The humble VW camper van celebrates its 60th anniversary this summer. Could any other commercial vehicle be as loved, asks Shane O'Donoghue
Vans serve an important purpose, but there are precious few reasons to get excited about them. The VW van is a little different though, capturing people's hearts around the globe like no other commercial vehicle can manage. Volkswagen is acutely aware of this fact and hopes to cash in on it by very publicly celebrating the 60th anniversary of its iconic Transporter series.
It all began in VW's Wolfsburg factory when the employees used the mechanicals of the Beetle to create a rudimentary work vehicle to help them ferry large components around the factory.
A Dutch Volkswagen importer, Ben Pon, is credited with the idea to turn this into a compact and simple commercial vehicle. The Type 2 was born (the Beetle is the Type 1) and by 1950, the "T1" Type 2 began to roll off the production line.
As with the factory vehicle, the T1 utilised the rear-mounted air-cooled flat-four engine from the Beetle, which meant buyers were saddled with the same woefully inadequate 25bhp for the first few years of the van's life.
However, its simplicity and rugged nature struck a chord with buyers and its distinctive rounded profile was copied by several manufacturers.
The T1 has since been christened the "Splitty" due to the split windscreen design and is one of the most sought after examples of the breed to this day.
Though a success in its own right, the iconic status of the VW Microbus was sealed with the help of the Swinging Sixties.
Hippies everywhere adopted the VW Bus as their vehicle of choice. It was cheap, practical, relatively reliable and as a bonus, its large VW roundel could be neatly replaced by the Greenpeace symbol. Thousands of versions were painted in flowery, "love the world" liveries and no doubt the camper version had a hand to play in the free love mood of the time too.
Volkswagen wisely kept changes to a minimum during that decade, merely adding power and increasing payload in the regular van version until 1967, when the T2 was born.
Though obviously from the same genes, the T2 featured a completely new exterior and fans today lament the loss of the split screen. The new design afforded the van its "Bay" nickname, though it's clear to see why some called it the Bread loaf too.
With the design change came an increase in size, weight and complexity. Bigger engines were required to maintain performance at acceptable levels, though VW persisted with the positioning of the air-cooled engines at the rear.
The T2 soldiered on through lean times for Volkswagen until 1979, albeit with substantial revisions to the engines and mechanicals.
When the T3 was revealed, it was the most significant change to the Transporter yet, and though air-cooled engines remained at the beginning of its life, they were soon replaced by liquid-cooled versions.
The T3 (you'll see it referred to as T25 in Ireland) was significantly bigger and heavier than its predecessors. The engine was mounted lower down in the rear to enhance access too.
A 1.6-litre diesel unit was the first liquid-cooled engine in a VW Bus and it quickly took over as the engine of choice.
Later on, a 1.9-litre version became available, though some markets received a perky 2.1-litre petrol model as well.
In 1990, VW dropped the rear-engined layout in return for the increasingly common front-engined, front-wheel drive arrangement.
The T4 Transporter was born and fans of the first generations lost interest. However, the T4 was a major success for Volkswagen and remained in production until 2003. Even then, the latest T5 was only really an updated model, though it doesn't capture the spirit of the original "bus".
Despite that, VW is holding a three-day festival-like event in Hanover to celebrate the 60th birthday of the Transporter. The weekend, from October 5th-7th, will unashamedly focus on the much-loved T1 and T2, with references to the 1960s and relevant entertainment.
There'll be room for thousands of vans too, with a special display area for the most interesting examples.
It seems like a lot of trouble to go to for a van, but it's likely that Volkswagen has plans to resurrect the spirit of the original Microbus in the near future.
The Microbus Concept at the Detroit Show in 2001 showed how a modern version could look and Stephan Schaller, spokesman for brand management, Volkswagen commercial vehicles told us: "We want to establish the unrivalled legacy of our brand with the international VW Camper event and hope to revive the Bulli brand in the future."
There's life in the old dog yet.