MPV Battle - All-New Volkswagen Touran vs BMW Gran Tourer - Geneva International Motor Show 2015

Who would have thought it?

4 years ago I would have laughed so, so, hard if you had suggested that BMW would enter the boring and shrinking (thanks to the SUV craze) MPV market with a front-wheel drive box. But here we are in 2015 and you can buy such a thing. Not only that, but at the International Geneva Motor Show, they have launched a new, longer, version with 2 extra seats. Ladies and Gentlemen, I give the BMW 2-Series Gran Tourer.

I would describe the design as....gawky. Actually, if you put your badge snobbery aside, on design alone the Citroen C4 Grand Picasso arguably does a better job at being a box on wheels. That being seaid, the interior is reasonably pleasant, the engines economical and despite it's heritage-ruining front wheel drive platform, I'd trust BMW more than most (especially considering their efforts with the Mini) to sort out the handling.

But the big question is, should this car exist? Or, even better, will people pay up to north of £30 grand (!) for an averaged size people carrier? To my mind, the normal consumer will find the myriad of similarity sized and priced SUVs much more desirable. It won't have 7 seats (unless you go for a Land-Rover Discovery Sport), but it will be higher up and with increased school car-park cred.

Which basically means, to my mind anyway, this car is aimed at a rich parent, that needs 7 seats (2 of which are quite small) and wants to drive box. Watch me be wrong and the queues at the dealerships stack up, but that seems like a small gap to fill.

But what about a company that does not have a reputation built on winning races and driver dynamics. One that represents solidity and refinement. Aha, Volkswagen have the answer with the all-new Touran. Thankfully, this new model is a larger step forward in terms of design compared to the bland old generation version.

Listen, it is still an Ikea Wardrobe with 4 tyres, but bearing that in mind, it looks almost lean. Especially in the R-Line body-kit, which was on display to gauge public opinion at the show. It also marks a jump forward for in-car technology in the Volkswagen range, thanks to a choice of large touch-screen displays in the dash and support for Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. The usual range of VW group petrol and diesel engines are available, plus the 2.0 TDI is available with a punchy 187bhp. Like the BMW, however, affordability could be an insue, rising close to £30k to the very top of the range models. That still makes it cheaper than the BMW, and the interior is a nicer place to be.

For now, we'll take the VW please.

We also had a look at the revised Volkswagen Sharan and Caddy MPV's, plus the refreshed Citroen Berlingo. You can see them all in our little video, below.

Why not read: The Not-So-New, But Cool, Renault Espace - MPV - Geneva International Motor Show 2015

We have moved. Oh yes. You can now find our motor show related ramblings over at https://theautoshowvisitor.com/