VW CAMPERVAN
Last week in Inishowen I was lucky enough to follow a precession of Volkswagen camper vans from Buncrana to Malin Head. They ranged for the original split screened models to the rather bland looking T25 model that manages to sum up caravanning in the 1970’s. It was a fabulous display of vehicles. I was only sorry that they didn’t stop in Malin, they just turned around and headed for a different part of the country. Because of that I didn’t manage to talk campervans for the afternoon. The history of the machine is very colourful and one can pass many an hour recalling it in the pub
VW CAMPERVAN HISTORY
The history of the Camper van really goes back to the end of the 2nd world war where the allied forces found themselves running the VW factory in Wolfsberg in Germany. To ferry parts across the massive factory stripped down VW Beetles were turned into little transporters. A Dutch VW importer called Ben Pon thought these machines had a future and in 1947 sketched his idea of a Beetle based van. Two short years later it was launched at the Geneva Motor Show as the modern equivalent to the ox and cart.
They say most ideas are simple ones, and the one behind the VW bus is as pure and simple as they come. It started life off as a box on wheels and what a big box, 170 cubic feet and enough room to hold a 15 hand horse. It was very simple and in the next 5 years VW would turn out 90 different body combinations from, refrigerated ice-cream vans, half a hundred delivery vans from mobile milking machines to bakers bread vans, scores of milk floats, florists, veterinary surgeons, beer wagons, butchers shops, mobile grocers. Then there were the police vans, fire engines, ambulances, the pick ups and last was the camper van. The first big sale was in America; in the mid 50s with dinky sinks and cosy cookers it was the home from home. By 1963 America had purchased 150,000 of these camper vans. The Splitty, which was a reference to the split windscreen, was replaced in 1967 by the bay window model and what the bay lost in personality it gained in refinements with having windup windows and a top speed of 80mph. The bay window made the VW a success and by 1975 the Hanover factory had turned out 4 Million of these vehicles. Not bad for a van that started life as a box on wheels.
A different choice of engine sizes were available from the 1600cc, 1700cc, 1800cc and 2000cc. VW had been giving away gold watches to anybody who got past the 100,000 mile mark, but had to stop when the bay window model arrived after giving away 160,000 watches, because it became more reliable. But in 1979 all that personality stopped and was replaced by the wedge.
The comfy camper became a bungalow on wheels (hope this does not offend any T25 owners). There were 5 million of these vehicles made by VW so they must have done something right when they made the Camper Van. VW discontinued the camper van but at the Detroit auto show in 2001 they announced that it fully intended to build a production version of the retro family van, which was to be called the Microbus. That plan has now changed, as VW will now be making a much more traditional minivan design that has little in common with the Microbus concept. Instead, Volkswagen will employ Chrysler to build a minivan for it based on the latter's 2008 model-year redesign of its Town & Country and Dodge Caravan series of vehicles. Even though it's expected to go into production at Chrysler's St. Louis plant in 2008, this seven-seater will feature a distinctively VW type of design. So although the outside of the vehicle will resemble the glory days of the old camper, the interior will reflect the new trend for seven seater vehicles designed to get the kids to school on time.
Environmental.
Last week in Inishowen I was lucky enough to follow a precession of Volkswagen camper vans from Buncrana to Malin Head. They ranged for the original split screened models to the rather bland looking T25 model that manages to sum up caravanning in the 1970’s. It was a fabulous display of vehicles. I was only sorry that they didn’t stop in Malin, they just turned around and headed for a different part of the country. Because of that I didn’t manage to talk campervans for the afternoon. The history of the machine is very colourful and one can pass many an hour recalling it in the pub
VW CAMPERVAN HISTORY
The history of the Camper van really goes back to the end of the 2nd world war where the allied forces found themselves running the VW factory in Wolfsberg in Germany. To ferry parts across the massive factory stripped down VW Beetles were turned into little transporters. A Dutch VW importer called Ben Pon thought these machines had a future and in 1947 sketched his idea of a Beetle based van. Two short years later it was launched at the Geneva Motor Show as the modern equivalent to the ox and cart.
They say most ideas are simple ones, and the one behind the VW bus is as pure and simple as they come. It started life off as a box on wheels and what a big box, 170 cubic feet and enough room to hold a 15 hand horse. It was very simple and in the next 5 years VW would turn out 90 different body combinations from, refrigerated ice-cream vans, half a hundred delivery vans from mobile milking machines to bakers bread vans, scores of milk floats, florists, veterinary surgeons, beer wagons, butchers shops, mobile grocers. Then there were the police vans, fire engines, ambulances, the pick ups and last was the camper van. The first big sale was in America; in the mid 50s with dinky sinks and cosy cookers it was the home from home. By 1963 America had purchased 150,000 of these camper vans. The Splitty, which was a reference to the split windscreen, was replaced in 1967 by the bay window model and what the bay lost in personality it gained in refinements with having windup windows and a top speed of 80mph. The bay window made the VW a success and by 1975 the Hanover factory had turned out 4 Million of these vehicles. Not bad for a van that started life as a box on wheels.
A different choice of engine sizes were available from the 1600cc, 1700cc, 1800cc and 2000cc. VW had been giving away gold watches to anybody who got past the 100,000 mile mark, but had to stop when the bay window model arrived after giving away 160,000 watches, because it became more reliable. But in 1979 all that personality stopped and was replaced by the wedge.
The comfy camper became a bungalow on wheels (hope this does not offend any T25 owners). There were 5 million of these vehicles made by VW so they must have done something right when they made the Camper Van. VW discontinued the camper van but at the Detroit auto show in 2001 they announced that it fully intended to build a production version of the retro family van, which was to be called the Microbus. That plan has now changed, as VW will now be making a much more traditional minivan design that has little in common with the Microbus concept. Instead, Volkswagen will employ Chrysler to build a minivan for it based on the latter's 2008 model-year redesign of its Town & Country and Dodge Caravan series of vehicles. Even though it's expected to go into production at Chrysler's St. Louis plant in 2008, this seven-seater will feature a distinctively VW type of design. So although the outside of the vehicle will resemble the glory days of the old camper, the interior will reflect the new trend for seven seater vehicles designed to get the kids to school on time.
Environmental.
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