For those of you that prefer more reading, here is some great information on things to watch out for when buying a Bay Window. Put your feet up in your preferred Volkswagen and read about buying the iconic 1970s vehicle.
http://www.vwcamperguide.com/html/bay_window_buyers_guide.html
After the iconic split screen had been produced for more than a decade, VW introduced the “Bay window” in 1968. Special Patrol Group member Mike carefully restored Spookie the 1972 crossover Bay over 20 years ago and carefully documented each section of the rebuild.
Hand drawn specific details have proved very useful to amateur restorers ever since and the film based photographs are there for posterity.
Mike owned and ran Spookie for 18 years with no issues during that time before selling him a few years ago. A great story of rebuilding when parts were scarce and documentation was minimal and an inspiration to us all. Anyone know the current owner?
http://www.specialpatrolgroup.co.uk/spooky/
Orders of The VW T2 Skyrocket.
The Volkswagen T2 is one of the most iconic campervans in the world. Its popularity and evergreen design has endured for over half a century with over 10 million having been produced. Caravan Owners Club recently reported that production of this incredibly popular vehicle will finally come to an end on 31st December this year.
Despite still being one of Volkswagen’s most successful products, with output being presold even today, health and safety laws being introduced in Brazil mean that the vehicle’s lack of airbags and ABS system will signal the end of production at the VW plant in Anchieta.
Despite this rather gloomy news there has been a silver lining for campervan conversion company Danbury Motorcaravans, who have seen orders for converted T2’s skyrocket since the end of the Type 2 was announced.
“We are absolutely inundated,” Jason Jones, sales manager at Danbury told Caravan Owners Club.
“People who have thought about buying a T2 but have maybe put it off, now have a limited time in which to order one, because on the 31st December production will stop forever.
“Plus of course the production run always sells out in advance, so if someone is wanting to buy a T2 then the time to order one is now because we have no way of knowing when the production run will be fully allocated. We’ll just find one day that we hit the button to order and find that it is no longer possible.”
When asked whether he thought that the T2 might make a comeback at some point in the future with ABS and airbags fitted Jason replied:
“There is no way that it can be done. It just isn’t possible with this vehicle, these really will be the last VW T2’s ever produced and that’s why we’re going to document the last ever shipment that we receive and put the images on our Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/danburymotorcaravans) to commemorate the end of production.”
Although those who want to capture the symbolic freedom that the type 2 represents may be disappointed if they do miss out, it’s not all bad news as there are other high quality campervans available as an alternative, like Danburys T5, VW Caddy, or Fiat Doblo conversions.
Danbury’s new double back T5 campervan comes with an unprecedented choice of 10 different wood finishes, 5 different flooring options, and 150 types of fabric and leather finishes meaning that each one is different and is really a bespoke design depending on the preference of the consumer.
So while the 31st December will mark the end of the road for one of the most popular campervans ever produced, you do have a last chance in which to order one if you act quickly.
Links:
You can see the new T5 range here: http://www.danburymotorcaravans.com/models/model.aspx?modelID=2
See what Jason Bradbury of Channel 5’s Gadget Show had to say about the VW T2 after he took one touring around the South Coast here: http://www.danburymotorcaravans.com/models/modeltype.aspx?modelID=1&modeltypeID=7
Danburys Facebook page where they will document the last ever shipment of VW Type 2’s here: https://www.facebook.com/danburymotorcaravans) to commemorate the end of production
See Danburys new T5 range here: http://www.danburymotorcaravans.com/models/model.aspx?modelID=2
A company that customises VW campervans asked its employees to design their money-no-object, dream vehicle, and this is what they came up with.
A £55,000, state-of-the-art moving palace, with hidden Sony Bravia flatscreen TVs, rear-view camera, and ultra-high spec entertainment system.
The iconic VW Type 2 campervan has been customised by Bristol-based Danbury Motorcaravans, and costs twice the price of their average camper.
Scroll down for video
Pimp my ride: The Project 1 VW campervan boasts a host of features to justify its £55,000 price tag
The ultra high-spec Project 1 campervan was produced by Bristol-based Danbury Motorcaravans
Built as a one-off for fun, the van dubbed Project 1 has everything those who pimp vans for a living would want in their ultimate vehicle.
It comes with all the usual campervan regulars like a galley kitchen, comfortable seats and a bed, but also has top of the range features including two flatscreen TVs, three electric sunroofs, four swivelling chairs and Porsche alloy wheels.
The van also boasts super-bright headlights, a custom white, black and orange paint job, and a hidden king-size bed, while the whole chassis has been lowered to just a few inches off the floor.
Danbury Motorcaravans have been customising campers since 1950, but staff there say this is the most extravagant van they have ever built.
Jason Jones said: ‘We have 40 people working for us at Danbury and for a bit of fun we asked everyone to tell us what features their dream camper would have.
‘We listened to them all and then spent the next two years building a van that incorporated everyone’s ideas.
No ordinary campervan: The pimped version has an orange, black and white paint theme and leather seats
The £55,000 van boasts a sleek kitchen with fridge, cooker and sink, plus a king-size bed and flatscreen TVs
One-off van designed just for fun: The team at Danbury spent two years designing their dream VW campervan
‘The result is the Project 1 van, which is without a doubt the most bling VW Campervan in the world. There really was no expense spared – and the end product is simply stunning.
‘Everything we have put in the van is top of the range, from the 32ins Sony Bravia flatscreen TV that pops up from under the bed, to the carbon fibre trims.
‘It’s everything you could ever wish for in a campervan.’
The deluxe van is the latest in a long line of VW campervans, which became an instant hit with travellers worldwide after their launch by the German car company.
With its retro yet sporty interior, the new campervan will appeal to VW enthusiasts who appreciate luxuries
The van’s makers say it is ‘customised to the absolute max’, with features including Porsche alloys and dark glass
The original vans were called Type 2, following on from their first offering the Type 1, which is better known nowadays as the Beetle.
Production in the UK stopped in 1967 but continued in South America, and Brazil is the only country in the world still manufacturing Type 2 campervans.
Danbury sells customised Type 2 campervans which cost from around £27,000.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2389831/Pimp-VW-campervan-van-boasts-flatscreen-TVs-electric-sunroofs-Porsche-alloy-wheels.html#ixzz2bz0IyPxf
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Posted on 15 July 2013.
Ice cool, as it turns out, judging by the waves, positive feedback, adulation and general interest our 2007 Danbury converted camper generated. Whether it was the history of these iconic vehicles that incidentally celebrate 64 years of continuous production in 2013, more on which later, cool blue hue, lowered stance, smart interior or sexy alloys isn’t clear. Everyone, young and old wanted to chat, touch, look inside or simply know more. This really was the classic car equivalent of getting a puppy; a people magnet with a very strong pull.
Enjoying the view from our borrowed T2
That when you think about it is a little odd, given that the VW Type 2 (T2) was originally an attempt to re-use the VW Type 1 (T1 or Beetle) platform in a more practical way, the brainchild of Dutch car importer Ben Pon in 1946. Three years later in 1949 the first split windscreen T2’s appeared and eight years after that in 1967 the first ‘Bay’ front window vehicles started to be produced. Something that continued in Germany until 1979 when production swapped to the squarer looking T3, Mexico until 1994 and amazingly Brazil until the end of this year (2013). Danbury and others will be forced to convert second hand vans after all of the new stock has been consumed. Another interesting point, all camper vans were and continue to be today converted Type 2 buses, albeit originally offered as new in partnership with specialists such as Devon and Westfalia, the latter often referred to as ‘Westies’.
Top Tip: Remove Air Vent to cool your beer en-route
The question remained, how does a converted utilitarian commercial vehicle dating back to shortly after the second world war win over the hearts of so many people and for so long? Well, being frank judging by our two days experience it can’t be about practicality, the inside is cosy at best, or comfort whilst on the move, it is after all quite noisy to pilot, and it certainly isn’t about decent cross-country pace because 55-60mph is as fast as you dare without running the risk of blowing the engine up. Worse still travelling above 60mph tests not only your nerve, but also the ancient and heavy powerless and somewhat vague steering as well as rudimentary suspension to the extreme as the T2 bounces and weaves its way along the highway. There are alternatives on the market that tackle all of those points in a much better way, but then they’re not the reason you and so many others like you want a T2 so badly. Because just like getting that puppy, buying a converted VW Type 2 Bus is much more a lifestyle choice.
In a T2 there’s usually a queue
I dwelled on the why all the time we had our van and the word that kept coming back even with a contemporary conversion like this 2007 Danbury was ‘simplicity’. These vehicles are like life stripped right back down to the bone. There is no fat, or waste, just an honest attempt to transport up to four people around with luggage, feed everyone and then accommodate them overnight. The additional two needing to be children really as the extra sleeping spaces involve hammocks or relatively thin flooring that make use of the elevated roof space. For two adults that same space can be used for the luggage previously stored in the boot and forced to move in order to make way for the bed, an arrangement that works perfectly well. So much so I challenge anyone to find a more romantic way to spend a weekend than tootling around in a T2 stopping only when you want to, which on the glorious weekend we had was to watch the sun go down whilst enjoying that naturally chilled bottle of beer.
2007 Brazilian T2 ‘Molly’ (left) next to original 1973 Camper ‘Olive’ (Right)
If you’re interested in some other minor Camper Van blah-blah then be aware that the later Brazilian built T2’s moved away from the infamous air-cooled flat four engine to a more modern Polo water cooled in-line four unit around 2005-2006. That those same sourced vehicles may require protecting to prevent them rusting away whilst removed from their far drier climate. All will need a heater adding, our Danbury had a Webasto unit retro-fitted, and all will have been converted from left hand drive and so the sliding door on the side is to the right and not kerbside in the UK at least on the left. Other than that the newer vehicles should have a tidier and possibly more practical interior with a cleaner layout that includes essentials like a small fridge. This as opposed to an original not so cool, ‘cool’ cupboard one owner showed us on their ’74 Devon for instance.
Choosing one of these vehicles carefully is particularly important because much like a puppy or in classic car terms say a Morgan 3 Wheeler (M3W) it might not be for you. Puppy’s take up a lot of time and energy and M3W’s are difficult to get in and out of, offer no weather protection and are extremely noisy to drive. Camper Vans offer similar challenges, being tight on space inside, slow and noisy to travel in (motorways being most tricky given that foreign registered trucks are not restricted to 55mph) very expensive to buy new, or requiring a lot of time and energy as a second hand proposition. If you are in the market and haven’t experienced one previously our plea is to try before you buy because after all much like puppy dogs Camper Vans are not just for Christmas, they’re for life.
How does this car make you feel?
In one word: Hippy
As a favourite meal: BBQ chicken washed down with a bottle of beer nicely chilled on the journey down
Anything Else: Such simplicity in the complex world we live in today is still very refreshing
Key Ingredients: Simple and modest design, cutesy looks, universal appeal, cosy but comfortable bed, air cooled flat four engine (missing on final Brazilian built vans)
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With thanks to Classic Camper Vans For Hire and Classic Car Club – London
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xt2j-AzPLss
How does the new “old” camper stand up to a modern reviewers scrutiny?
