Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles had its annual press conference this week to announce plans for 2023. We were expecting to see teaser images of the ID. Buzz GTX and/or LWB but instead we heard news of a different boxy minivan. CEO Carsten Intra revealed the Multivan T7 will receive the camper treatment later this year as a new California. It will be part of the “California Universe” to provide more camping models and better support for owners.
“We want to expand the range around the business with our camping models – and thus offer our customers that special California feeling. These include digital services for the Cali Community, completely new services to complement the purchase of a vehicle… but also the show car presentation of the new California based on the Multivan. We are planning these for later in the year.”
Details about the new camper were not disclosed, but we’re expecting the outdoorsy vehicle to be offered with a plug-in hybrid powertrain. Based on the omnipresent MQB platform, the regular Multivan combines a turbocharged 1.4-liter gasoline engine with an electric motor, a 13-kWh lithium-ion battery pack, and a seven-speed DSG. VW Commercial Vehicle also sells the van with 1.5 TSI and 2.0 TSI engines and a 2.0 TDI.
During the press conference, Carsten Intra also announced VW Commercial Vehicles is working on a plug-in hybrid Caddy (which has already been spied undergoing testing) and a next-generation electric Crafter. Jointly developed with Ford, a new Transporter workhorse will premiere in 2024.
In addition, the production-ready ID. Buzz AD will arrive in 2025 when the purely electric van is expected to spawn a California camper version to follow the Multivan.
Meanwhile, Carsten Intra said the Ranger-based Amarok is already at some dealers and went on to describe it as a “real Amarok” despite its Ford underpinnings.
The US-bound ID. Buzz with a long wheelbase will premiere in June and go on sale in the US in 2024. The dual-motor, all-wheel-drive GTX with 335 horsepower is also expected to break cover this year. A non-GTX version with AWD is also under consideration.
