Description

Drive Time drives and gives a full review of the 2009 Volkswagen Routan.

Transcript

2009 Volkswagen Routan Car Review Steve Hammes: Something unfortunate has happened here. Volkswagen contracts with Chrysler to build them a minivan, nothing shameful about that. Chrysler makes one of the best and VW has never offered a modern rendition. But whatever took place during the town and country’s transformation to a Routan went terribly wrong. The risky run of outsourcing your work is that it may not preserve your company’s ethos. And the Routan feels like a poorly constructed failed attempt at injecting VW’s German mojo into a vehicle segment at places its emphasis on more pragmatic matters. At the heart of the problem is the Routan’s abuse of suspension. I can't recall driving another vehicle in the past 10 years, which has had springs and dampers more ill-suited for its intended purpose than the Routan. And their desire to provide the Routan with VW’s characteristically sporty ride and handling, they produced the van which shakes and shudders to a disconcerting degree. By far, it rides much rougher than the Chrysler minivans from which it is spawned, producing creeks from the overburdened vehicle structure. If you believe like I do, that a minivan should evoke comfort, then the Routan completely misses the mark. To its credit, it looks more attractive than its Chrysler branded siblings and it possesses the same fiery powertrain. A 4-liter V6 making 253 horsepower mated to a 6-speed auto with identical gearing. This garners EPA numbers of 17 MPG City and 25 highway. The Routan moves quickly, more so than its near nine seconds, zero to 60 times would lead you to believe. It does have a sportier driving field than the Chryslers, but at far to steeper price and that is an alter stiff ride quality. The other disappointment, though not surprising, is how Chrysler kept most of its proprietary goodies to itself. No stealing(ph) go, so swiveling go, no serious backset TV, no integral(ph) child booster seats. The Routan lacks the innovative storage and convenience features, which make the Chrysler minivans so good in the first place. Available in three trim levels, this year at the top level SCL with an MSRP of $34, 350.00. That’s almost identical to a comparably equipped town and country touring. Blind loyalty to the Volkswagen brand is the only reason I could imagine why someone would choose the Routan over the Chrysler offerings. For Drive Time on Yahoo! Autos, I'm Steve Hammes.