The Vintage
Warehouse garage
1962 Vendo
WOW!!!
What can we say? This has got
to be
the coolest sales Bus ever!!
This started life as a "regular"
Euro '62 Single Cab with the only special option being dual treasure
chest doors.
But once purchased the owner had a coach builder, possibly Westphalia,
convert it into the vending Bus seen here.
The story on this Bus is a long one and can be read in the Summer 2001
issue of Camper and Commercial magazine.
This is where Greg first saw the Vend-O and decided he had to have it.
At the time it had just been restored by Luke Theochari in the UK and
was making the rounds to the UK shows.
Fast forward to February of 2005
Greg had just returned home from a long weekend of VW swapping in So
Cal and hopped on the internet to see what was for sale.
Much to his surprise, there it was! No longer owned by Luke, but still
in the UK.
Over the next 12 hours emails were exchanged, phone calls were made,
and a deal was struck.
In April of 2005 the Vend-O made its way to the docks in the US.
The old owners logos were removed and replaced with the new Vintage
Warehouse ones.
With
that done the Vend-O made it's US debut at BYOB one week later where it
won the "Most
Unusual" Bus award.
On the drive home it was decided that even though the Bus is a one of a
kind and another like it will most likely never be seen again
Things had to change........
With the addition of a
1904 cc dual carbed motor a full suspension drop, updated "flyer"
tranny, and OG Berg shifter,
we're pretty sure
the Vend-O will be turning heads at all the VW events this year, and
years to come.
Update with new improved interior....
1966
Italian Salesflap
This one of a kind sales flap made by the
coach
building firm of Carrozzeria Grazia from Bologna Italy
Notice how the "flap" extends up
into the roof? We've never seen another one like it, anywhere..
With just 73050 km (45,656 miles) on the odometer this unique Bus needs
some cleaning then we'll put it to use!!
We were going to restore this and use it as our "T-shirt Bus" for the
swap meets, but we found a better Bus for that.
So instead were giving it the Slam-O-Matic treatment and plan to use it
as a sales vehicle for our suspension parts at the shows.
This includes a 3" narrowed beam w/ adjusters, dropped spindles,
straight axle conversion, T3 rear brakes,
4.5" Sprint Stars up front with 165/45/15's and 5.5" Sprint Stars in the rear
with 195/55/15's in the rear.
We had a freshly gone thru 2110cc sitting on the bench waiting for a
Bus, so it will found it's home here as well.
Nice smokey burnouts, and we can load it full of wheels, beams, straight axle conversions, spindles, etc. and still go 70mph perfect!!
Look for it at any of the Nor Cal shows.
More pictures can be found here
The Vendo and the Salesflap together
1958 Binz Double Cab
The newest addition to Greg's collection.
It a good runner / driver as is. Yeah it needs some TLC but nothing too
bad.
A full resto is planned in the future but until then expect the normal
Vintage Warehouse touch.
1962 Ragtop
This 1962 Ragtop was bought from the 2nd owner.
Fortunately it was never fooled with so other than a 12 volt conversion it's an OG car.
The best part (besides the Ragtop) is the Red interior. Nothing beats a Black car with red interior.
It looked good as a stocker, but Greg had to work his magic on it.
Now it has a 6" narrowed beam, dropped spindles, disc brakes and a nice set of 4.5 and Deep 6 early Porsche wheels.
1959 Westy SO-1 Salesflap
Even
though Greg likes the "one of a kinds" and weird coach built stuff and there are
other SO-1's out there.
This one gets a spot because it's the earliest known
SO-1, and that's kind of a big deal.
Once we get a chance to really check it out we'll decide which way to go. For now
the plans seems to be bone stock with Vintage warehouse logos.
No lowering, no fancy wheels, no crazy interior colors, no big engines.
Keep posted here for updates. Until then, here are a few pictures.
1966 Kemperink Bestelwagon
Built by the coach building firm of Karroserie Kemperink (hence the name) this
Bus started out as a Single Cab pickup that was then stretched approx. 3.5 feet then the box was built into the normal bed area.
Used by the Dutch military as a mobile "command center" this Bus has very low mileage, and it shows.
Before we got it there was a really sweet (kidding) mural on the rear box, and the front cab was Baby Blue and White
We took care of all that right away by stripping the mural away to some original paint underneath,
and spraying the lower half of the front to match the lower portion of the box
Then we added a set of 15" Bus wheels / tires to get a sturdier look.
Inside the rear box has been converted to a camper at some point, and we'll run it like that for now.
Before
After
More pictures of the Kemperink
1958 SO-19 Display Bus
This one is going to need some major reconstruction, but how many of them are left?
What was once used as a mobile sales window will be converted into something a little more cool.
Other than the massive amount of metal work were not sure what exactly were going to do with this one.
VW's that have gone on to new owners
1966 Swiss Postal Bus
This one came directly from a private party in Switzerland.
Aside from being a Highroof, which is pretty cool by itself, it's also
RHD (right hand drive), a walkthru,
and has a coach built slider on the drivers side instead of the typical
cargo doors.
We did most of the suspension, dropped spindles, straight
axle conversion, Porsche disc brake conversion,
here at Vintage Warehouse.
Rust Box took care of the tubs, steering box raise, and 6.5" narrowed
beam.
The engine is a 1915 cc with dual 40's
Wheels are UK Porsche Cosmics supplied by good friend Chris Lyons and
detailed here.
Tires are 195/50's in the rear, and 165/45's in the front.
The goal for Greg was to get it as low as possible without bags and still be drive able.
Once
that was done he sold it to a friend in AZ minus the wheels and engine
More picture here.....
Check
out the before pictures here
"Done" pictures here
1950 Split window Beetle
The
oldest VW in Greg's collection was this 1950 Split Window Beetle
"The '50" as it is referred to, has a 6" narrowed front end, dropped
spindles, disc brakes,
and
Porsche "Earlies" (15 x 4.5 in front, and 15 x 6's in the back)
Greg traded the complete body with all the glass, the pan, bumpers, and a new interior to a friend who plans on making it a driver again.
The running gear, etc. tha twas kept from the '50 will go into another Split Greg has in the works.
1955 1/2 Cab
The story goes something like this...
Back in the late 50's a guy needed something with this lay out to haul stuff for his business.
He had a local shop take his stock Single Cab and convert it for him.
I'm not sure how true that is, but the thing is weird enough for Greg to add it into his collection.
Before any major work was done Greg was contacted by a fellow in Colorado that wanted it for his farm. That's where it is now.
This '58 Hardtop has been around for years, but when given the chance to own it Greg had to jump at it.
Having been restored previously this was get in and go cruiser.
The interior paint is original as are the seats, the only thing inside not original are the door panels.
Outside the car has been repainted the original Coral Red and it looks great.
The stock 36hp engine runs like a champ and the 6 v electrical system does it's job just fine too.
Greg added some accessories from his stash to compliment the accessories already present on the '58.
This include: Popouts, tissue dispenser, mudflaps, gravel guards, parcel tray, roof rack, headlight grills,
Hazet tool kit, outside visor, white wall tires, arm rest, and much more...
More pictures can be seen here
We had to get a Type 3 back into the line up, so we picked up this 1965 RHD Australian Notchback.
It's a very original car, and other than a few weird OZ only pieces it's your typical 1965 Notch, only thing is the steering wheel is on the right side.
Having another T3 gave Greg a chance to pull some of his T3 accessories out of storage.
The Notch is getting an original Notch roof rack, knuckle guards, mud flaps, accessory bumper over riders, "Type 3" badges, trailer hitch,
EMPI GT steering wheel, net style parcel tray, clear front bullet lenses, popouts, and oh boy, the big one, and NOS 6v defroster rear window !!
A mild lowering job along with later front spindles with disc brakes and a rear disc brake kit have the Notch looking better.
We are running early 4.5 Fuch's in the front, and deep 6's in the rear with 125 and 165 tires respectively.
Nothing fancy but definitely an attention getter, and a nice driver to boot!!
More pictures can be seen here
This is our '65 Double Door, Walk thru front seat EZ Camper.
Not much needed to be done when we got this. It's been used, but not neglected. The interior is beautiful and more importantly, it's complete.
The first thing on Greg list was to find a PAIR of Westy side tents. After much searching Greg finally found two complete matching
Westy tents for the sides, and a Westy "rear ender" tent for the back door.
One day as a joke it was said that a Dormobile top should be added, Greg thought "why not?" so one was found and installed.
Not much later it was decided that the Camper needed to be lowered so it would fit in with the rest of the VW's.
This one was sold to a happy family in the UK
More pictures can be seen here...
1969 Panel Squareback
Originally from Norway this "panel" was imported to the UK and used by the Type 3 Detectives (T3D) as a shop truck until about 2000.
At that time it was purchased an imported to the US where it sat for 5 years in storage.
We came across it in late 2006 just after the lowering job, Red '66 styled interior, the addition of the chromed Fuch's and a few other accessories
As purchased
The T3D logos were the first thing to go, followed by the Fuch's which were replaced by a set of real Gas Burners.
Next on the list was to get the factory installed gas heater running properly and to tune the engine.
Before we really had a chance to get out and use it for the shop it was bought by a guy in So Cal that wanted to use it as a promotional tool for his business.
I've seen his work and I'm sure the final product for this one will be amazing.
Now
Our old shop truck was this '65 Single Cab.
It is an original Euro spec Bus and came with Euro headlights, locking steering, smooth bumpers, and Euro tail lights. It is *very* sound and was only in need of suspension work, a few accessories, and a good cleaning.
After the suspension received our Slam-O-Matic treatment (narrowed bean, dropped spindles, adjusters, straight axle conversion)
we added a set of real EMPI Rader's and a canopy.
While it was torn apart Greg went through the motor and bumped it up to a 1641 cc and installed all new ignition and fuel systems.
The electrical is still 6 volts, but uses an Optima battery.
With the addition of the Highroof, the Salesflap, the Kemperink, and the Vend-O
We sold the Slam-O-Matic to a good guy in the UK.
Once in the UK it was featured in Ultra VW magazine.
I guess U.S. magazines just don't get it.....
More pictures can be seen here...
The Slam-O-Matic was even used on the first ever Bus fest event shirts!!
This is the 'vert we bought after selling the '62 seen a few cars down.
This car was bought from the original owner.
Back in '91 she had it "restored", She then drove it for a few years until the charging system started to fail, then she parked it.
When we picked it up it needed some cosmetic repairs, which we took care of.
We then focused on changing the interior and top color, most of that was done too.
Next we added a set of dropped spindles to get the nose down. We were well on our way to having another nice summer cruiser.
As happens sometimes, in the midst of finishing this car we found a "better" project, and decided to sell this convertible as well.
This one was sold to an enthusiast in the UK
More pictures can be seen here...
The original Vintage Warehouse "shop truck" a '61 Single Cab.
We still have a soft spot for this one. In the pictures here it was running a straight axle tranny, dropped spindles, and a big motor.
This truck was the test bed for many of the suspension products we now offer!!
This one now resides on the East Coast
This is the Panel that replaced the '61 Single Cab. It's a '56 has original paint, and rust.
This one is just about done as it sits. We wanted something we could haul parts in without having to worry about dings and scratches.
Greg put together a straight axle tranny kit, and a narrowed adjustable beam with dropped spindles.
Finished off with 15" wheels wrapped in 195/45/15's and 195/55/15's.
Once we had it sitting where we liked, we added as many unnecessary extras we could think of,
like racks, ladders, steps, spotlights, safaris, European headlights, etc.
This
Bus was traded to a local VW guy for a Notch.
He has since sold it to the UK
Here's the Notch we got for the Panel .
It has a big motor, IRS rear end 4
wheels disc brakes, Porsche alloys all the way around, and for the most
part was a nice complete driver.
The interior is stock and in good condition.
We had it for about one week before
trading it for a '62 Convertible.
In
our quest to once again have a summer time
car we found this '62 'vert and traded the Notch (from above) for it..
Originally we planned to clean it up a bit
then enjoy it.
But as fate would have it while sourcing parts
for this one we came across a '61 'vert that had been previously
restored.
Needless to say we bought it and are enjoying it instead.
This
'62 went to England where it's new owner
plans to do a 100% correct restoration.
Read about the
restoration here.......
This shop truck is a '56 Single Cab. When we saw this one we knew we had to have it. It's the twin to our '56 Panel.
The addition of front and rear Safaris, canopy, fog lights, Euro headlights, spotlight / mirror combo,
side step, rack and ladder, ambulance fans, and roof mounted spot give it the tried and true look.
This '56 went to a collector in Japan
Here's our '66 Squareback, a clean driver to start with that we added a lot of cool extras too, this includes:
Polished 14" Porsche Fuchs, Euro headlights, Euro tail lights, clear front turn signals, tach, under dash parcel tray, rear seat "sleep extenders", fog lights, and a NOS tow hitch, a real VWoA accessory, and sometimes we throw on the roof rack too!!
A happy couple in Northern California now use this Squareback as their daily driver.
Greg's '65 Convertible is definitely a good looking VW.
But not only does it look good, with the addition of a Judson Supercharger it can move too.
This is his weekend cruiser, and nothing gets more looks than a Red Convertible!!
Bought from the original owner the only thing the 'vert needed was a good cleaning and some new seat upholstery.
After that it was the addition of some accessories such as front and rear Euro lenses, and clear front T/S lenses to get the look he wanted.
With the addition of the Judson, EMPI camber compensator, and lowering the front the 'vert was done.
This one went to a collector in Texas, I hope he's enjoying as much as we did!!
I
bought the '65 in February of '98 from a customer of mine I showed some
interest in the car and it paid off.
When he had to sell
the car for personal reasons he contacted me.
He bought the car from the
original owner and didn't have it long before I got it from him,
so although I
am the 3rd owner I feel as though I got it from the original owner
myself.
Along with the car I
got a VW accessory roof rack and every piece of paperwork the car had.
I'm
talking original owners manual, VW dealers book, and service booklets
all in
the heavy grey book from the factory. Also included were two receipts
from VW.
The 1st for $300.00 and the 2nd for $1928.58 attached paperwork makes
it clear
that the $300.00 was a deposit and the other was the final payment.
This put
the total cost for the T34 at $2228.58 delivered to
Anyone who knows me well
knows that I like my cars low.....Well I swore that I wouldn't do it to
the
T34.
As usual the car sat lower in the back than the front so I figured I
lower
the front a bit, just to level it out.
RIGHT!!! Next thing you know I'm digging out a set of 125's for the
front and
145's for the rear, I couldn't help myself. I have since upped the tire
sizes
to 135's and 165's but the car still sits low and I love it!! Lowering
and the
addition of a decklid rack are the only modifications I have made to
the car. I
drive this car on a daily basis and I dig all the weird looks and
comments it
gets.
Now onto the '64,
the "Rallye Car" I bought this car
from my friend Blue Nelson, and other than the racing stories of him
and Jean Ray I don't know
much about this one. I bought it in February of '99, and once I got the
car home I went to work doing some changes. I
know that it will always be referred to as "Blue Nelsons Rallye Car"
but at least I can say that I did some modifications to make it my own.
The
motor in the car was a 1500 cc stock unit and it needed some help
anyway
so I
pulled it out and installed a 2007 cc that I had been running in my
Single Cab.
It's a universal case motor so a little tin swap here, remote oil
cooler there,
and some Type III manifolds and we're off. Almost, the brakes were
pretty shot as well
so I opted for a set of 356 Porsche brakes instead of rebuilding the
stockers.
Now not only does it go fast, but it stops fast too. This T34 already
sported a
decklid rack and the same VW accessory rack as my other T34 so I
strapped on
some "necessary" items for Rallye racing and upgraded some of the
lighting, bigger is better right? Future plans call for removing some
of the
old lettering on the car and putting some new lettering and logos for
my VW
business Vintage Warehouse in their place. I figure since I've got an
attention
grabbing car I might as well use it to advertise.
Time has come and
gone....
The Rallye Car as traded to a local friend, and the '65 was sold to
another VW guy in So Cal
You ever had one of those cars, you never should have sold?
This was it!! A 1957 convertible.
There was nothing really special about this car, it was just a nice driver.
All original interior, (Black with White piping), smooth running 36 hp engine, etc..
Not sure why it was sold, but I'm sure the new owner is happy.
