What Van? Britain's biggest and best van buyers' guide

The Caddy started its life in Europe in 1982, but can trace its lineage back to 1979 and the VW Rabbit Pick-up in the US. Based on the mk1 Golf, there was even a Caddy Sport – a sort of pick-up GTI if you will – and I remember testing one for a magazine in the early 1990s (a rare machine – if you have one let us know, and hang on to it).

By 1995 the Caddy was a panel van, sharing its design with the Seat Inca, a short-lived model once Seat was deemed to be the sporty badge within the VW empire. A later VW attempt at a return to the pick-up sector was a Skoda Favorit-based flop, and other than briefly re-badging the Toyota Hilux as the VW Taro, Volkswagen would not return to pick-ups until the Amarok…

What you get

This third generation of the Caddy appeared in 2003 – facelifts in 2010 and 2015 expanded the range and gave sharper styling – and a revised engine range, post VW emissions scandal, offered more power and torque plus met the Euro6 regulations.

The Caddy’s 1.6- and 2.0-litre TDI engines are well-proven within the Volkswagen Group, powering everything from the TT to the Transporter. They  offer four power outputs: 75hp and 102hp in the 1.6-litre, with the 2.0-litre boasting 110hp and 140hp. That’s right up there with VW and Audi ranges of sporty hatchbacks and more than enough power for the working day, but the 75hp might be a little weak for continual fully laden or towing tasks.
The LWB Caddy Maxi and Caddy Maxi Life add another dimension to the range – quite literally, with a 320mm  longer wheelbase than the standard-wheelbase sibling.

The Caddy Maxi Life features two rows of seats and  a cargo volume of 0.53m³. Both rows of seats can  be folded or removed entirely to create 3.7m³ of space. Various limited editions such as the Black are not really worth the extra money, however.