002.
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T3 (front) -
T3 (rear)
Transporter/Multivan
editT4 (1990)
editThe first officially designated "T platform" vehicle, theVolkswagen Transporter (T4)[1]dramatically updated the Volkswagen van line by using afront-mounted,front-wheel drive,water-cooled engine. The T4 was marketed in North America as the Volkswagen Eurovan.
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T4 (front) -
T4 (rear)
T5 (2003)
edit2003 (pre-facelift)
editTheVolkswagen Transporter (T5)[1][2]is a variant of the Volkswagen T platform. In North America it was sold in Mexico but not in the United States nor Canada. As with other light trucks, the T5 range would face a 25% tariff, known as thechicken tax,if imported to the US.
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T5 (front; pre-facelift) -
T5 (rear; pre-facelift)
2009 (facelift)
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T5 (front; facelift) -
T5 (rear; facelift)
The Transporter T5 range received afaceliftin late 2009. Updatedpowertrainoptions includecommon raildiesel engines, and a world-first usage in a light commercial vehicle of adual clutch transmission– namely Volkswagen Group's 7-speedDirect-Shift Gearbox(DSG).
T6 (2016)
editIn 2016, Volkswagen released the T6 Transporter which is based on the T5 Transporter. A refreshed version was first shown in 2019 as the T6.1 Transporter.
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T6 (front; facelift) -
T6 (rear; facelift)
T7
editMultivan (2022)
editThe T7 was released in November 2021 with petrol, diesel and PHEV variants and is only available as a minivan, replacing the Caravelle model for the U.K. market and Multivan in other markets. The T7 Multivan is based on Volkswagen's MQB platform.
The T7 Multivan is not to be confused with the new Volkswagen Transporter panel van and chassis cab models, which will be based on the new2023 Ford Transit Customand will be a larger vehicle than the Multivan. The new Transporter shares the vast majority of its body and mechanical components with the Transit, which will be built alongside the new VW Transporter at theFord Otosanfactory in Turkey.
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T7 Multivan (front) -
T7 Multivan (rear)
Transporter (2024)
editIn December 2023, the T7 Transporter was officially teased with diesel, PHEV and electric powertrains, with a launch scheduled for the second quarter of 2024.[5]
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T7 Transporter (front) -
T7 Transporter (rear)
See also
editReferences
edit- ^abc"Europe's slight rise & anticipated decline – Auto by the Numbers – car sales, production in Western Europe – Illustration – Statistical Data Included".Automotive Design & Production, April 2002 by Mark Fulthorpe / Gardner Publications, Inc. / Gale Group.CBS Interactive Business UK. 2002.Retrieved17 December2009.
- ^abc"Im Fokus: Volkswagen – Kernkompetenz: Sparen"(PDF).CSM Worldwide(in German). Automobil-Produktion.de. March 2006. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 18 July 2011.Retrieved17 December2009.
- ^"Top 20 best-selling vans of all time".Parkers Van News.Bauer Media. 2015.Retrieved12 August2015.
- ^Verhelle, Tony (7 February 1985). "63e salon voor bedrijfsvoertuigen: Geen schokkende dingen" [The 63rd commercial vehicle exhibition: Nothing shocking].De AutoGids(in Flemish).6(140). Brussels, Belgium: Uitgeverij Auto-Magazine: 19.
- ^Bell, Sebastien (11 December 2023)."VW T7 Transporter Officially Teased With Diesel, PHEV, And All-Electric Powertrains".Carscoops.
External links
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