Thinking about taking the Caravelle plunge

[Jonesy68]

Hi everyone. I have been thinking about swapping in our 7 seater car for a Caravelle on and off for a couple of years.
We love camping but would mainly use it as our daily drive so can't really look at a California.
I know the back seats fold flat but do they work well as a bed?
Trying to work out if we are better off trying to find a good high spec T6 or see what deals the dealers are doing on the 6.1. Hopefully we would look to keep it for some time so not sure if we should hold out for the 6.1.
Thanks
Jonesy

 

[Mike1969]

Hi - don’t know if this helps but I recently went through the same buying process and ended up buying a Shuttle rather than a Caravelle. 2019 (69 plate) very last of the T6s rather than a 6.1 at both a fraction of the cost of a T6.1 but also, importantly, at a fraction of the cost of a Caravelle. We were left scratching our heads as to why Caravelles are so expensive compared with a Shuttle which seemed almost identical. No doubt someone more knowledgeable on here will jump in and explain. Enjoy looking - it’s part of the fun! Mike.

 

[Purdster]

Bought a Caravelle in 2017 and it’s the best car we’ve had - it’s expensive but much more car like than van like - suspect that’s where a lot of the money goes. Had a transporter when mine was serviced and that wasn’t comparable. We’ve not slept in it but rate the multi flex board for functionality. We’ve ended up buying a caravan for camping and it’s an awesome setup combining day out van and comfy camping
ill be having another when this one gets too old....

 

[Mike1969]

Bought a Caravelle in 2017 and it’s the best car we’ve had - it’s expensive but much more car like than van like - suspect that’s where a lot of the money goes. Had a transporter when mine was serviced and that wasn’t comparable. We’ve not slept in it but rate the multi flex board for functionality. We’ve ended up buying a caravan for camping and it’s an awesome setup combining day out van and comfy camping
ill be having another when this one gets too old....

Fair. I think I struggled between £23k and £36k - like for like, age & mileage. I preferred the Shuttle and £13k in the bank. But that’s me - suggest this guy looks at both and decides for himself. Personal choice, but looking at both definitely worthwhile. Cheers, Mike

 

[jengledow]

Hi, I'm also looking at a Caravelle, but plan to permanently remove the middle seats and just use the bench. I've seen this thread and looked at the Shuttle which seems to tick a lot of boxes (including easier to fit a pop top later if needed), but I worry I'd miss the flexibility allowed by the sliding bench? How do other Shuttle owners find it? I know I could retrofit the sliding rails, but by the time I've paid for them and factored in the sale of the two captains seats and table I may as well buy the Caravelle with factory fitted rails!

 

[ScottyMac]

Hi everyone. I have been thinking about swapping in our 7 seater car for a Caravelle on and off for a couple of years.
We love camping but would mainly use it as our daily drive so can't really look at a California.
I know the back seats fold flat but do they work well as a bed?
Trying to work out if we are better off trying to find a good high spec T6 or see what deals the dealers are doing on the 6.1. Hopefully we would look to keep it for some time so not sure if we should hold out for the 6.1.
Thanks
Jonesy

I had the same discussion with myself a year ago... decided a Caravelle was better as a daily driver than the Cali but still gives the option of overnighting on what is a much bigger bed than the cali. Then came the 6 vs 6.1 discussion... I really like the T6 so was quite happy to drive away in what was by then the "old" model. There wasn't much choice that ticked all my spec boxes so my used options were a bit thin at the time. A quick run through of financing with the dealer demonstrated that there was be very little cost increase if I were to order a brand new 6.1 to my spec, so I bit the bullet and done the deal.

This is where I need to get negative....

It seems that Caravelle Execs have a longer lead time than other variants (I've had no explanation why, the only major difference being all the additional sound proofing), but I was assured I'd have mine in 12-14 weeks. Unfortunately covid meant the factory shut for a few weeks (weeks 12-15 I believe) so there was a backlog of new builds. I was eventually given a confirmed build week of week 30 which came and went without any news and it was only when I decided to chase that I found out that they hadn't started building it nearly 4 weeks after the confirmed build date. As of yesterday, I'm still waiting to hear when it will be built, so probably won't take delivery until late October/early November (if things go well).

Moral of the story... if you want a new 6.1 for next summer, get your order in now and don't believe the dealer when they say things are back to 12 week turnarounds!

 

[Jonesy68]

Thanks Scott, that's very interesting. You are the second person to say there was only a small difference in price between buying a new Caravelle.

I wouldn't want the espy to to too long but I think as long as I end up with what I want at a good price I don't mind waiting.

Out of interest did you need to add many extras. The more I look the more opp extras I notice on used ones. The list just seems to be growing

 

[ScottyMac]

Thanks Scott, that's very interesting. You are the second person to say there was only a small difference in price between buying a new Caravelle.

I wouldn't want the espy to to too long but I think as long as I end up with what I want at a good price I don't mind waiting.

Out of interest did you need to add many extras. The more I look the more opp extras I notice on used ones. The list just seems to be growing

Some of the extras that people specced on T6 are now standard on 6.1 such as adaptive cruise control. My options were a couple of electronics... tyre pressure monitoring, side assist, pro head unit (so I could use satnav on digital dash), and a few hardware items... acoustic glass, increased fuel tank size, good night pack. If I were doing it again, I would also order the removable tow-bar but I can get that fitted aftermarket so I'm not massively fussed.

 

[Purdster]

Good options I had the acoustic glass, goodnight pack, acc, full beam assist, towbar, aux heater, upgraded stereo, larger fuel tank, led headlights. Agree quite a lot is on the 6.1 as standard now. Trouble is when you start ticking options it’s difficult to stop.... the base model with no options is still pretty good. I did get lucky on one aspect. I ordered a manual but it turned up with DSG as they stopped making the 4motion in manual between me ordering and them eventually getting the build right (I refused the first van they built as it was missing standard functionality)

 

[Jordy]

I am swapping out my Seat Alhambra for a T6.1 Caravelle Exec - I quite like my gadgets so going for the Exec was a no-brainer and I held on for the T6.1 because of all the extra tech that was added as standard. I added a few extras (leather, 18" wheels, discover media pro system, storage pack) but the standard spec is pretty good as is and the kids love the seating arrangement in the rear. I did looked at the shuttle before ordering but by the time all the extras are added to make the spec comparable to the Exec it works out more expensive that the Caravelle. I saw another post recently (might have been Facebook) about dealer discounts and most people are getting around 12-14% off on the T6.1 (i got 12.8%).

As ScottyMacx has said these do seem to have rather long lead times. I ordered mine in early March and am still waiting for delivery! I can only assume that the whole Covid-19 saga and knock-on effect it has had on the supply chain has not done any favours. Given that the Caravelle tends to carry more tech than the transporter or shuttle it only takes one supplier to trip up and delay everything.

 

[Mike1969]

I am swapping out my Seat Alhambra for a T6.1 Caravelle Exec - I quite like my gadgets so going for the Exec was a no-brainer and I held on for the T6.1 because of all the extra tech that was added as standard. I added a few extras (leather, 18" wheels, discover media pro system, storage pack) but the standard spec is pretty good as is and the kids love the seating arrangement in the rear. I did looked at the shuttle before ordering but by the time all the extras are added to make the spec comparable to the Exec it works out more expensive that the Caravelle. I saw another post recently (might have been Facebook) about dealer discounts and most people are getting around 12-14% off on the T6.1 (i got 12.8%).

As ScottyMacx has said these do seem to have rather long lead times. I ordered mine in early March and am still waiting for delivery! I can only assume that the whole Covid-19 saga and knock-on effect it has had on the supply chain has not done any favours. Given that the Caravelle tends to carry more tech than the transporter or shuttle it only takes one supplier to trip up and delay everything.

Fair. I’m not a gadget guy so can see how that’d work when you put it like that - if its got aircon, cruise and parking sensors (which my Shuttle has) then that’s me done. With a £23k budget I wanted the newest, lowest mileage I could get so wouldn’t have gone Caravelle on say a 16 plate with over 100,000 miles when I got a 69 plate Shuttle with just 8,000 miles and under VW warranty.