Volkswagen Transporter long-term test: report 4
The VW Transporter has long been a staple of the medium van market, so now we're living with one to see if it can be the perfect photographer's apprentice...
The car Volkswagen Transporter panel van T32 Commerce Pro 2.0 TDI | Run by Max Edleston, photographer
Why we’re running it To see how well Volkswagen’s latest medium-sized van stacks up as a photographer’s apprentice
Needs to Offer more than enough space for all of our kit, long-distance comfort and connectivity to keep in touch with the office
Mileage 6973 Price £48,720 (inc. VAT) Best Price £48,720 (inc. VAT) Price as tested £51,102 (inc. VAT) Official economy 36.7mpg Test economy 36.2mpg
29 September 2025 – Man on the move
I’ve written before about how my popularity has risen steadily since running a van as my company car. The phone never seems to stop ringing with people wondering how I’ve been, how we must get together soon, and how I should probably pop round with the van because they’ve got a small job they could use my help with.
Most recently, I was roped in to help a mate move from one side of London to the other. This felt like a good test for my medium-sized van, and having previously filled my VW Transporter’s cargo bay with camera gear and gardening waste, boxes and furniture seemed to be the next logical step.
I arrived at what was now my friend’s old house to find him waiting with a mountain of boxes, yet within a couple of minutes we’d loaded everything into the Transporter’s load bay. While you sit quite high up in my van, I appreciate that the actual loading height is relatively small. This means you don’t have to strain much to get your boxes inside it. Meanwhile, the side door meant we had easy access to rearrange the load to fit more in.
I’d already taken the liberty of laying down some old rugs to stop boxes sliding around during transit. This is something I now regularly do for my camera gear, and if I had my time with the Transporter again I’d definitely invest in some rubberised mats for the floor.
On our way over to our local storage facility, I didn’t notice much of a dip in the Transporter’s performance. The 148bhp 2.0-litre diesel engine pulled strongly and still had enough pep to take advantage of any gaps in the traffic. And as a bonus, my new rug system stopped our cargo from sliding around in the back.
On our second run of boxes – this time heading to my friend’s new house – we were joined by his flatmate, so this gave me the chance to see how comfortably three adults could fit into the Transporter’s front cab. And whilst it was a little snug, we all agreed we had just enough space for the short drive – on anything longer than that, I suspect our patience would be tested.
As a final note, we also found another good use for the generous door bins in the front of the Transporter, for holding the brace of beers my friends gave me by way of thanks. I guess being a popular man with a van has its perks.
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