New Volkswagen Transporter Sportline brings GTI looks and van space for £51k

The Volkswagen Golf GTI’s 381-litre boot is pretty average even for a hot hatch so what if you want GTI style with a little more luggage capacity? Well, Volkswagen has just introduced the Transporter Sportline.

Starting at £51,105 (excluding VAT) as a panel van or £53,085 for the ‘Kombi’ crew cab, the Transporter Sportline is very much the sporty one in VW’s Transporter van lineup. Short and long-wheel base variants are offered together with 167bhp 2.0-litre TDI diesel and pure-electric powertrains - while a plug-in hybrid ‘eHybrid’ is coming soon.

The pure-electric Transporter Sportline comes with a ‘T34’ 215bhp electric motor with 210 miles of range in short wheelbase form (dropping to 206 miles in the LWB). There’s also a ‘T32’ version with a 282bhp electric motor - more power than you get in the standard version of the Golf GTI (261bhp). That more powerful EV Transporter doesn’t lower the van’s electric range but it does lower the 0-62mph time, from 8.6 seconds to a sprightly 7.4 seconds. 

Like previous Sportline versions, there’s plenty to distinguish the new van from the regular VW Transporter. It gets unique front and rear bumpers, side skirts, a gloss black grille, roof rails, 29mm-lower suspension and 19-inch diamond-cut wheels. There’s also a rear spoiler – although we’re not sure how much aerodynamic benefit it’ll bring – while matrix LED headlights, sports seats in faux leather, Sportline badging and a red grille all help give VW’s medium panel van a real GTI-like attitude. 

Pricing for the Transporter currently starts at £39,478 in its base Commerce trim, which you can enjoy an average saving of £3,170 on the Auto Express Find A Car service. 

The new Sportline model is also joined by the Sportline 75 Special Edition, celebrating 75 years of the VW bus. It costs £64,552 for the panel van model, and £66,928 for the Kombi model, but only 75 units will be built. They get a unique Moss Green paint finish with green stitching on the upholstery and steering wheel, along with bespoke plaques and ‘Sportline 75’ logos. 

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It’s not the first time the ‘Sportline’ badge has been seen on the back of VW’s mid-size van. The T5 generation introduced it way back in 2003 before becoming a popular range-topping trim level for the Transporter in T6 guise. 

The latest Transporter Sportline doesn’t have the sporty van sector to itself however. With the Stellantis stable there’s the Peugeot Expert Sport, Vauxhall Vivaro GS, Fiat Scudo Onyx and Citroen Dispatch VTR, plus Ford’s Transit Custom MS-RT. 

Alongside the new Sportline, VW has also added a Commerce Pro S trim, which will be available to order from late February. This version starts from £53,086 for the short-wheelbase panel van and £54,130 in long-wheelbase form. Prices for the five-seat Commerce Pro S Kombi model start from £54,742 for the short wheelbase and £55,786 for the long wheelbase. 

Compared with the Sportline model, the new Commerce Pro S trim offers some milder exterior tweaks. There are 17-inch gloss black wheels, a front splitter, sports bumpers in body colour, a gloss black grille strip and black mirror caps. Sitting towards the top end of the Transporter line, the Commerce Pro S comes with all the same equipment as the Commerce Pro, along with illuminated skid plates, heated and power-folding wing mirrors and illuminated sun visors. 

Volkswagen says that the two new trim levels in the Transporter range will come with a selection of diesel, eHybrid and all-electric powertrains, but we don’t expect any uprated performance for them. 

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