There’s this funny thing about minivans: It’s broadly accepted the Chrysler invented the minivan in 1984, but that’s if you ignore VW’s Transporter built right back in the 1960’s. It’s amusing then, that these two masters of the minivan should combine their knowledge to produce the 2009 Volkswagen Routan.

In all fairness, VW went to Chrysler for help building the Routan. VW has been out of the minivan business for a few years, and they need the Routan to be a great start to their new line. The questions is, then, does the Routan do justice to VW engineering and minivan requirements?

While the Routan took a lot of its basic design from Chrysler’s drawing boards, it’s got the VW touch. Significant reworking of suspension and steering and transmission results in a more ëEuropean’ drive, with tighter steering and less body roll.

Unfortunately The Routans V-6 engine options; with either a 197-horsepower 3.8 liter or 251 horsepower 4.0 liter engine felt a little underpowered for the American market. That said, the 251 hp drive is perfectly capable of everything you should ask from it.

The 2009 Volkswagen Routan is finished with high quality interior, with lots of cleverly situated storage space and a decent seating arrangement. There’s also a high end entertainment system available for a few thousand extra, which we highly recommend if you want the journeys to fly by!