Volkswagen California on T7 Multivan base coming up

Is it just us, or does that sketched California seem to be standing here on the Brouwersdam between South Holland and Zeeland? That would not be very surprising, because on a warm summer day you will find half of the German-registered Volkswagen Californias there with an exaggeration. The California is a household name among enthusiasts of the ‘camper bus’, because of the long history that Volkswagen has with these types of vehicles, and because Volkswagen develops and builds the California itself.

The current, regular California is based on the Transporter 6.1. It may last for a while, but it was still very likely that a new one would come. The big question was just what Volkswagen would base that car on. After all, a lot has happened in the field of medium-sized VW buses since the introduction of the T6. We now know not only the Transporter, but also the completely separate and completely new Multivan. In addition, there is the electric ID.Buzz and Volkswagen is working on a completely new Transporter, which in turn will be based on the Ford Transit. Confused? Then you’re not alone.

The new California seems to fall on the Multivan for the time being. So not yet a fully electric camper van, although nothing is stopping Volkwagen from also coming up with a California Buzz-based. The California outlined here is based on the T7 Multivan presented in 2021 and is formally still a concept car, although it can apparently go into production that way. The T7 is only available as a plug-in in the Netherlands, but is also available with petrol and diesel engines in Germany, among others. Yet Volkswagen does mention PHEV technology here, so we are actually dealing with a plug-in hybrid motorhome here. The car has the well-known lifting roof and can be seen at the Caravan Salon in Düsseldorf between August 25 and September 3. Not in California? No, because this model is not offered there at all, just like in the rest of the US.