Table of contents for Issue 78 in VWt

The VolksWorld Show, 23-24 March 2019 The VolksWorld Show is Europe’s largest indoor air-cooled VW show, and includes hundreds of show quality cars, both inside and outside Sandown Park exhibition centre. There are also club stands, traders and a whole floor of swapmeet tables, all complemented by live music and VW-related entertainment throughout the duration of the show. There’s too much to see in a day so why not come for the weekend and camp? It’s the best way to enjoy the show and soak up the atmosphere at leisure. And make sure you bring the family as kids go free and we have loads for them to do! Just remember, weekend camping must be pre-booked via the website prior to arrival, you cannot turn up…

Having owned a T5 Camper for around five years, and having very much enjoyed it, we decided to venture over to the world of coachbuilt Campers. Just as with the T5, we then had the dilemma. Do we splash out the extra ‘badge tax’ for a VW model or go with something else? As ever, we decided that V over W roundel on the front was a must. Sure, we could have bought a much newer, non-VW Camper, but where’s the fun in that? One thing we’ve learned is that it’s all about the community spirit with these things, and we just couldn’t bring ourselves to leave the VW scene. Along came this T4 Holdsworth Valentine that, at 16ft 6in long, is fairly compact when compared to other VW conversions.…

This was a tricky one for team VWt as it just happened to fall on the same day as the newly launched Spares Day, organised by our sister title, VolksWorld (full report in the next issue). Fortunately, regular contributors, Jolly Jim and Aaron Good, offered to cover the Sussex-based meeting, which left me free to head north to Norfolk for the cruise that is Run To The Hun. This chilled-out (though chilled doesn’t even come close to explaining the sub-zero temperature this year!) gathering is now in its seventh year, having started as a Cambs Transporters Club cruise from King’s Lynn to the coast at Hunstanton. As word has spread, more clubs from across East Anglia, the Midlands and beyond have joined in, and the logistics now need to be…

“we like to send our vehicles out for independent review” Reputations come and, particularly in this day and age, go. One false move from an over-enthusiastic social media monkey can quickly have a brand manager reaching for their coat, or fashioning some kind of witty response to make out the whole thing were one big ‘joke. The very fact that there is such a thing as a brand manager says it all. Some brands, however, don’t need to rely on such non-jobs, preferring instead to let their work speak for itself. Kenny Green and John Smith have been quietly forging the reputation of their own brand, Ecowagon, down in Redruth, Cornwall since 2012. The most recent culmination being this classy T6 built to showcase what the company can do at…

Before we get carried away with the European connection, it’s always worth scouring UK traders, eBay, Auto Trader and social media sales sites first. Donna purchased her Cali’ in the UK, as did VWt team member / barman, Jolly Jim, and therefore saved all the hassle and paperwork surrounding imported vehicles. However, there are far more Californias for sale on the Continent and, if you’re happy to tackle some paperwork in order to save a few quid, or to find the exact model you want, then now is a great time to make a fresh cup of tea, as you’re about to lose hours scrolling through countless websites. As you might expect, Germany is the home of the California, so this is where most people begin their search. However, once…

First, within 14 days of the car’s arrival you should inform HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) that the Van is here in the UK. You can do this via the online Notification of Vehicles Arrivals (NOVA) tool (a paper notification option is also available), which involves opening an account, but doesn’t take long at all: www.gov.uk/nova-log-in If you stray over the 14-day limit, you could be penalised daily. Note this only applies to EU-based vehicles, it’s not required for non-EU private imports. When you fill in the forms there is a section regarding Motor Caravan registration. If it’s a California / Westfalia, you’ll have no problems as your documents and / or manual should cover the description adequately. Just for the record, to declare a vehicle as a Motor Caravan…

Now this is sure to throw the proverbial cat among the diehard, brand-loyal pigeons, but Volkswagen CEO, Dr. Herbert Diess, and Ford CEO, Jim Hackett, recently confirmed the two companies intend to develop commercial vans and medium-sized pick-ups together for global markets in the future. Through the unlikely alliance, Volkswagen will develop and build a city Van for both companies, while Ford will engineer and build medium-sized pick-ups, which are expected to hit the market as early as 2022. Ford will then take on the engineering and building of larger commercial Vans for European customers of both brands. The big question is what will the new models be called? Transavelle? Rangerfornia? Traddy? Amaranger? We can’t wait to find out……

I’ve had my 2.5, 174bhp, T30 long wheelbase T5 Transporter for seven months now and, whilst it’s not finished, I thought I’d share some photos showing where we’ve got to thus far. She was pretty basic when I got her, so I concentrated on getting the bodywork tidied up and working on the stance, which I’m really happy with. “I really enjoy working on the Van in my spare time” The garage that put it on air is called VW-T and the respray was handled by T Reeve & Son (both Sussex based). I’ve added 20in wheels and a rock ’n’ roll bed, plus I’ve fitted a diesel night heater for winter camping. I’m an electrician by trade, but I really enjoy working on the Van in my spare time,…

“slow, sun-kissed mornings were our favourite time of the day” In last month’s issue we shared the story of our Van travels last summer through France, Germany, Switzerland and Italy in ‘Oliver, our trusty 1996 T4 Caravelle GL. We pick up the tale in the Pyrenees in southern France, where a snapped exhaust pipe had just left our wallets 300 euros lighter. That mechanical malady aside, we are now zipping through the stunning roads of the Pyrenees to make up for lost time. After a fun drive on twisty, mountainous roads we reach the unique country of Andorra. Being duty free, the border control was bustling with savvy people popping in and out to save a few pennies. The shops may be reminiscent of an airport, but the surrounding mountains…

FEBRUARY 16 / 17 DubFreeze Bingley Hall, Staffs Staffordshire County Showground www.dubfreeze.co.uk MARCH 10 Ultimate Dubs The International Centre, Telford www.ultimate-dubs.co.uk 23-24 The VolksWorld Show APRIL 05-07 Dubs at the Mill Haselbury Mill, near Yeovil, Somerset www.scrumpydubbers.co.uk/datm-2019 06-07 Dub Shed Eikon Exhibition Centre, Lisburn, Northern Ireland www.dubshed.com 14 GTI Spring Festival Santa Pod Raceway, Northants NN29 7XA www.vwaction.com/gtispring 14 Elsecar at the Races Doncaster Racecourse & Exhibition Centre, Ledger Way, Doncaster, DN2 6BB www.elsecarattheraces.com 18-22 CamperFest Churchill House, Queen’s Park Campus, Queen’s Park Road, Chester, CH4 7AD www.camperfest.co.uk 19-21 Bus Types VW Show Oswestry Showground, Shropshire www.bus-types.co.uk 19-22 Dubs in Wonderland Himley Hall, Dudley, DY3 4DF www.dubscollective.com MAY 03-06 The Only Meet Is Essex Orsett…

Having received a few emails regarding the California Camper history features in Issues #75 and #76 we noticed a recurring theme – where do I find and how do I purchase a T4 / T5 California? Notably the earlier models, with a price tag circa £10k. So we called up Donna and Marco Bailey-Pillow to snap some pictures of their 1991 2.4 diesel Cali, as it’s the perfect vehicle to illustrate this buyers’ advice feature. With a long history of air-cooled VWs behind them, Donna and Marco found this Van for sale almost 12 years ago now, right here in the UK and already registered, which immediately saved them the hassle of importing one. Aside from a ProjectZwo suspension kit (-40mm rear springs / front wound down to match) and…

Part of the reason for buying the T5 was to be able to transport all seven of the Cushway clan in comfort for long distances, and this is something the Multivan (aka Caravelle in the UK) does brilliantly. Everything from the dual zone air conditioning to the cruise control, arm rests and excellent sound system is geared up to making mile munching a family-friendly experience. That’s why, on our regular autoroute trips from our home in Brittany to the Pyrenees, it’s consistently proving to be the perfect vehicle. “it’s consistently proving to be the perfect vehicle” And we made one such excursion to the mountains for the Christmas break. It’s an 800km journey that takes roughly eight hours to complete, depending on how many times, and how long, we stop…

V Wt’s regular columnist, Aaron ‘AlGoo’ Good hasn’t had a great start to 2019. His T5 is still off the road with turbo troubles and he’s been relying on lifts, blags and borrowed cars. Hence he’s still struggling to get back up to speed following his New Year blow out. So this month he’s asked me to cover his regular column as he felt it might be a good opportunity to ‘Meet Pete’ (yep, I’m the guy that writes the ‘Pete’s meat’ pages every month). When I’m not on the road feeding the VWt crew, I try to spend my weekends working on my fleet of unfinished projects, which currently numbers three Campers, three Porsches and three Golfs. Okay, I’ve probably got far too many toys than I…

“put something a little bit custom back into the VW scene” Having built a solid reputation for turning out factory-looking Sport Kombis and traditional Campers based on brand new VW Vans, Dave Garnsworthy at Vanworx decided he wanted to do something different to celebrate his company’s 10th anniversary. As a happy coincidence, VW launched the TSi engine’d T6 at just about the same time. It was a match made in heaven. As with most successful companies, Vanworx has developed a formula for building Vans that both works and its customers clearly love. Evidence of this is the fact the company turn out 50-60 Campers and 200 of its Sport Kombis each year. Dave: “We basically production line everything to make it run efficiently, so can’t usually deviate too far from…

Free for all Dear VWt, I’ve just returned from the Run To The Hun cruise and wanted to tell you what a great day we had. I took the kids and dog and we drove from Cambridge to King’s Lynn, and then had a really good time cruising with all the other Vans to Hunstanton. The point I really wanted to make, though, is that it was pretty much a free meeting, other than the few quid we donated to charity when we arrived as it was a good cause (Air Ambulance). Last year we spent a small fortune going to some other shows and didn’t have as much fun as we did on The Hun, so in future I’m going to keep an eye out for more club cruises…

“family holidays and fishing trips are what he built it for” You’ve all heard the term ‘dip a toe in the water, but Simon Court has done more than that, he’s thrown himself head first into the pond with this T5, his first ever VW project vehicle. Not only did he set out to do a complete Panel Van to Camper conversion, getting his hands dirty where he felt comfortable and learning all along the way, he now uses it at every available opportunity to indulge in his other passions – fishing, mountain biking and spending time with his family. In fairness, Simon’s had his fair share of interesting vehicles in the past, as well as a couple of superbikes, but it was only in 2017 that he picked up…

“like any great love affair, it isn’t short of heartbreak” What if I told you this is a 2008, pre-facelift, T5 Panel Van? And that it was a DIY project? You’re probably thinking I wrote this at 1am in the party tent at Bug Jam, right? On some occasions you’d be right too, but not this time round folks, I’m deadly serious. Like most of us, when Kieran Bullivant bought his first Van, he couldn’t wait to get cracking and make it his own. If you are fairly handy with a hammer, you’ll probably want to have a bash at doing most things yourself. This ultimately leads to spending so much time on it that you form a special bond, maybe even give it a cute name. But then you…

This is a good question as, at first glance, they might appear to be fairly expensive, especially as they are only available in LHD format. But, ask anyone who has converted a Panel Van into a high-spec Camper and they’ll tell you it’s almost always more expensive than you might initially think. And the chances of finding a T4 Panel Van, or even a Kombi, that’s been as well looked after as most Californias have is extremely difficult these days. Then consider that a Cali’ is factory built, and therefore has passed stringent German crash test requirements – including the rock ’n’ roll bed and rear seat belts – and includes everything you need in a Camper (12 / 240V electrics, leisure battery, hobs, sink, fresh and waste water tanks,…

The next step is to make your Van UK-spec, which typically involves swapping the headlights and relocating the fog light to the other side (unless it has two fitted already). And then there’s the speedometer to deal with. There was a time when you could just roll up with some stickers to indicate 30, 50 and 70mph, but if your tester is running by the book, he’ll want to see a proper mph display in the dash. With insurance arranged on the chassis number, you can book your new Van in for a UK MoT and legally drive it to the test station. Assuming you come home with a pass certificate, you can move forward and register your Van with the DVLA. This involves filling out a V55/5 form, which…