2025 Volkswagen Transporter gets new styling and upgraded tech
The new Volkswagen Transporter will offer more carrying capacity and VW's latest infotainment. Here's what you need to know...
On sale Spring 2025 Price £35,000 (est)
Does what it says on the tin. It’s a slogan that’s served Ronseal well for many years but that no-nonsense ethos applies equally well to vans. The Ford Transit is always in transit. The Mercedes Sprinter sprints. And, since its name was introduced in 1979, the Volkswagen Transporter has transported.
VW’s medium-sized van has been around for a lot longer than 45 years of course, and such is the enthusiasm for it that a new version is more of an event than for many other models. It replaces the Transporter 6.1 and, pragmatically, is simply called the Transporter – with no confusing numbering to worry about.
As with the closely-related Ford Transit custom, the new Transporter will be available with a range of diesel and plug-in hybrid engines, plus an all-electric version called the Volkswagen e-Transporter.
While the Transporter has long been a van people desire rather than require, the new model has more cargo-carrying capacity than before. The standard model is longer and wider than the current version, and the wheelbase (the distance between the front and rear wheels) is longer. There’s a greater gap between the rear-wheel housing too. All that should make it easier to load Euro pallets into the 5.8m3 cargo area.
The standard-length model records a maximum payload of 1.33 tonnes, up from 1.28 tonnes of the most capable version in the current Transporter range. A long-wheelbase model will be available, with a 400mm longer wheelbase and a commensurate increase in overall length. In models with a high roof, total load capacity stands at 9.0m3.
As with the current model – and indeed its closest rivals including the Ford Transit Custom and Vauxhall Vivaro – the new Transporter will be available in a range of configurations. They'll include panel vans with two or three seats, a six-seat crew van and, uniquely for a van of this size, a six-seat double-cab dropside.
A four-wheel-drive version, called the Panamericana, has also been announced, with rugged bodystyling, 19in alloy wheels and more advanced LED headlights than are available elsewhere in the range. However, Volkswagen is yet to confirm whether this version will come to the UK.
Technical specifications are yet to be released, but the Transporter will be built in the same factory as the Ford Transit Custom, and the two vehicles will share engines, motors and batteries. As such, expect 2.0-litre diesel engines producing 108 or 134bhp and a plug-in hybrid capable of up to 35 miles on a charge. The electric e-Transporter should be capable of matching the Ford e-Transit Custom’s 209-miles range and 100 and 160kW outputs.
As with other models produced as part of an agreement between Ford and Volkswagen, the Transit and Transporter should look very different inside and out, and will have their own suspension settings, so are expected to offer their own driving experiences.
The 2025 VW Transporter features a 12in customisable digital instrument display alongside a 13in infotainment touchscreen with DAB+, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. The tech is expected to be similar to the system in the VW ID 7 so we'd expect it be responsive with crisp graphics, but possibly a little fiddly to use.
A storage tray in the centre console can house an optional wireless phone-charging device, and depending on the configuration of the van, there are up to seven USB-A, USB-C and 12V sockets. Buyers will be able to add an optional 230V/400W power hub, which can be paired with an inverter for a 2.3kW supply on plug-in hybrid versions.
As with previous Transporters, the design of the new van is evolution, not revolution, but while the final production model is yet to be seen, Volkswagen’s designers reference the VW ID Buzz suggesting that it may have a more creative design than before. Wheels will range in size from 16in to 19in, and the largest are available with a diamond-cut finish.
The rear end has been completely redesigned and will offer buyers the choice of a top-hinged tailgate or side-hinged barn doors. In either case, the doors extend low into the rear bumper to reduce the height of the sill, making it easier to load cargo. The fuel filler flap remains at the foot of the van’s B-pillar, while on PHEV versions the charging flap is beneath the right-hand headlight to make pulling up to a charger and plugging in easier.
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