# VW Microbus Article



## Steveaut (Sep 16, 2010)

HERE:

VW Chief Confirms Microbus is Back On

Back in 2001 VW excited fans with the unveiling of the Microbus concept at the Detroit Auto Show. It was supposed to be produced, but it never happened. Now according to Auto Express, plans are back on to bring the Microbus concept to life.

VW's chief designer, Klaus Bischoff recently told Auto Express that he feels its part of his job at VW to bring the Camper back. According to Bischoff the original plans to produce the Microbus were called off because of cost and not lack of public demand. VW is now trying to decide how bold the car should be, if it should be a traditional MPV or something more flexible and versatile.

If this is all true we may see a concept by 2012.


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## Row1Rich (Sep 11, 2001)

It's too small for me unfortunately, I need the 3rd row AND trunk space. Otherwise I like it a lot.


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## ben55124 (Apr 29, 2009)

Looks nice, but to be a Routan replacement, it would need an extended wheelbase version with storage behind 3rd row.


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## Cool Dub (Aug 25, 2010)

*10 year old Concept Style is attractive*

Owners of Routans have a _vested_ interest in the product and want continued production to succeed.
The Routan (T & C) *platform* hits the center of the American market. 
_After 12 plus million units have been sold, they.. get it._
The article said they would consider the old concept, not that they would build it.
Some of the attractive design cues of the concept will most likely go into future Routan models.


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## Steveaut (Sep 16, 2010)

Cool Dub said:


> Owners of Routans have a _vested_ interest in the product and want continued production to succeed.
> The Routan (T & C) *platform* hits the center of the American market.
> _After 12 plus million units have been sold, they.. get it._
> The article said they would consider the old concept, not that they would build it.
> Some of the attractive design cues of the concept will most likely go into future Routan models.


All due respect, I don't see your reasoning. It seems very subjective and I don't know what point you are making. The 12 plus million units are Chrysler units. I don't know what that has to do with Routan. Down playing the fact that VW said they are going forward with Microbus again has little to do with the Routan. The Microbus would be marketed to a different audience than the Routan. And, assuming that "design cues" would "most likely" be added to future Routans is an unsupported suggestion. That's the argument that Routan would have more VW features and taste than it does, like guages, etcetera, that they don't have anyway. Also, I don't know why the presumption that Routan owners have a vested interest in Routan succeeding would have any relevance to whether or not it does. Also, the they...get it means who gets it?


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## Altair 4 (Jan 14, 2002)

There's no guarantee that the microbus would be sold state-side, if it makes it into production. Seems to me tht VW is going out of its way to dichotomize their vehicles into North American and "the Rest of the World" product lines. 

As a side note, assuming that microbus is FWD, the techs are just gonna _love_ working under that hood....


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## Cool Dub (Aug 25, 2010)

*Wise ass guess is all your doing*

Guessing is all it is buddy. History is mostly guessing; the rest is prejudice. 

If you keep a man guessing too long - he's sure to find the answer somewhere else. 
. 
I guess.


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## vwbugstuff (Mar 27, 2004)

VW Operations 101: Piëch always gets his way—even if it takes 12 years. 

BY JENS MEINERS 
December 2010 

Remember the Microbus concept Volkswagen brought to the Detroit auto show in 2001? Styled under the direction of former VW design chief Hartmut Warkuß and a pet project of erstwhile VW CEO Ferdinand Piëch, it fell out of favor when Bernd Pischetsrieder took over as CEO and installed his own design head. Although the van had moved close to production—VW even had a plant in mind to build it—its lines did not fit former Peugeot and Mercedes designer Murat Günak's styling language, and the project was cancelled in 2006. 

Piëch must have made a mental note, because now the Microbus is back, on the front-wheel-drive platform of the Touran, a Golf-derived compact minivan not sold in the U.S. The retro-futuristic van likely will be just slightly smaller than the original concept, but look nearly identical. It will be unveiled in 2013, and production is expected to start in 2014. 

Motivation for the new Microbus will come from several engines in VW’s parts bin, including four-cylinder gas and turbo-diesels. Power will be channeled to the front wheels through a manual transmission or VW's six- or seven-speed dual-clutch gearboxes. All-wheel drive is a possibility, and VW might build a range-extended EV version in the style of the Chevrolet Volt. 

*U.S. sales are almost a certainty.* The New Beetle had its greatest successes here, and the old "Lovebus"—which you can still buy new in Brazil as the Kombi—is still fondly remembered. *Production of the Microbus will coincide with the launch of another new, bigger van, a replacement for the Chrysler-supplied Routan to be built in Tennessee on VW's own platform. *It just goes to show that, in its race for world domination, VW will be paying equal attention to mainstream and niche. For that, we are grateful.


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## Cool Dub (Aug 25, 2010)

*VW concept van*

_The micro is rad but check this out._http://www.vwvortex.com/gallery/gal...pt - Design/Concept Vehicles/Atacama Concept# 
*A cool VW van concept is Atacama Concept .*:snowcool:


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## OkieRoutan (Nov 5, 2010)

Cool Dub said:


> _The micro is rad but check this out._http://www.vwvortex.com/gallery/gal...pt - Design/Concept Vehicles/Atacama Concept#
> *A cool VW van concept is Atacama Concept .*:snowcool:


 I'd buy it! Wonder how the seat configuration would be...


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## Steveaut (Sep 16, 2010)

vwbugstuff said:


> VW Operations 101: Piëch always gets his way—even if it takes 12 years.
> 
> BY JENS MEINERS
> December 2010
> ...


 It looks like the Routan will cease to exist around 2012 or 2013 with a replacement. That works out for me. My Routan will be ready for a trade around that time. There was a post that the contract with Chrysler was for five years. This adds up to the intro of a new van by 2013. Cool.


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