Information
• Unique: example of the first Westfalia camper-vans.
• Fully restored.
• Complete set-ups.
ASI.
Documents
To be registered.
Elegibility
Giro di Sicilia.
Targa Florio.
Goodwood Revival.
Coppa d’Oro delle Dolomiti.
Provenance
Very popular and sought after, the minivan Volkswagen Type 2 was a commercial vehicle produced by the German motor company from 1949 to 1967 in almost 1,800,000 units. The commercial success was enormous and planetary. The VW Type 2 also became a myth not only for the Hippie generation, especially in the Samba Bus (a two-colored van) and Westfalia (camper) variants.1 October 1844 marks the beginning of the Westfalia company: Johann Bernhard Knöbel started a forge, thus laying the foundation stone for a long-lasting history. He originally built heavy horse-drawn carts to transport goods arriving at the new train station. Anyway, the history of Westfalia conversions began in 1951 with one customer’s special wish. When Westfalia in Wiedenbrück created the so-called “Camping Box”, especially designed for an officer in the British Forces stationed in Germany, he had a simple request: equip a VW transit van as a home. This had to be neatly built into the vehicle and at the same time had to be suitable as a room for sleeping, living and working. So the people at Westfalia took a VW bus, installed a double door and built in multi-purpose furniture and decoration behind the front seats. For example pretty ruffled curtains which matched the checked pattern of the furniture. A real zeitgeist combination. A studio couch, folding table, seat bench, roll-front cabinet and sideboard completed the interior ensemble. The result was such a success that the Camping Box soon went into series production and the converted VW Bus became the dream car of the 50s, because it was multifunctional and could be used as a hotel on wheels. In 1962 Westfalia built the first motorhome with furniture surfaces made of light plastic material instead of wood, directing the story of the modern campervan, but it was again a VW Type 2. Still in full activity, after almost 70 years of equipping leisure vehicles, in autumn 2019, Westfalia celebrated its 175th anniversary in Wiedenbrück.
The car
The Volkswagen Typ 2 in Westfalia camper van equipment with chassis no. 757100, is an example of 1961. Presumably the set-up is the SO34 "Westfalia camper with small roof hatch and white laminate cabinets". The vehicle has been completely restored in bodywork, mechanics and above all in the interior design which are the particularity if not the uniqueness of this vehicle. Dating back to the early Westfalian era in which all furniture and cupboards are still made of wood, they are finished in this case in white laminate. The seats are upholstered in vibrant Scottish fabric. The “double-face” front seat is characteristic: a bench that can be the driver's and passenger's seat, while on the move, and a sofa in the dinette behind, simply by folding the seat back. The small hatch on the roof anticipates the “pop-up” roofs that will make Westfalia famous. Accessories include the chromed luggage rack with wooden crossbars and side ladder and the “Safari Windows” opening windshield.
State of the art
Completely restored. Outstanding conditions.