Life not quite a beach with the VW Caddy
The Caddy Beach is one of a long line of van-derived vehicles dreamt up by those in the VW design office who have obviously either got a lot of time on their hands, or who spend all of their holidays driving around camping.
Of course, VW campers have been with us since God was a small boy, but the company seems intent on giving each and every one of its’ commercial vehicles a multi-faceted character.
Indeed, they have already done this with the Transporter, which they first turned into the Caravelle MPV and then into the California — a fully blown camper. With the Caddy, they have done something similar, by making an MPV and now a mini-camper which they call the Caddy Beach.
Now I would not be a big camping fan; indeed I’m more along the lines of the guy in The Lemonheads song ‘The Outdoor Type’ who, in his efforts to woo a girl pretends to be a bit of an action man, but eventually confesses: ‘I lied about being the outdoor type/ I never owned a sleeping bag, let alone a mountain bike.’
Yes, I can identify with that guy — who always had a roof over his head, always paid the rent and never set foot inside a tent. But there are many of you out there who, I know, love all that sleeping under the stars malarkey and for some of that number the Caddy Beach will fulfil their needs.
For a start it has a double bed in the back, so add amorous to adventurous. It also has lots of screens for the prudent and a big sort of open tenty thing which you can attach to the rear door to allow for mild barbecuing — or for the more rambunctious among you, a bit of outdoor knee-trembling.
But, be warned, this is — in old currency — a two-man thing. With the double bed in the back, there’s little room for the kids under the stars, unless you park them in the driver and passenger seats.
You need a bigger van for that crack, unless you and the wife insist on offsprings’ comfort first, whereupon the two of you will be Adam and Eve-ing it up front, with little chance of any serpent rearing its head.
The mechanics of this van are uncomplicated: 150 bhp turbodiesel engine, great economy and tax efficiency, although I don’t know if there are any tax-breaks for leisure transport, as against van wheels, but I doubt it. The spec isn’t bad and you will be able to connect to most of the world unless you make it as far as western Turkmenistan.
In fairness, given the robustness of the vehicle, that may not be a problem mechanically, but having given the bed a quick twirl, I’m not sure the body will last as long. It is not — and I don’t care how well-intentioned you are — the sort of bedding you get at home — or in a two star hotel. In fact, a Neapolitan pensione bed comes to mind — about as much comfort as a coffee table and nearly as short.
I suspect sales will be pretty limited, especially as this thing does not come cheap and I truly don’t know of many people who would spend such a large amount of money on such a frippery.
