The small VW van was made for police dogs
Volkswagen revealed a new conversion to its Caddy van, which turns the Ford Transit Connect competitor into a police dog van.
The specialist dog vehicle looks similar to a standard Caddy van but it comes with a removable dog house that meets animal welfare standards for size and ventilation. The vehicle is equipped with an air conditioning system that monitors temperature and alerts the driver if the canine companions are getting too hot or cold. You can adjust the settings from the cabin, without having to stop the vehicle.
Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles’ Approved blue light converter PressFab Evo Ltd in Bedfordshire carried out the conversion. The vehicle also has blue roof lights and a police officer livery.
The vehicle is, apart from these features, a regular Caddy. It is based on the Highline model, and features the most powerful engine in the range, a 2-liter diesel engine with 148 horsepower. This engine is found in all VW vehicles. In the Caddy dog van it is paired with an automatic six-speed gearbox. This combination gives the Caddy Highline a top speed at 119 mph, and an official fuel economy of 56.5 U.K. (47 U.S. / 5 liters/ 100 km). Volkswagen claims that the vehicle “delivers a balanced performance and economy”.
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Volkswagen stated in a statement that “public sector fleets like ambulance services or police forces often require specialist conversions. Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles provides a variety of conversions for the Crown Commercial Service to suit different operational needs through its in-house conversion team and Approved Blue Light Converters. Crafter riot van was the most recent custom conversion, which was launched at the Commercial Vehicle Show 2019 in May.
Steven Cowell, technical sales manager at Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles said that the Caddy dog van would provide exactly what the police need from such an automobile.
He said, “Our latest blue-light conversion is a fully operational dog van based upon our Volkswagen Caddy.” After months of hard work, the team with PressFab Evo has produced a product that we are delighted with. Police forces need a reliable and versatile vehicle. That’s why the Caddy is so popular with so many businesses.
The Caddy dog van now joins the Crafter riot control vehicle and Transporter prisoner transportation vehicle on VW’s so called ‘blue-light’ fleet. This allows potential customers – in this case, police forces – to test it.