Volkswagen California Beach 2022 Review

An everyday van which doubles as a camper is certainly not a new concept, but it has been brought back into vogue by Australia’s renewed appetite for domestic travel. The latest campervan proponent comes from Volkswagen with the new California Beach.

Based on the overhauled T6.1 Transporter commercial van and Multivan people-mover, the California Beach comes complete with bedding solutions, an auxiliary diesel heater and much more. In doing so, it invokes elements of the famous Volkswagen Kombi – but with a decidedly more polished execution.

You might want to take a seat, because the modern campervan caper is not particularly cheap.

The five-seat 2022 Volkswagen California Beach 6.1 is priced from $90,990 plus on-road costs in base TDI340 guise. Adding 4MOTION all-wheel drive adds another $4000 for the California Beach TDI340 4MOTION tested here, which starts from $94,990 plus ORCs.

There’s also a higher-output TDI450 4MOTION available for $100,990 plus ORCs, which extracts additional power and torque from the same 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine.

At that price, the Volkswagen California Beach squeezes neatly between the smaller Volkswagen Caddy California (from $59,690) and the larger Jayco-converted Volkswagen Crafter Kampervan (pricing TBC).

Unlike the Crafter, the California Beach and the Caddy California are ready-built campers from Volkswagen’s factory.

Rivals include the Mercedes-Benz Marco Polo (from $121,199), not to mention like-minded fit-out rivals from Trakka and Frontline campers.

The California Beach is covered by Volkswagen Australia’s five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty. It is also offered with three-year or five-year servicing packs (both listed at $1850) available at the point of purchase and subject to 12-month/15,000km intervals.

The 2022 Volkswagen California Beach 6.1 comes with a decent amount of standard equipment, first using the short-wheelbase Multivan as its base and adding 17-inch alloy wheels (with steel spare), electric-folding and heated door mirrors, auto-dimming rear-view mirror, automatic headlights and a Climatronic air-conditioning system.

Then there’s the actual camping side of the ledger, which includes 180-degree front swivel seats, a roof-mounted loft bed (1200x2000mm) with sprung base and mattress, bed extension for rear bench seat with comfort sleeping mattress, an integrated camping table and two folding chairs, wind-out awning, second battery and a programmable auxiliary diesel heater.

The Beach’s camping functions are integrated into a ‘camper control unit’ touch-screen conveniently positioned above the rear-view mirror.

Its five seats are furnished in Titanium Black ‘Quadratic’ cloth upholstery as standard, but our test car featured optional Microfleece seats – one of a long list of optional extras.

In fact, the sticker price of our test car balloons to $114,750 plus on-road costs once all of its optional extras (totalling $19,760) are taken into account.

They comprise two-tone paint ($4050), microfleece seats, heated front seats, digital cockpit ($3690), an electric roof function for the loft bed ($3050), LED headlights ($2050), adaptive chassis control ($2010), off road pack comprising rear diff lock and downhill assist ($1720), power sliding doors ($1640), fog lights with corning function ($770), park assist ($460) and light assist ($320).

As the name suggests, the Volkswagen California Beach 6.1 adopts all of the technology of the T6.1 Volkswagen Transporter commercial van range and related models.

As such, standard safety equipment includes front, side thorax and head-protecting curtain airbags (six in total), autonomous emergency braking (AEB), adaptive cruise control, multi-collision braking, blind spot monitoring, rear traffic alert, lane keep assist, attention monitoring, crosswind assist, front and rear parking sensors and a reversing camera.

The Volkswagen California Beach 6.1 won’t be formally crash-tested due to its low volume. The Multivan on which it’s based has also entered a newer T7 generation overseas, so the five-star rating under 2022 Euro NCAP and ANCAP (New Zealand model) testing protocols don’t apply here.

However, the T6.1 Transporter was earlier this year rated by Euro NCAP as one of the safest commercial vans on the market, while ANCAP has also given the van high marks in a study on driver assist safety tech.

Again, the standard suite of tech with the 2022 Volkswagen California Beach is strong. But it could be better, such is the reliance on options.

As standard, you get an 8.0-inch infotainment touch-screen with Bluetooth, a six-speaker sound system, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. A 10.25-inch unit is optional.

Irrespective of screen size, occupants get access to two USB-C ports up front, plus an additional two USB-A ports mounted at the right-hand side base of the driver’s seat and run off the auxiliary battery (meaning items can be charged when the car is off).

There are four 12-volt outlets dotted up and down the cabin: in the first row, second row, boot areas and up in the pop-up tent area, which is also accessed via dimmable lighting.

Additionally, there’s a digital instrument cluster fitted to our test vehicle as part of a $3690 optional package which also includes microfleece seats and heated front seats.

The 2022 Volkswagen California Beach 6.1 TDI340 is powered by a 2.0-litre turbo-diesel four-cylinder that produces 110kW of power and 340Nm of torque.

It’s matched standard to a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.

Our test car is fitted with 4MOTION all-wheel drive, incurring a $4000 charge over the standard front-drive version. You can go a step further and opt for the $1750 Off-Road Pack, bringing hill descent control and a rear differential lock.

The higher-output TDI450 that’s also available produces 146kW/450Nm.

The California Beach is armed with a 2.5-tonne braked towing capacity and a 623kg payload rating.

Real-world efficiency is one of the true highlights of the 2022 Volkswagen California Beach 6.1 TDI340 4MOTION.

The official combined-cycle average is listed as 7.5L/100km, so when you consider its 80-litre fuel tank, that correlates with a circa-1100km range.

Those figures are practically emulated in the real world. We averaged 7.7L/100km across an 1150km journey in mixed conditions – highway and country passage, mountain passes and around-town driving combined. And we almost did the entire thing on a solitary tank of diesel.

For the record, the front-wheel drive version of the TDI340 California beach returns 6.6L/100km with official ADR 81/02 lab testing, while the TDI450 manages 7.8L/100km.

It’s safe to say the 2022 Volkswagen California Beach 6.1 is not your typical campervan on the road. It’s much more agile.

At 4.9 metres in length and 1.97 metres in height, Volkswagen’s mid-level camper makes easy work of day-to-day conveyance, with well-weighted controls, a relatively nippy 11.9-metre turning circle and a willing diesel engine that comfortably covers the 2.4-tonne kerb mass.

The diesel is initially afflicted by some hesitation upon taking off – a symptom of Volkswagen’s ubiquitous DSG transmission – but is rich in its delivery from that point onwards.

Peak torque is realised between 1500rpm and 3000rpm, segueing into a peak power figure available from 3750rpm: the translation being tractable and reliable go-forward across the dial, especially in conjunction with the auto’s expedient changes.

The oiler happily wafts along between intersections but really hits its straps on the open road, whereupon the tacho dial sits barely above idle speed to deliver great inherent efficiency and an unstressed driving experience.

The rest of the drive is equally polished. The California Beach’s suspension configuration – independent MacPherson struts with coil springs and gas-filled dampers up front and semi-trailing independent rear axle with coil springs and anti-roll bar at the rear – helps to hide its trade van origins by largely protecting occupants from drawn-out undulations and bumps in the road.

The one exception to the rule is harsher obstacles such as cat’s eyes and bridge joins, which are often met with a sharp thud through the cabin.

In every other respect, the California Beach adequately suppresses outside noise and bumps, especially given its open cabin environment.

On the openness, the glasshouse design is another defining feature, affording ample outward vision and helping create a light, airy cabin environment.

The 2022 Volkswagen California Beach isn’t set up for Simpson Desert crossings, but we found it up to the task of dirt roads and occasional fire trails on test – meaning you should have relatively little trouble reaching a remote surf break or secluded camping spot.

A minimum ground clearance of 213mm means you get a reasonable buffer between the car’s underbody and terra firma, while approach, departure and breakover angles are listed at 21.8mm, 16.7mm and 14.3mm respectively.

The fitment of optional hill descent control and a rear differential lock on our test car only augments the off-road potential.

Where to begin? VW calls the 2022 Volkswagen California Beach a ‘house on wheels’, and in some respects we’re inclined to agree.

First, the sleeping and camping arrangement.

During a recent weekend-long trip from Sydney to Merimbula as part of our testing, the Volkswagen California Beach enamours with its camp-friendly fit-out and general ease of use.

Upon arriving at the camp site, the pop-up tent is electrically erected via the overhead touch-screen panel (near the rear-view mirror), and your correspondent is able to unfurl the awning with similar ease.

It means you can virtually set up camp in a matter of minutes, and the pop-up tent function means you don’t have to pack up or put away items in the main cabin to make it all work.

The same touch-screen panel is responsible for LED zone lighting, the diesel auxiliary heater, a level and much more – effectively making it a go-to menu where camping is concerned.

The California Beach wants for little in terms of an overnight stay, but given it is nearing the price of some top-line caravans, the absence of water tanks, a fridge or even a camp cooker stove seems a little light-on given the outlay.

The sleeping arrangement is comfortable, irrespectively. Simply hoist yourself up into the pop-up tent area and there is ample room for an adult or maybe two (official load rating is listed as 150kg) – or in our case, an adult and a child.

The area is accessed via several closable ‘windows’ with flyscreen coverings and is nicely protected from the elements with its breathable canvas lining. Dimmable lights and another 12-volt outlet are other handy inclusions, while the seemingly thin mattress and underlying spring base offer great overnight support.

Occupants are able to shut out outside light using integrated blinds, with a provision for a secondary bed by lying the second-row bench flat and putting supplied pillows into place.

Is the diesel auxiliary heater effective at night? We were a little circumspect on using it, if we’re honest: during a very brief blast, it filled the cabin with fumes…

Speaking of the cabin, the 180-degree swivel chairs and fore-aft adjustment on the rear bench seats liberate ample seating space during the day, while the bed base can be lifted to open up to 2300mm in claimed standing room.

The space is maximised by an open boot area that will happily swallow luggage, fishing rods or even bicycles if you’re creative enough.

The entire California Beach cabin combines well-presented and well-finished touch-points with harder-wearing components – befitting of the camping brief.

The front seats offer excellent long-journey comfort, bolstering and amenity, there is ample incidental storage and the infotainment system and centre fascia are clean, legible and user-friendly with their layouts.

All in all, a strongly executed and comfortable place to be.

This is a tricky one, and will largely depend on your requirements. The 2022 Volkswagen California Beach 6.1 is an excellent execution of the van-based camper brief, bringing all the adventure wares of the legendary Kombi but with a decidedly more modern, polished veneer.

At the same time, it creeps well into top-line caravan territory in doing so, albeit without some of the facilities (toilet, sink, water tank and kitchenette) to match.

It means the Volkswagen California Beach is a great camping solution for those who are after an everyday driver at the same time.

As a vehicle that rolls both duties into one, it’s an impressive and adventure-ready machine.

2022 Volkswagen California Beach 6.1 TDI340 4MOTION at a glance:
Price: $94,990 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel
Output: 110kW/340Nm
Transmission: Seven-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel: 7.5L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 200g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Not tested