Many of the Routan’s structural components are shared with its Chrysler cousins, the Chrysler Town & Country and Dodge Grand Caravan, with which it is produced in the same factory. The Routan’s 3.6-liter Pentastar V-6 produces 283 horsepower and 260 lb-ft of torque while achieving 17 mpg in the city and 25 mpg on the interstate.
In This Article...
Is a Chrysler a Volkswagen Routan?
With updated appearance, added equipment, and suspension tuning from the fifth-generation Dodge Grand Caravan and Chrysler Town & Country, the Volkswagen Routan is a seven-seat minivan that is a rebadged derivative of the Chrysler RT chassis.
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The Routan made its premiere at the 2008 Chicago Auto Show and began on sale in the US in September 2008. It was produced in Windsor Assembly alongside the Chrysler and Dodge minivans and sold in the US, Canada, and Mexico.
[6] The Dodge Caravan, Ram C/V, Chrysler Town & Country, and Lancia Voyager (export) are some of the Routan’s minivan versions. With more than 12 million units sold by 2009, the Routan was the 13th best-selling automobile nameplate globally. [7]
Volkswagen declared that the 2013 model year would mostly be held for rental car businesses and other fleets, with limited access to the general public at dealer showrooms, after the Routan’s production was halted in 2012 due to excessive inventory levels.
[8] This was also accurate for the Routan model year 2014. [9]
Who manufactures the VW Routan?
COLUMBUS With its flat-nose, rear-engine Transporter, Volkswagen is returning to the American minivan market that it helped to establish in the 1950s (aka Microbus). VW will instead market a customized Chrysler minivan in place of the vintage van.
The Routan van from VW debuts on sale in September, with prices beginning at under $25,000. On Wednesday, it was unveiled here.
According to VW, modifying a Chrysler is easier and less expensive than creating a contemporary Microbus. A significant amount for VW in the USA, the carmaker wants to sell 45,000 units in the first year.
According to Rebecca Lindland, director of the vehicle group at forecaster Global Insight, “They would have been better off with the Microbus.” She anticipates sales to be roughly half of what VW had anticipated, but she also points out that the Routan gives brand devotees a VW for their growing families.
In a separate announcement, VW said it would decide within months where to construct a facility in what it refers to as “the North American dollar area.” In such case, the currency-exchange pain of insufficient price increases in the United States to offset the strong euro would be avoided. One of the main reasons foreign manufacturers establish U.S. plants is to keep expenses and prices in one currency.
An aggressive strategy to nearly increase its eight brands’ combined global sales to 10 million by 2018 and more than triple its U.S. sales by that time also makes greater production capacity a good idea. General Motors and Toyota Motor, the market leaders, each sold 9.4 million vehicles last year.
Routan will be produced by Chrysler in Windsor, Ontario. A Dodge Caravan is transformed into a Routan by VW-designed modifications to the suspension, front and rear styling, and the interior. It will be powered by automatic transmissions paired with Chrysler 3.8- or 4-liter V-6 engines.
According to tracker Autodata, sales of minivans in the United States decreased to about 793,000 last year from 971,000 in 2006 and 1.1 million in 2005.
According to VW, the minivan market is stable rather than on the decline. According to spokesman Keith Price, “We see Ford and GM departing the market as an opportunity.”
Sales of Routan should increase since VW no longer sells vans. Ulrich Hackenberg, a member of the VW board, declared that “the USA is a critical factor in our global strategy.” Without a stronger presence in the USA, “we can’t be a global player,” the statement reads.
According to Autodata, VW’s share of U.S. new car sales is 1.4%, and its Audi brand is 0.6%.
What year did the VW Routan last?
For the 2009 model year, the MPV was originally presented in 2008. At the Windsor Assembly factory in Ontario, where Dodge and Chrysler minivans were also produced, Volkswagen attempted to advertise the Routan as a car designed exclusively for the American market. Additionally, it was Volkswagen’s first minivan since the 2003 release of the Volkswagen Eurovan. It had a standard 3.6L V6 engine that generated 283 horsepower and 260 lb-ft of torque, but it quickly lost favor due to the high price. Although the $28,000 MSRP wasn’t awful, it was significantly more than other models that essentially delivered the same thing. In 2013 Volkswagen released the final Routan for the 2014 model year.
Volkswagen Models Similar to the Routan
Sadly, Volkswagen is no longer able to provide interested car buyers with a minivan. A comparable model, nevertheless, will accomplish the same thing and offer more than the Routan actually did. Similar to the Routan, the Volkswagen Atlas is a midsize SUV with seven seats and 96.8 cubic feet of cargo space. It also features a 12.3-inch display, a panoramic sunroof, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and many other features.
It’s absolutely alright if you don’t make it to the Routan.
Just be aware that Volkswagen offers greater options! You may schedule a test drive on our website or at Hall Volkswagen in Brookfield if you’re interested in seeing the SUV or any other Volkswagen model.
Was the minivan invented by Chrysler?
The first American minivans based on the S platform, the 1984 Plymouth Voyager and Dodge Caravan, were created as a result of a development program Chrysler started in the late 1970s to create “a small affordable van that looked and handled more like a car.”[22] The S minivans introduced the minivan design features of front-wheel drive, a flat floor, and a sliding door for rear passengers.
With a height of six feet or less, 1980s minivans were designed to fit through a standard garage door opening, which is why the term “minivan” first appeared.[26] In 1984, The New York Times called minivans “the hot cars coming out of Detroit.”[27] It also stated that “analysts say the mini-van has created an entirely new market, one that may well overshadow the… station wagon.”
Ford released the 1986 Ford Aerostar in response to the popularity of the Voyager/Caravan, and General Motors introduced the badge-engineered twins 1985 Chevrolet Astro and GMC Safari. Unlike the Voyager/Caravan, these vehicles used a conventional rear-wheel drive design.[26][28]
The Toyota TownAce, Nissan Vanette, and Mitsubishi Delica were debuted to North America in 1984, 1986, and 1987, respectively, to coincide with the minivan launches by American automakers. The generic terms “Van” and “Wagon” (used to refer to freight and passenger vans, respectively) were used to promote these automobiles.[29][30]
The first Japanese-brand minivan made particularly for the North American market, the Mazda MPV, was unveiled in 1989. Due to its larger chassis, a V6 engine and four-wheel drive were options. The passenger-side door was hinged, as opposed to American minivans’ sliding doors. As Mazda gradually remarketed the model line as an early crossover SUV, a driver-side door was added for 1996.
By the end of the 1980s, full-size station wagons had mostly lost ground to minivans as the preferred family car in the US .[31]
Volkswagen Routans are they dependable?
The Volkswagen Routan’s overall reliability rating is 35, which indicates that it is not very reliable. The exact rankings of this car in relation to various other cars are shown in the chart below, however as a point of reference, the average overall rating is 57.
This information is based on a combination of looking at the cost and frequency of maintenance, warranty coverage, and long-term reliability by looking at how long these vehicles are normally kept on the road. Remember that the Volkswagen Routan is just one of several compact or subcompact vehicles included in this comparison; other vehicles are also included.
You may notice that these numbers differ significantly from those in J.D. Power or Consumer Reports. Most publications look at complaints made to the dealership within the first few months of ownership (like JD Power) or solicit biased feedback from owners regarding longer-term cycles of their new cars. Instead, this study examines data from wholesale auctions and repair businesses on actual repair prices and frequency.
What does the word “Routan” mean?
While the majority of the dealers Ward’s contacted said they are just pleased to have a new product to draw customers into their showrooms, some are perplexed by VW’s naming strategy.
Despite some dealers’ objections, Volkswagen of America Inc. stands by the choice of Routan as the name of the automaker’s new minivan.
It’s “Different points of view are extremely inevitable when you have 600 dealers, according to a VW spokesman.
While the majority of the dealers Ward’s contacted said they are just pleased to have a new product to draw customers into their showrooms, some are perplexed by VW’s naming strategy.
The names are consistently ridiculous, according to a U.S. dealer who requests anonymity.
He adds that when the automaker rebranded the Golf tiny car the Rabbit in 2006, dealers believed the automaker was drifting away from odd names. “First we have Touareg, which is wild, and now Routan, which is equally weird,” he says. “We believed they were returning to sanity at this point.
The VW official claims that changing a name always sparks debate and points out that when the Passat and Jetta were first released, dealers had a similar response.
In line with the naming scheme utilized for VW’s European vans, the Touran and Sharan, which are unavailable in the United States, VW claims that the name Routan is derived from the term “route” and the suffix “-an.”
“The initial part of the word “route,” which denotes what is most crucial, is what matters most to us, the spokesman claims.
The Routan will be produced at the Windsor, Ontario, Canada, facility of Chrysler LLC, which also produces the Chrysler Town & Country and Dodge Grand Caravan. In accordance with a 2006 agreement between the two automakers, the Chrysler minivans, which were reengineered for 2008, would share foundations with the VW model.
Despite the name, the spokesperson claims that the Routan offers a “A fantastic opportunity exists in a market that sells 900,000 units annually.
It’s a “white spot on our product map, and (it will) draw more people into the showroom, he says. ” The naming is secondary in certain aspects.
The Routan will be formally launched at the Chicago auto show next month and available on sale later this year.
Volkswagen still produces minivans, right?
Volkswagen’s range sadly no longer includes a minivan. The Routon, a seven-seat minivan based on the fifth-generation Dodge Grand Caravan and Chrysler Town & Country, was the last minivan the manufacturer sold. From 2008 to 2013, the five-door minivan was manufactured; the final model year was 2014. Due to excessive inventories, the Routon’s production halted in 2012, at which point Volkswagen opted to reserve it for fleet programs and rental car businesses.
Which Volkswagen Models are Best for Large Families?
If you know you want to drive a minivan but still want a Volkswagen, take a look at some of the other models the company makes. The largest vehicle provided by Volkswagen is the full-size Atlas SUV, which went on sale for the 2018 model year. The five-door vehicle has three distinct engine choices, the strongest of which is a 2.5L turbo with 299 horsepower and 368 lb-ft of torque. It also has a maximum load capacity of 96.8 cubic feet. The Atlas can accommodate seven passengers, just like the majority of minivans. Similar to how the Routon was built for a family, this SUV has 17 cupholders and optional second-row captains chairs.
VW Routan: Does it have Stow and Go?
The seats also draw conflicting opinions. Although most reviews concur that the seats in the Routan are more comfortable than those in Chrysler minivans, this limits the mobility of the seats because the Routan lacks Chrysler’s available Stow-N-Go or Swivel-N-Go seating. Reviews of the Routan’s interior mainly favor it despite the compromises.
A Volkswagen Routan is AWD.
The new 283-hp 3.6-liter V6 is paired to a 6-speed automatic transmission in the 2011 Volkswagen Routan’s S, SE, SEL, and SEL Premium trim levels. There are no rear-wheel drive versions.