Considering a Multivan purchase, some advice needed re towing and costs

[rhiand14]

Hi all,
I am a newbie here and have already learned plenty from reading all the posts - which is why I have now decided we need to buy a Multivan!

We need a people mover that can sit at least 6 (2 adults and 4 kids aged 6,4,2 and baby) and accomodate four car seats/boosters. I would love some others experiences of a multivan and larger family. How has it worked for you? Does it fit a family comfortably? I want a car that will accomodate us as the kids get bigger which is why I have moved away from the Kia Grand Carnival and Hyundai iMax etc

We are also keen to purchase a caravan in the years to come and are hoping that a Multivan will be able to tow it reasonably well. I have been reading about ball weights and the vehicle specs given to us by VW dealer was that Multivan only has a ball weight of 100kg. But I have also read posts talking about larger ball weights with a different tow pack (as opposed to VW factory tow pack). Any experiences towing with a Multivan? What can it handle weight wise etc?

Having never owned a VW we are also uncertain about service costs etc. What does it cost to maintain a Multivan? What are the significant costs etc? Any serious services that will cost us a fortune?

Hope the knowledgeable VW owners out there can help us (and help me convince hubby that a VW is the way to go - I don't want to be driving a Grand Carnival)

Thanks! Rhiannon

[The_Hawk]

We have just bought a new Multivan and love it! We only have the two kids at the moment but are working on the next one

We have the kids seats in the second row which makes getting into the back row a little difficult (since you can't flip the seats down).

So you have two choices, either let the older kids that can seat themselves climb into the back row, which they can do without issue which leave you with easy access to the kids seats in the second row.

In reality any car is likely to have the same issue, it's worth considering the Caravelle LWB for extra room, but then you loose the sliding seats.

Personally I love our van and wouldn't swap it for anything

[thevwbug]

Hi,
We have had our multi for almost 2 years, moved to it from a 4wd 7 seater, i too have 4 kids 2,6,9,13. sliding seats makes life super easy as we are always changing things to suit what we are doing.
On trips the multi has plenty of space for the kids to do what they want and are not sitting to close to each other.
I kept away from Kia as i wanted something to last. with the multi the kids can walk all the way though from front to back easy for picking up from school on a rainy day, we never have used the table it has allways lived in the garage.
Servicing is not to bad as it every 15,000 kms only once a year for us.
Around $300 for minor not though a dealer.
As for towing I have not done any.
We all love our van
Good Luck
The Bug

[TRIVETT]

Less stress is best, try before you buy

We are also "newbie" but I like all prospective purchasers to enjoy the " thrill "of a new vehicle, I will gladly loan you our Multivan demo for a " family " test if it helps you, & after you borrow it he won,t want a Carnival either !
Wes

Hi all,
I am a newbie here and have already learned plenty from reading all the posts - which is why I have now decided we need to buy a Multivan!

We need a people mover that can sit at least 6 (2 adults and 4 kids aged 6,4,2 and baby) and accomodate four car seats/boosters. I would love some others experiences of a multivan and larger family. How has it worked for you? Does it fit a family comfortably? I want a car that will accomodate us as the kids get bigger which is why I have moved away from the Kia Grand Carnival and Hyundai iMax etc

We are also keen to purchase a caravan in the years to come and are hoping that a Multivan will be able to tow it reasonably well. I have been reading about ball weights and the vehicle specs given to us by VW dealer was that Multivan only has a ball weight of 100kg. But I have also read posts talking about larger ball weights with a different tow pack (as opposed to VW factory tow pack). Any experiences towing with a Multivan? What can it handle weight wise etc?

Having never owned a VW we are also uncertain about service costs etc. What does it cost to maintain a Multivan? What are the significant costs etc? Any serious services that will cost us a fortune?

Hope the knowledgeable VW owners out there can help us (and help me convince hubby that a VW is the way to go - I don't want to be driving a Grand Carnival)

Thanks! Rhiannon

[Umai Naa!!]

There are other towbars on the market which may allow for an increased tow ball weight.

The wiring however, on the new T5 GP will need to be supplied and fitted by VW. It's quite comprehensive, and its control module requires programming.

[blaast]

We purchased a 2009 8 seat Caravelle a few months ago and absolutely LOVE it (http://www.vwwatercooled.org.au/f40/...tml#post543833)!
It fits our 4 kids (8yo, 5yo, 4yo and 21mo) perfectly, with plenty of room to spare, especially the boot!
My 5 foot tall wife loves driving it, and vision out of the vehicle is fantastic.
On the highway it averages just 8L/100km, sometimes less!

We purchased from Burwin VW in Ferntree Gully who let us take the vehicle home overnight (we live ~40km from them) after putting down a $500 fully refundable deposit.

Out of interest, and to make sure I had made the right decision (and being male probably had something to do with it too), I checked out the other players (iMax, Carnival, Tarago), and they felt like toys compared to the VW. I nearly ripped the sliding door off of the Carnival it was so light!

[thevwbug]

There are other towbars on the market which may allow for an increased tow ball weight.

The wiring however, on the new T5 GP will need to be supplied and fitted by VW. It's quite comprehensive, and its control module requires programming.

From experience the tow limits are set by car manufacturer and tow bar manufactures simply follow this. So you will find max max tow ball download will be 100kgs.
I had this on my Touareg where VW had increased down load limit to 350kgs and with documentation Hayman and Reese were happy to send me new compliance to fit to bar it was handy for them as they didnt know of this change.

[Cousin]

Having never owned a VW we are also uncertain about service costs etc. What does it cost to maintain a Multivan? What are the significant costs etc? Any serious services that will cost us a fortune?

Have in the past had three VW's at the one time. The service and parts costs were killing me.
We looked up some independant Volkswagen specialists, and chose one we thought was very good.

Service costs were nearly half, parts mostly a third, and the knowledge left dealers for dead.

If I had no choice but to go to a dealer for servicing, I wouldn't still be driving Volkswagens as the cost would be too great.

The funny thing is, the independant guy keeps people in Volkswagens, like me, so he is a very necessary element of Volkswagen dealers, keeps them in sales, and sometimes helps them when they get stuck.

So it's in your interest to shop around.


M

[Umai Naa!!]

Service costs-wise, from a dealership point of view, brakes and fluids are the most expenisive things I've noticed. Bare in mind, these are all genuine Volkswagen things, so cheaper alternatives are always an option for the DIY'er, or an independant workshop.

[Cousin]

Bare in mind, these are all genuine Volkswagen things, so cheaper alternatives are always an option for the DIY'er, or an independant workshop.

Independant workshops can still access genuine parts, they just don't have the logos on them.


M

[blaast]

Service costs were nearly half, parts mostly a third, and the knowledge left dealers for dead.

Would you care to elaborate...who, and how much for a 'typical' service?

[Umai Naa!!]

Think of a number, and double it! :p

[njg02]

We've had our Transporter since about '06. Hayman Reece style towbar with I think 100kg ball weight. I tow a boat up and down the coast which is about 1800kg. All up weight 3.98t. I've moved the boat up the trailer to increase the down load and from memory have it at about 80kg. Dual axle trailer. Going to the Whitsundays in about a month. Should be a good trip.
I get mine serviced at a local vdub specialist, lots of knowledge! Best economy was over 1200km, Brisbane to Campbelltown with a side trip to Nelson Bay.

Neil

[chellimofo]

our multivan is great. i have had it for over 4 mths now and i run it as a 5 seater for our fam of 5. SUPER easy to remove seats and chop and change as needed. i fitted the genuine tow bar and installed the MASSIVE wire loom myself. WHAT A JOB!

i have had it as a 3 seater with ALL of our camping gear up to the bottom of the windows, and towed a box trailer (overloaded with wood) at about 900kg and the 132 tdi pulled it like a steam train. the power is crazzy. the ball weight of 100kg is enough for me. it tows very well. the brakes are awesome, with those massive discs (almost 14" ) our rig was easy to pull up with our gear.

went down to the coast (me,wife,mum and 3 kids) and we left one seat out so we could get in and out easy, took all our gear inc a big stroller for our son. no probs with space.

with the centre seats looking backwards i think it makes getting in and out easy-er.

also the fuel consumption is crap. i drove like a granny for one tank fill and i got 771kms on 80 ltrs with the 7 spd DSG (4000kms on clock) with my 2002 t4 tdi i got over 1100kms on 80 ltrs with the 5 spd man. (but it was a van)

[Cousin]

Would you care to elaborate...who, and how much for a 'typical' service?

Blast, go and have a chat with John at Volkshome
Can't recommend him highly enough
And he's just down the road from you

also the fuel consumption is crap. i drove like a granny for one tank fill and i got 771kms on 80 ltrs with the 7 spd DSG (4000kms on clock) with my 2002 t4 tdi i got over 1100kms on 80 ltrs with the 5 spd man. (but it was a van)

chellimofo, don't drive it like a granny. It's a diesel, they designed to run under load, and they're more efficient having to work
I miss the fuel consumption of my T4 too
It was Transporter as well, but weighed around 2.5 ton with gear permanently installed
So not much excuse with the T5 coming in around 2.3 ton
I get about 950 ks to 80 litres, with 133,000 ks on the clock, and it's a 128 kw
Give it some time, fuel consumption will improve

M