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The no-frills Vauxhall Movano is one of the most dated
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models on test. With its almost-10-year-old design, it was fighting an uphill battle from the start. Mind you, with Vauxhall second highest in the van sales stakes in the UK it must be doing something right.
Driveline The engine on the Movano was not the most well received in our group. Most noticeable was the amount of noise coming from under the bonnet. Its driveability is OK, but nothing to write home about. It did significantly better on the gearbox front, putting up a solid performance. Ratio spacing is good and the quality of the gearbox went some way towards making up for the engine.
Dynamics One thing that was noted about the Movano a couple of times was that it is a solid vehicle. Despite comments about nervous steering the general feel was that it had good road holding.
Adding to the significant noise levels coming from the engine there was also a fair amount of road noise.
While the ride comfort and noise were points mentioned in a negative light, the Movano scored second highest in one of the dynamics categories: its braking came closely behind that of the Mercedes. As one of the most important functions in any vehicle this is a good category in which to score highly.
Cabin The interior of this vehicle is unpretentious, The cab features simple and clear dials and gets the basics right in terms of bottle holders and the like.
The highest scoring feature of the cabin was all-round visibility The interior is made up of a mix of plastics, giving it a feel of lacking quality. Its driving position was criticised for having too short a seat cushion and the pedals were too close together. VW's entrant stood out from the crowd first and foremost for its striking black paint job, which is rather unusual on a van.
Bearing many visual similarities to the Mercedes Sprinter it Is easy to make assumptions that it will be of the same quality with comparable driveability. But while the assumption about quaky is justif led the Crafter's driveability can't quite match its compatriot.
Drivel me The engine is where the Crafter loses the majority of its points; it feels as though it is lacking those few extra horse power to help push it along. The acceleration can feel frustrating at times, as the general feel of the van conveys an image of power.
The gearbox is a pleasure to use, however, and the spacing of the gears almost makes up for the slightly lacklustre engine.
Noise levels from both the engine and gearbox were pleasantly low, even though the engine had to be worked quite hard at times.
Dynamics The road-holding and handling of the vehicle received a mixed response from our testers; some felt it was a comfortable and sold ride while others complained about vague steering. These variations in opinion might have had something to do with the test route's mix of straight motorway and winding country roads.
Ride comfort still scored highly though, no doubt enhanced by this contender's quietness. Its braking performance did not stand out from the rest but was adequate.
Cabin Like the Mercedes, the VW scored very highly on its refinement; storage facilities and ail-round visibility are some of the most notable pants. The Instrument layout is clear and the whole interior has a very smart feel about it a point that might be seen as a downside by operators doing particularly messy work. The driving position is ergonomically sound and the driving seat was very comfortable.
Two negatives that were pointed out were that the steering wheel is not adjustable and that the speedometer markings could be a bit clearer.