Innholdsfortegnelse for August 2018 i VWT Lifestyle

1963 Split Screen, David Lenton-Hildreth David Lenton-Hildreth’s Split was an American import and had previously been used for racing in the sand dunes! “The rear wheel arches had been cut out, it was fitted with huge oversize wheels and had racing numbers on the side,” explains David. “The sand and the sea salt had played their part with bodywork patination and the Bus was to all intents and purposes a complete wreck. It then underwent a full restoration and any metal that needed replacing was indeed replaced. I originally had every intention of buying a Bay Window, but I knew someone, Pete Spaans, based in Leicestershire, that had several Splits in a barn, including my ex- sand dune racer and after looking over them, we did a deal on my…

They say the grass is always greener, and I am sure that on top of his day job, the work involved for 43 year old Chris Geary at his wife’s pub isn’t always sweetness and light, but there can’t be many of us who wouldn’t mind not only having their other half’s name above the door of their own boozer, but also to have a sweet ’62 Panel Van to promote the establishment. This Bus had been a good few years in the planning. The original plan was to buy a Bay Panel Van instead, but at the time Chris couldn’t find what he felt was a suitable base for the project. The VW bug had always been there, having a Beetle as his first car and then owning a…

When I contacted John Jones at Kustom Coach Werks in Colorado (www.kustomcoachwerks.com) a couple of months ago, it was purely to interview him and get some pictures for my forthcoming book, Patina Volkswagens. When John heard about the book and the fact that I’d been following the KCW online forum for the past 15 years, he made a suggestion which blew me away; he offered to cover my return airline ticket to Grand Junction and put me up for a few days. After establishing that this wasn’t a throwaway comment and that he was, in fact, serious, I jumped at the chance and began making plans for the trip. I had been talking to Derrick Pacheco, who set up the Hoodride brand while working at KCW in 2004/5 and despite…

July 13 -15 Volks Weald Penshurst Place, Kent www.volksweald.co.uk July 20 – 22 Dubs at the Castle Caldicot Castle, Monmouthshire, South Wales www.dubsatthecastle.co.uk 27-29 July Dubtoberfest Cheltenham Racecourse, Cheltenham www.dubtoberfest.co.uk July 27 -29 Kent VW Festival Coldred, Kent www.kentvwfestival.org.uk July 27 -29 Dub Odyssey Hooton Lodge, Rotherham www.dubodyssey.com July 29 Dubs at the Beach Paignton, Devon www.dubsatthebeach.wpengine.com August 3 – 5 Le Bug Show Spa Francorchamps, Belgium www.vwbugshow.be/en August 5 Tatton Park VW Show Knutsford, Cheshire www.vwnw.co.uk 10 August September 2018 issue of C&B on sale!…

Long term readers may, or may not recognise this machine. If you do, it’s because we featured it once before, way back in 2012. Despite writing the original feature, I’ll hold my hand up and say I liked the Bus, but wasn’t really into it back then. I can say that, because it looks very different now. Also, in the years that separate both features the owner has become a good friend of mine and even he admits he wasn’t really into its old look either. The cool Commercial you’re looking at right now is obviously a very original ’63 Single Cab owned by the ever charming Phil Sutton. Phil is a bodywork, fabricator, engine builder and all round good egg at Creative Coachworks in Wem (www.creativecoachworks.co.uk) and each and…

Chris is a fitter by trade, who is currently working as a pipe fitter and plumbing engineer. Growing up and seeing his dad fixing his own cars, including the memory of him rebuilding the engine for his Cortina has seen Chris inherit the car thing. “Living in the pub with the wife means I do enjoy the occasional beer downstairs. I’ve got to have some music on the go all the time as well. I’ve owned a few vehicles with mad sound systems back in the day, including my first Early Bay Window, way back in the early 1990s.…

Time to sound all English and talk about the weather, but due to how beastly everything was earlier in the year, The Big Bang was rescheduled and held over the weekend of 18 - 20 May for 2018. If you missed it because of the new date, you missed a cracking time. I’ve been popping along to this show for the best part of two decades and it’s one of the more chilled out and family-friendly weekends held at Santa Pod. It’s also, as the name suggests, chock full of Campers and VW’s from the golden age of air-cooled motoring. I always know what to expect when I drive through the gates as well. Camping areas to the left and right, a bit of swapmeet and a cars for sale…

Flipped dropped spindles on the front of a link pin beam equipped Split (or modified Bay) allow you to drop the ride height approx. 3.5 inches, as well as narrowing the track 9mm per side. As well as dropping the front of your Bus, the best thing about dropped spindles is the ride quality will be the same as stock. Over the years dropped spindles have become a staple in lowering a Bus and paired with a narrowed beam, allow you to go really low too. This is a guide for those who are pretty handy and want to save a chunk of money by building their own dropped spindles. If you can’t yet fathom out an oil change though, you really should buy a set from one of the…

THE CASE FOR THE DEFENCE Hi Camper&Bus, great mag. I just read the July issue and have to disagree with Glen Pepper’s letter - When will it ever end? Taste is just that, a matter of taste, and each to their own, but I’d take a patina Bus (done correctly and properly looked after) over a shiny one any day. As you said, they’re only original once, and once you paint over the factory paint, it’s gone for good. It’s good to see you flying the flag for unrestored classics, but could you tell me what you use to keep your patina Bay preserved? Thanks again. Archie Wells, Maidstone Hello Archie, thanks for coming out in support of originality. If Hayburner hadn’t beaten us to the punch, we should have…

If you’ve been into VWs for as long as I have, you’ll know exactly who Mark Salisbury is, but for the benefit of those who have not heard of ‘Silly Sid’, here’s a brief history lesson… Back in the ’80s, right as the UK custom scene was blossoming, Mark Salisbury was in the right place at the right time, and certainly knew what it took to stand out from the crowd. Richard King (of Karmann Konnection fame) was shaping the scene with his custom creations; one of them being a red Karmann Ghia (with the roof removed), which was slammed over Empi 5-spoke wheels. If you remember the car, then you’ll almost certainly remember the legendary photograph of a BMX rider jumping over it… Well, that BMX rider was Mark…

When you’re fanatical about something, there’s a tendency to assume that everyone else who likes the thing you like has all the same reasons as you do for liking it. We guess it’s only natural, and they even have a name for it - projection. For example, in our little world of VW Camper adoration, it’s safe to say that most of us tend to assume that every other Camper owner out there is as mad about them as we are. After all, we wave at total strangers just because they drive the same kind of vehicle as we do for goodness sake! Of course, we are all in the same boat when it comes to the love of the actual machine. Who in their right mind would go out…