In my opinion, it was destined to fail from the start. Take the unimpressive Chrysler minivans (ratings available to subscribers), strip out the few endearing features like Stow-‘n-Go, make a few suspension and cosmetic modifications, and presto! It’s the Volkswagen Routan, a “Euro-tuned” people mover. Its slow start could also be attributed to one of the oddest advertising campaigns of all time. You know the ones featuring Brooke Shields and an strange spin on fertility.

Meanwhile, Automotive News says that as of April 20, Volkswagen has sold 5,582 of the 22,037 Routans they’ve produced. Even with a global sales slowdown (meltdown?) those numbers certainly are troubling. Checking out the Routan forum at VWVortex.com shows people are having a hard time justifying the sometimes-significant cost premium for a Routan over a similarly-equipped Chrysler or Dodge minivan (see our video review). We just bought a Routan to test if any of the modifications significantly improved this van; it’s no surprise that we got over $6,000 off of the list price. (Of course, you can seriously wheel and deal on the domestic-branded version of this van, as well.)

But don’t throw away those letters just yet. Just swap the T and R and you’ve got a vehicle sold overseas that is what the Routan should have been.

During honeymoon travels this month, I had many opportunities to ride in Volkswagen Touran taxi cabs. This Golf-based mini-minivan is what the U.S. market should have gotten. Sporty, space-efficient yet roomy, and good looking (at least to me), the Touran would compete with the Mazda5 here. According to Automotive News, from January through March Mazda sold 6,239 Mazda5s. In that same timeframe, VW moved just 2,195 Routans. Seems there might be a market for the mini-minivan.

Skeptics will say that the Touran is a too small, Euro-mobile that isn’t right for the big U.S. market. To that I respond: Rubbish. The Touran fits with the image VW seems to be targeting (at this moment, at least): young, active families. It should be the next K2- and/or Trek-branded VW, with both performance and clean-diesel versions available. With snow tires it can hit the slopes. It would make a great road- or mountain-bike support vehicle. For daily use, it would be good for driving vacations and perfect for around-town duty. Finally, VW fans will like that it’s a real Volkswagen, and not just, to recall a much-used phrase from the past Presidential election, lipstick on a pig.

And just think…all those Routan badges can be reused with just a bit of cutting!

—Jon Linkov