New ABT creations are Volkswagen Multivan and California GTIs in all but name
If you want hot hatch style but need to cater for a big family, ABT might have you covered - in Germany at least
People-carriers and campervans might not be the sportiest of vehicles, but that’s not stopped German tuning company ABT. The specialist in VW and Audi performance modifications has been up to its old tricks in creating the new ABT Multivan and ABT California.
ABT Sportsline has plenty of history with Volkswagen, having modified everything from Golf GTIs, to Beetles and even the all-electric e-Transporter, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that it wanted to get its hands on the Multivan and California. Under a direct partnership with Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, the new ABT models will soon be available through the main dealer network. According to Volkswagen, the ABT Multivan and California “combine the strengths of the VW Bus with an independent design language from ABT Sportsline.”
The visual tweaks include ABT’s aerokit, which adds a new front splitter, additional air intakes, gloss black side skirts, and a rear diffuser. With no R-Line trim available on the Multivan or even a Sportline variant like you can get on the Transporter van, the redesigned front bumper with its side strakes and inverted grille give the ABT Multivan a much more aggressive look than can be obtained as standard.
The Multivan MPV and California campervan in their regular forms come with the option of 19-inch wheels, but ABT has fitted its own 20-inch rims here, complete with ABT-branded centre badges. To help fill out the wheelarches, there’s an optional lowering kit that reduces the ride height by 30mm.
ABT hasn’t given any details of the powertrain, though the imagery provided is of a diesel or petrol model rather than the plug-in hybrid, as there’s just one fuel filler cap. The 2.0-litre four-cylinder diesel in the regular Multivan has 148bhp and 360Nm of torque while the petrol has 201bhp and 320Nm. Given ABT’s history of bumping up power outputs (ABT customers could add 29bhp to the previous Multivan T6.1) we’d be surprised if the latest ABT Multivan and California aren’t given a performance boost.
While ABT and Volkswagen are working more closely together, sales of the new ABT Multivan and California will be restricted to the German market when they launch in October - though there’s hope for sporty people-carrier and campervan enthusiasts because Volkswagen Commercial vehicles maintains that “further markets are under review”.
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