Here we have a wondrous white Volkswagen Santana Variant, seen in the Chinese capital Beijing in the summer of 2023. The good Santana was in perfect shape, it looked almost like new, with a super clean body and the original alloy wheels.
The first generation (B2) Volkswagen Santana has a long history in China. It was manufactured by the Shanghai-Volkswagen joint venture. Production of the sedan started in 1983, and the Variant wagon joined the lineup in 1992.
The B2 Santana had a very long production run, it continued even as newer Santana cars came and left again. The B2 sedan remained in production until 2007 and the wagon continued until 2013! However, from 2008 onwards, the wagon was only sold in batches to government agencies and the like, it was no longer available on the general consumer car market.
The B2 Santana hails from a time when windows gave a view into the outside world. The car that I saw is a late example, produced from 2007 until 2013.
The interior is classic Santana, with shiploads of dark black plastics and an extra-large steering wheel with a thin rim. The owner added some classy seat covers to protect the original cloth seats. He also added an odd gear-lever cover. I remember these from the early ’00s, but they were quite uncommon.
Every B2 car has this super cool SANTANA badge on the dash, in front of the passenger, so there could be no mistake about the car’s name.
The Santana was a large car with loads of space in the back. Size of the wagon: 4546/1710/1427, with a 2548 wheelbase. The large windows make for a very airy cabin. In those days, darkened windows were not a thing yet, and the good owner of this particular car didn’t install any after-market darkening film either.
The size of the trunk was 560 liters. With the bench down, space went up to a massive 1831 liter. I have traveled around China in these Santana Variants many times, they were used as airport taxis and as private taxis in smaller cities. It was amazing how much stuff they could handle.
The 2007-2013 Volkswagen Santana Variant wagon was powered by a 1.8-liter four-cylinder petrol engine. Output was 95 hp and 145 Nm, good for a 165 km/h top speed and a 0-100 in a leisurely 12.9 seconds. Fuel consumption was 8.5 liters per 100 kilometers. The motor was mated to a five-speed manual gearbox, sending horses to the front wheels.
Characters: 上海大众, Shanghai Volkswagen. Even in its late life, the Volkswagen Santana Variant was an affordable workhorse. The last consumer price was 79.800 yuan, which was a super good deal for so much of a car.
Today, the Santana Variant is a rare car on the road in Beijing. But, amazingly, the late examples are still legal in the Chinese capital. The engine is just clean enough for the latest emission standards. A brilliant and usable wagon for a decent price, I wish there would be more of those today.