The Great VW Camper

The story of the VW van started when the British were running the Volkswagen factory after the second world war. Because there were few resources and equipment, some engineers had improvised a flat platform on the Beetle chsssis for movning parts around the factory.

In 1947, a Dutch garage owner, Ben Pon, visited the factory as he wanted to import Volkswagen Beetles into Holland. The little flat-bed trucks gave him an idea, which he sketched, for a simple box van built on the Beetle chassis. This idea met the need for a cheap to build van, which could esily be made in numerous variants. Europe needed simple transport to rebuild in the postwar period, and in 1950 the VW van became a reality. Add windows and you have a bus - the Samba, kit out the interior and you have a camper.

Go to

http://www.vwcampersforever.com/vw-camper-models/what-came-before-the-vw-camper

to see Ben Pon’s original sketch and one of the original factory trolleys and an early van conversion.

Soon, Westfalia (an independent company in Germany)saw the opportunity to customise the vans with windows and interior fittings - and the great VW camper was born.

The VW type 2 (the Beetle was Type 1) had a split screen, the Beetle rear mounted air-cooled engine and large VW badge. It was basic and slow, had 6 volt electrics, but it was a reliable workhorse with appealing styling and has developed a huge following.

This Dutch video is a useful introduction to the wide variety of early models.

There’s also a good article on Ben Pons and the early history of the VW Camper at http://www.vwcampersforever.com/vw-camper-models/what-came-before-the-vw-camper

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