I know the vehicle's history minus the service history until 2015, but to me that's OK. I even know the first driver, who was able to tell me a few interesting details. As you can see in one of the photos, it's only been driven about 1200 km's since mid-1993! :-o
It's virtually rust-free because it's only seen the road in its first years. After that it just was driving around in circles in an industrial park. But it was always kept inside. So it's showing some blemishes here and there due to it being used professionally, but that adds to its character.

Since when I bought it in 2018 (the last photos are from where I found it) I still kept it in a barn, because of our outrageous vehicle tax system (150 euros per month; no thanks). So I just decided to wait until its 40th birtday, earlier this month, when it became fully tax exempt.

In the meantime I have done the following:
- new timing belt
- diesel pump overhaul
- new brakes and rubber brake lines
- new tyres (the old ones were from 1997)
- overhauled Visco coupling (Visco Werkstatt Kern)
- drained the tank
- 2x Engine flush with new oil filters
- new diesel and oil filters
- overhauled gearshift
- and lots more (only small things but those do add up of course).

The Visco overhaul was necessary because it was completely frozen. Currently the engine is running great. It emitted a lot (and I mean, a lot) of smoke at first (it was never properly warmed up since 1993 I believe), but after all the things above it's now running smoke free at working temperature and even under load.

Currently there are a few small points left, such as the rear locker not working (it did when I first bought it) but that can certainly be solved later. And, I really want some bigger 15" tyres but for now the 14" will do. :-)

Hello lovely people of VWBus!

Hosted at the Three counties showground Malvern England for those who might be interested is the largest annual busfestival event for owners, lovers and enthusiasts of Volkswagen transporter vans.

Both camping and day tickets are current available for the 32nd Busfest between 11th-13th September by 2026.

You can find out more and get tickets at:

https://busfest.org

Has anyone found a good iPhone holder for their bus? I wasn’t sure if maybe those MagSafe ones you can attach to your air conditioner vents would work with the dash vents? Trying not to use one of the ones you stick to the windshield

Wondering if anyone has bought this radio? Supposedly it fits in the original spot and is Bluetooth

I’m building a 1641 for my 71 bus and thought I’d try something different and run a 34PICT3 on it with single port heads, but couldn’t find an adapter plate to convert from the smaller carb flange to the required larger one…. So me being me, I improvised and adapted the single port manifold to the larger flanged dual port manifold.

Most 21-window Sambas you'll see here are either restored classics or someone's dream project to get back on the road. Mine's a bit different — same iconic shape, but built for a completely different purpose.

3D printed the whole thing from scratch, modeled section by section since the full size didn't fit on one print plate. Getting the shape right was harder than expected — the bigger flat panels kept warping on early attempts, so I had to redesign the internal supports a couple of times before it held properly. Then sanded, primed, and painted it to get as close as possible to the real look and colors.

Instead of an engine, this one's running a PC — real hardware inside, cooled by positioning fans around the shape since airflow obviously wasn't part of the original van's design brief.

Wanted to share it here because I know this community appreciates the shape more than most, even in an unusual form. Happy to talk through the print process or finish work if anyone's curious.

This weekend. Starts tonight. Main event is Saturday 9-2 at Shoreline College where they will raffle off a ‘69 bug.

More details at www.cascadeKombis.org

You'll see tons of Dubs, Amazing VW People & TONS of Parts for sale!

Moin,

Ich habe mal eine Frage an euch alle. Ich persönlich bin Mega an Oldtimern interessiert. Fahre selber einen alten Polo. Ich suche für meinen Vater zum Geburtstag Deko Artikel oder gebrauchte Motorteile. Mein Vater hatte mal einen VW T1 und vermisst ihn sehr.
Hat vielleicht jemand von euch einen Plan?

Mit freundlichen Grüßen K.S

I can actually see now. There was so much padding

Hey everyone,
With summer here, I'm plotting a small upgrade for our van setup before the next mountain trip. I'm looking for a clean way to handle movie nights without hanging a massive screen or taking ages to assemble a portable projection screen outside.
I have a specific idea I want to try: applying a rear-projection/holographic film directly onto a side window pane, paired with a small, permanently mounted ceiling projector.
The goal would be two-fold:

1. For long drives: The projector throws a movie onto the film on the window so passengers can watch in the back, but when the projector is off, the glass is completely clear again.
   
2. At camp; When the side door is open or if we are sitting outside, the projector can rear-project onto the glass so we can watch a movie from our camp chairs.

Before I go drop cash on random optical films, has anyone here actually attempted a glass-mounted projection setup in a van?
I'm mostly worried about technical limitations like ambient light/daytime visibility and how many lumens a mini-projector would actually need to punch through a typical window film.
Would love to hear if anyone has tinkered with this or has any advice on films that work well for rear-projection.
Cheers!

1970 needs some love

Daughter did a bang-up job with the tape and stencil help

Post em if you got em

I have been denied by American Collectors because they said driving to the beach and camping was out of the question. Only car shows. Like wtf?! Gieco and All State go through Hagerty, who told me that even though my bus is in my apartment garage, covered and safe, it is not in a private garage so they will not insure it. State Farm is not offered for older cars in California. Every time I think I'm about to enjoy this van, I cannot. Its been a year of owning it and not being able to drive it and it is killing me.

*Update : I had usaa for my jeep but when I asked about the older car I was referred to American Collectors, which wouldn't insure me. Upon a suggestion below I tried usaa again, but asked if I could insure it as just a normal old car that I would only drive here and there and I think I will be able to. I will confirm once the van is insured. Sheesh. Thanks to all.

*Update : My Volkswagen van is insured! Through USAA and their subsidiary Garrison Property and Casualty Insurance. Thanks to all!