The Caddy is a popular small van wherever you go, but this Maxi Life might be stretching things too far. However, you certainly get a lot of space, and flexible space at that, so if you need to carry seven people and/or a whole lot of cargo, could this be an economical option?

This has to be partly about space. Not outer, but the inner space of the Maxi Life. Well, there is plenty of that. If you take out the second and third rows of seats you then liberate 3370 litres of space, which is more than the size of some London flats. That’s simply vast, and you get a low, flat floor to it to.

Put the seats back in and you now have sensible space for seven people. That’s pretty good all round. And the roof is high too. But one of the reasons you have that nice low, flat floor is because this thing has leaf springs at the rear. And that’s not a marvellous suspension system for something that carries people these days.

It’s rough and ready in the handling and ride department, as you’d expect since this is basically a primped up commercial van. Actually the handling isn’t bad, particularly if it has some weight in the body, but it does of course lean a fair bit before the fronts wash gently out. The ride is a bit crashy too over poor surfaces.

However, to make the Caddy understeer you have to be giving the engine quite a lot to do. In the van we drove there was a 1.4-litre turbocharged petrol engine, the 123bhp TSI, mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch auto box. There is the choice of a 1.0-litre petrol engine or a brace of 2.0-litre diesels.

The TSI motor is perfectly pleasant if you’re just tootling about, and it works well with the transmission. But if you try to get a move on then you have to give it a bit of a thrashing to gain necessary momentum. Naturally that brings in some noise and it doesn’t do the fuel consumption any favours either. We were getting high-30s but not more.

Inside it’s practical and well built but you’d never mistake the origins for anything other than a commercial van. And that’s the problem, however much carpet or trinkets you add, you can’t hide where this van came from.

Ultimately, a straightforward MPV might be better if you need the seats and the space although you would struggle to beat the space of this Caddy Maxi Life. But something like a VW Sharan was built for the job and is a better driving experience, along with a better cabin.


Volkswagen Caddy Maxi Life 1.4 TSI 125 DSG

Location: West Sussex

On sale: Now

Price: £24,647

Engine: 4 cyls, 1395cc, turbocharged, petrol

Power: 123bhp at 5000-6000rpm

Torque: 162lb ft at 1500-3500rpm

Gearbox: 7-spd dual-clutch automatic

Kerb weight: 1687kg

0-62mph: 10.9sec

Top speed: 114mph

Economy: 48.7mpg (combined)

CO2/tax band: 133g/km, 21%