VW Crafter long-term test

VW Crafter long-term test - Final Report

Date: Thursday, September 12, 2019 | Author: Steve Banner

4th Report

How good a motorway cruiser is the Crafter?

It was something I was able to assess when I headed down the M50 and M5 from Ross-on-Wye in Herefordshire to Taunton in Somerset.

There is no doubt that the Crafter handles remarkably well, offers a slick gearchange or that it provides the driver with a comfortable working environment. Lots of head-, leg- and shoulder room is always welcome, but especially so on a long journey.

It feels solidly planted on the highway too.

Its unladen ride is a touch nervous, but that is a characteristic of all big LCVs when they are asked to tackle Britain’s atrocious highways. Put some weight in the back and the suspension soon calms down.

As it happens I was lightly laden on my M50/M5 trek, and while I am mostly pleased with the Crafter’s on-highway performance, I found I was having to drop down a gear – sometimes two – whenever I encountered even a modest motorway incline in order to keep pace with the surrounding traffic. Normal service resumed when I got back onto a flat section of highway, and the Crafter was soon back up to the motorway speed limit. Nor was I entirely happy with the level of in-cab noise. Travelling on the motorway at speed in a big van is never going to be an entirely silent experience, but engine, wind and tyre noise were all a tad too high for my liking.

Answer? Turn the radio up – and the Crafter is happily blessed with a quality radio and a touchscreen that makes it easy to change stations.

I’m not a huge fan of cruise control, but our Crafter is equipped with it so I thought I’d try it on some of the M5’s quieter stretches. The controls are mounted on the steering wheel, are simple to operate, and the system works fine if you feel you need it and its use is justified by the prevailing traffic conditions.

Although I was wide awake, well-rested, sticking to the speed limit and not veering out of lane, the Driver Alert System triggered regularly, accompanied by a beep and the symbol of a cup of coffee on the instrument cluster display.

After a while I found this irritating but have subsequently discovered you can switch it off.

Looking in the handbook to find which buttons to press I found that the system does not always work on poor roads, roads with bends, in bad weather, if the driver is distracted or if the Crafter is hauling a long, heavy trailer. It will struggle if the vehicle is loaded unevenly too.

A long run at a steady, legal speed on a still, dry day plus the use of cruise control meant that at around 35mpg I got closer to the official, combined fuel consumption figure of 36.2mpg than I have previously. I remained a little bit short of the 38.7mpg official extra-urban mileage figure, but diesel usage seems to be heading in the right direction.

NEW Crafter Int It’s a thumbs up for the touchscreen and radio

Report Card: Build quality = 5/5
Volkswagen’s light commercial vehicles are famously well put together and the big Crafter is no exception to the rule.

VW Crafter CR35 LWB Trendline 2.0 TDI 140hp 6-spd manual RWD

Mileage    1,642
Official combined consumption    36.2mpg
Our average consumption    33.0mpg
Price (ex VAT)    £33,280
Price range (ex VAT) £23,920-£33,655
Warranty 3yrs/unlimited mileage
Service intervals       2yrs/30,000mls
Load length       4,300mm
Load width (min/max) 1,380/1,832mm
Load bay height       1,861mm
Gross payload    1,267kg
Load volume    13.6m³
Engine size/power    1,968cc/140hp
Gearbox   6-spd manual
CO2   203g/km

Options

Business Pack £1,265

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