Made in Canada: 2010 Volkswagen Routan

CanadianDriver

2010 Volkswagen Routan Highline. Click image to enlarge

Review and photos by Grant Yoxon

Photo Gallery:
2010 Volkswagen Routan

It may be a well kept secret but there is a Volkswagen minivan and it is built right here in Canada. Along with the Dodge Grand Caravan, Chrysler Town & Country and the made-for-Europe Chrysler Grand Voyageur, Chrysler’s Windsor assembly plant also builds the Routan for Volkswagen.

If you didn’t know about the Volkswagen Routan it is no surprise. There aren’t that many on the road in Canada. …

It may be that Volkswagen doesn’t do much to promote the Routan and that’s a shame because among the minivan variations produced in Windsor, the Routan is arguably the best. But it’s meager sales total may also be due to its price, as among minivans, the Routan is a premium priced vehicle. …

2010 Volkswagen Routan Highline. Click image to enlarge

Our test vehicle was a Routan Highline, the third in four trim levels available (Trendline, Comfortline, Highline and Execline). {They are designated and provisioned differently for the U.S. market.—DMW}… Standard features included 4.0-litre V6 engine, six-speed automatic transmission, power sliding side doors and rear tailgate, halogen headlights and foglights, power glass sunroof, 16-inch alloy wheels, four 12-volt power outlets, six-speaker audio system with six-disc in-dash CD changer and auxiliary input jack, satellite radio, leather covered seating with heated front and second row seats, eight-way power adjustable driver’s seat, and power-adjustable pedals.

Optional equipment included navigation package and rear view back-up camera ($2,425) and 17-inch alloy wheels ($700), for a total price excluding taxes and additional charges of $43,700. Compare this to our better-equipped, made in Canada 2010 Chrysler Town & Country Limited which came in at $41,220.

It is not difficult to see why Volkswagen is having a difficult time selling the Routan.

2010 Volkswagen Routan Highline. Click image to enlarge

But in its defence and despite being built in the same factory and having the same engine and transmission as the Grand Caravan and Town & Country, the Routan is, in my opinion, a better van. My rationale: better exterior design, better interior design, higher quality interior materials, more comfortable seating and better driving characteristics.

Only the roof and door panels of the Routan are the same as the Chrysler minivans. All other sheetmetal, headlights, taillights and exterior trim are unique to the Routan. It doesn’t look the same and unless you knew … you wouldn’t think it came from the same factory. And the paintwork, as demonstrated by our Nocturne Black Metallic Routan, is exemplary.

Expressing simply a personal point of view, I prefer the look of the Routan over the Chrysler vehicles.

Inside the Routan is a blend of Chrysler and Volkswagen, but mostly the latter. The general layout, including the dash mounted shifter, is Chrysler, as is the navigation system (albeit with VW logo) and surrounding function buttons, and the heating and air conditioning unit. As noted in our review of the Town & Country, one must reach across to the right side of the navigation screen to touch the phone button to accept an incoming call. With most other competitors, this function is mounted on the steering wheel.

2010 Volkswagen Routan Highline. Click image to enlarge

Nearly all the soft-touch materials – seat materials, carpets, door panels and even the steering wheel – have been designed specifically for the Routan. The Routan’s leather-wrapped steering wheel feels better in the hands than the Town & Country’s although both wheels have the same minimal functions, with nothing on the front of our Highline model’s wheel, but audio controls oddly hidden on the back of the wheel. It is a unique-to-Chrysler set up borrowed by Volkswagen.

Nothing more clearly differentiates the Routan from the Town & Country than the dash top. Whereas the dash top in the Town & Country is hard plastic, it is soft and padded in the Routan.

2010 Volkswagen Routan Highline. Click image to enlarge

Stow ‘n Go second row seating, seats that flip and fold into the floor, is standard in the Town & Country, but not offered in the Routan. Instead, the Routan has larger, more comfortable captain’s chairs. However, the Stow ‘n Go compartments in the floor remain for storage. It’s a trade-off – the convenience of easily stowed second row seats or more comfortable chairs. The third row seat is a manually folded, 60/40 split bench seat that stores in the luggage cavity. …

The Routan is powered by Chrysler’s 4.0-litre V6 engine. Producing 251 horsepower and 259 lb.-ft. of torque, this engine provides plenty of power for everyday driving needs. Despite being a minivan, it is not by any means slow and will accelerate easily for freeway merging or passing slower traffic. Fuel consumption is rated at 7.9 litres per 100 kilometres on the highway and 12.2 L/100 km in the city. With just 200 km on the odometer, our brand new Routan tester is averaging 13.5 L/100 km in city driving.

Perhaps it is my imagination or perhaps it is better sound insulation, but under hard acceleration, the engine in the Routan seemed quieter than that in the Town & Country. In fact, in all driving situations the Routan provided a quieter environment.

2010 Volkswagen Routan Highline. Click image to enlarge

It is also a better handling and more nimble minivan than its Chrysler brethren. The Routan has a slightly firmer ride which detracts little from the overall ride comfort, but adds greatly to cornering confidence. Driving both vans over the same freeway on-ramps, I felt more comfortable at higher speeds in the Routan. Steering is also more crisp and direct.

Safety features in all minivans built in Windsor, including the Routan, are the same, with three-point seat belts in all seven seating positions and side curtain airbags protecting all three rows of seats. Like the Grand Caravan and Town & Country, the Volkswagen Routan has a five-star safety rating for both frontal and side impacts from the US-based National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). As well, anti-lock brakes, traction control and electronic stability control are standard equipment.

The Volkswagen Routan matches or exceeds other Chrysler-built minivans for interior quality and handling, …

Naturally, dealers will and often do sell for less than published prices and discounts, and a savvy shopper should go to the Volkswagen dealer armed with comparable data. But one has to wonder if Volkswagen’s published prices are keeping minivan shoppers out of their showrooms.

Grant Yoxon is an Ottawa-based automotive journalist and Managing Editor of CanadianDriver. He is a member of the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC).