The highlight of Volkswagen’s booth at the 2011 Commercial Vehicle Show, besides the mighty Amarok, is the new version of the Crafter van which will hit UK market this Summer.
The goals for the Crafter van were simple: increased payloads and improvements in efficiency, emissions and running costs. So besides the current range of five-cylinder, 2.5-litre BlueTDI engines with Euro 5 standards, VW also offers a its latest four-cylinder, 2.0-litre, common rail TDI engines (as in the Amarok) for the car. Power outputs will compare with the current engine range, but with increased torque and efficiency.
Volkswagen believes that with the upgraded engine lineup, the Crafter will be able to achieve CO2 emissions as low as 195 g/km. Running costs could also be reduced by up to 25 per cent thanks to better fuel consumption and lower servicing costs.
Later this year, Volkswagen BlueMotion Technology combined with a Start/Stop system and battery regeneration is also expected to be introduced for the new Crafter. They will achieve the payload increase through weight savings from the new engines, along with other technical modifications.
Since the looks is the least important factor for vans, the new Crafter only gets a new front grille, refreshed in line with the modern Volkswagen design DNA. It also gets new upholstery and redesigned instruments inside the cabin.
