Table of contents for Issue 69 in VWt

There I was at Stanford Hall recently (see report on p30), just hanging out having a brilliant time surrounded by a group of people I have utmost respect and time for, when it dawned on me. When arguably the most successful ‘classic VW’ event on the calendar doesn’t deny the presence of modern VW Transporters, the love for these once ol’ builder’s hacks has grown to a level none of us could ever have predicted. Every show I visit these days there’s a new outfit offering conversions and the choice is now overwhelming. So, I asked myself, how would I go about choosing someone to convert my Van when they all appear to offer a similar service on a similar budget? One word. Style! It’s obvious we all want different…

My Van holds little resemblance to the builder’s hack it once was, and certainly displays the black and white theme rather well. Although new to the VW scene, and only three shows in currently, it finished in fourth place in the show ’n’ shine at VW Budburg. The modifications listed here are by no means an exhaustive list, but I’ve included a good indication of the time and consideration that have been invested into the Van so far. It all began with the private number plate, swiftly followed by some Audi S8 wheels and lowering on adjustable coilover-style suspension with uprated shock absorbers all around. The bodywork remains unmolested and is finished off with rear skirts and a VR6 front splitter. Then I added some sidebars to protect the sills,…

“He might well be mad, or he could be a blooming genius” Einstein (if it was indeed him who first said it) had it nailed when he said, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” While on the flipside, that well known heavy metal poet, Henry Rollins, once remarked, “You need a little bit of insanity to do great things.” Quite where that leaves William Roberts, by far the most prolific VWt cover Van owner we’ve had the good fortune to meet, we’re not entirely sure. He might well be mad, or he could be a blooming genius – we’ll leave that up to you to decide. If you’ve been hanging around the scene long enough to remember Issue 11 of VWt, then…

44-year-old Ian Riggs has had a rough time of things over the last year or so. Following a routine shoulder op, he developed sepsis, which very nearly killed him. Somewhat triumphantly, he managed to avoid the multiple organ failure and death bit of the equation and, as soon as he was back on his feet again, bought himself an Audi R8 – the proper one, with the V8 in it – as a well-deserved reward. That all happened in 2005 / ’06. While he waited for the supercar to arrive, he took possession of a late 2005 T5 Panel Van that has been an ongoing, constantly evolving project for the last 12 years. The end result is, and there’s simply no other word for it, fantastic. Spend even just a…

“it turns out I might be slightly more of an aural hooligan than I thought” This month has been rather hectic, with all sorts of life things taking place that have left #projectshed slightly neglected. However, the jobs I have done have been small but significant. The first was a cheap, yet enormously effective, switch to a pair of ported subwoofer boxes to allow the brace of Hertz MP250 D4 subs onboard to truly sing. Now, even if you’re not into ICE, hear me out on this one. I have a Rusty Lee rock ’n’ roll bed in the back of my Van with 235mm clearance beneath it. That meant the 250mm diameter subwoofers would only fit in the gap titled at an angle. I could have made a box…

VW’s Future Starts Here From smart appliances to satellites, artificial intelligence to internet culture, The Future Starts Here is an exhibition that brings together more than 100 objects as a landscape of possibilities for the near future. VW’s Future Mobility department has partnered with the V&A (Victoria & Albert design museum, London) in the exhibition and is displaying SEDRIC, its self-driving car, as one of the main exhibits. As VW puts it, “This concept vehicle shows Volkswagen’s concrete vision for sustainable and autonomous future mobility, which also offers an innovative interaction between humans and machines.” The exhibition runs from 12 May to 4 November this year and visitors will have the opportunity to sit in SEDRIC and see what the future might hold for UK road users. Just cast aside…

For years we have been hanging our nose over Campervan culture and #vanlife. We must have literally looked at everything available from Bongos and Vitos, through Toyotas and Transits, before coming to the very sensible conclusion that it had to be a VW, or nothing at all. Then finally the day came that we were in a position to take the plunge. After much research and scouring of t’internet, we found the Van we wanted. Only to find it had just been sold. However, it turned out the nice man that was selling it just so happened to be Stephen Hullock from T4Mation in Leeds, and he just so happened to specialise in VW T4 conversions. Result. We went to see him as soon as we could and set about…

Elliot’s Van has appeared in Readers’ rides before, but it’s changed an awful lot since you last saw it here. When he’s not busy fettling historic F1 cars as part of his daily grind, Elliot can generally be found working on his 2004 T5 Caravelle. As both his daily driver and his weekend play thing, this 2.5TDi (AXE) 174-engined beast has morphed into a totally different Van over the last few months. Another willing victim of the Paintworx team in Loughborough, and the skillful hands of Steven Kirkby, it’s now resplendent inside and out in the ever-trendy Skoda Meteor Grey. A set of Inspiri FFR1 wheels now rest perfectly beneath neatly reduced ’arches, bought down to earth by the trusty Gaz Ultra Low coilover suspension (sadly now a discontinued product…

While this how to was done on a T4, it can be used as a guide to fitting a rock ’n’ roll bed into a T4 or T5. The main differences between the two models are the positioning of the fuel tank and the added plastic cover panels underneath the T5, which need to be removed by undoing a plethora of Torx fasteners and 13mm bolts prior to commencing work. As this job was carried out with new lino and interior panels in situ, the work area had to be kept scrupulously clean. The job in itself is quite a simple one, and not unduly messy, so it’s quite possible to do this but, if you are starting a Camper conversion from scratch, it makes a lot more sense to…

“For us, the word that sums up EE this year is inclusion” Epic! That’s the only way to describe the Early Edition (EE) event up in the middle of the sunny, shiny, beautiful Northamptonshire countryside. Word on the Sywell Aerodrome fields this year was that this might even be a more popular venue than the equally lovely Overstone Park that hosts the main Edition38 event towards the end of August (31-2 Sept for your diary). Whether it is or not, this year it was a colossal free-for-all as the site had been extended massively since first hosting Early Edition here in 2017. The standard of cars and Vans was the usual bling bling affair we’ve come to know and love from the always hard working Edition crew, and we doff…

There’s an undeniable ground swell within the water-pumping Transporter world at the moment for ‘swampers. Over the last year or so we’ve started to see more and more jacked-up, go-anywhere Vans getting high on their own supply. Rather than compromising the Transporters useability by making them scrape across the floor like a snake with vertigo, this new breed of owners are raising their Vans’ suspension to add further functionality, even more so if they’re equipped with VW’s inherently capable 4motion chassis to boot. There’s been a specialist Syncro and 4mo’ line up at Busfest for the past few years, showcasing all of the best products, talent and parts available to make any T more rough and tumble. It’s an exciting and genuinely awesome direction to take your Van in, particularly…

Just Kampers is looking forward to another great Open Day and camping weekend on 9 June this year. Camping tickets for the weekend have already sold out after an unprecedented response, but day visitors on the Saturday are very welcome, with no charge at the gate. The Open Day runs from 10am until 4pm and will see some great deals on parts, a chance to check out JK’s new camping range in person, as well as browse a hand-picked range of traders and speciality food and drinks vendors. There will also be live cookery demonstrations – and free tasters! – from those good old Chef Campers, and all proceeds from the weekend will go to Cancer Research UK. Who? www.justkampers.com How much? Free!…

“a scorcher in more ways than one” There’s something extra special about the Stanford Hall VW show that draws us back year after year. Granted, it’s not really aimed at ‘us lot’ but, once you’ve paid your £10 on the gate and wandered into a sea of seriously cool VWs that date from the late 1930s to the present day, there’s no way you could call it anything other than a stonking good day out. The sheer scale, depth and variety on offer means there’s genuinely something for everyone. Want to look at a 1950s Hebmüller, some race-spec Porsche 356s, early ’70’s Audis, and now an ever-increasing selection of T4-T6 exotica? Stanford Hall has it covered. The organisers fiercely guard the concours on the main lawn, where bone stock and…

“Look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see, and wonder about what makes the universe exist. Be curious.” If you’re not up to speed with one of the greatest minds to grace the planet, and certainly one of the greatest of the modern world, those words are attributed to the late Stephen Hawking. It might well be the first time a preeminent scientist has been quoted as the opener for a feature on a 2015 T5.1 Volkswagen Transporter, but bear with us. To some, their VW Camper is their universe, and it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to deduce that the same type of person might also be quite partial to a bit of VWt every now and then,…

June 9 Transporter HQ BBQ Leicestershire LE17 5QZ www.transporterhq.co.uk 8-10 Alive and V-Dubbin Haughley Park, Suffolk, IP14 3JY www.aliveandvdubbin.co.uk We’ll be there! 15-17 Bristol Volksfest Birches Farm, Bristol BS41 9AG www.bristolvolksfest.co.uk 15-17 Mighty Dub Fest Alnwick Castle, Northumberland NE66 2LB www.mightydubfest.co.uk 16-17 VW Heritage at Deutsche Fest Brand Hatch race circuit, DA3 8NG www.deutschefest.co.uk 16-17 Battlesbridge VW Show Battlesbridge Antiques Centre, Essex See Facebook: Battlesbridgevwshow 16-17 Cumbria VAG Show ’n’ Shine Festival Westmorland County Showground, Cumbria LA7 7NH www.cumbriavag.co.uk 22 Drive Your VW to work day Globally 22-24 Vdub at the Pub Wimborne Minster, Dorset BH21 1EH www.vdubatthepub.com We’ll be there! 23-24 Players Classic Goodwood Motor Circuit, Chichester, Sussex PO18 0PX www.players-show.com We’ll be there! 29-1 July Quex Park VW…

VWt: Hi Andy, how’s it going? We really must pop down to one of your monthly Heretics gatherings. How did they come about and how can people find out when they’re on? AG: We started them in 2009 (I’ve been at Heritage for 11 years now) as we wanted to create something a little extra for our customers that was above and beyond supplying decent parts at the right price. Whilst the business relies on us selling stuff, at heart we’re enthusiasts, and just wanna chat about cars. We advertise the Heretics meets on Facebook. They are on the third Thursday of the month and run from April to September every year. We get over 250 cars turn up some months! VWt: You guys have been…