Infinite ∞ Night

“Over 9 Million sold”, I wonder how many Volkswagen vans have been sold since they were first introduced?

The man in the photo is a film-maker called Elliott Bristow who travelled around America showing Super 8 films on four screens simultaneously. After he crashed his van Elliot wrote to VW who were inspired by his story and sent him a brand new camper Van.

Another vintage ad (properly vintage this time rather than retro). I hadn’t heard of Volkswagen Vanagone Vans until today, in fact I thought it was some sort of pun about a van having gone…

I really like the way this ad is so simple and bold. The open doors in the photo means that the title/joke makes sense quickly. It’s also interesting to note that, other than the copyright notice, there is no direct reference to the brand - only the logo.

Iconic Volkswagen Bus Celebrates 60th Anniversary

The iconic Type 2 Camper van is 60 years old this year. Designed to offer a complete lifestyle the Type 2 can be seen as the forerunner to the modern MPV albeit with counter culture credentials.

The Type 2 was based on a design by a Dutch businessman (and Volkswagen importer) Ben Pon:

After transforming his father’s sewing shop into a car showroom, Pon took a trip to the VW factory in Wolfsburg, Germany, in 1946, which inspired the first working sketch of the Campervan. Pon struck a deal with engineers in Germany to develop his doodle, but it would take a couple of years before his idea would start rolling off the production line.

The first design for the Type 2 was rejected for not being aerodynamic enough so changes were made to the design including tilting the windscreen back. By 1950 the first Volkswagen vans for sale were on the production line at VW’s Wolfsburg plant.

By the 1970s the VW Bus had become a counter culture icon as recognizable as the CND logo or the peace sign.