VW Transporter – The Original Van

Volkswagen are the largest car manufacturer in Germany, Europe and arguably the rest of the world. The German car maker has given the world some of the most iconic motor vehicles to ever roam the world’s roads. Volkswagen is the company which produced and marketed the almost mythical Beetle – the most easily recognised and much loved small passenger car. The Beetle was the brainchild of genius engineer and designer Dr Ferdinand Porsche. Porsche was a huge figure in mechanical design and auto design. He is credited as the engineer of the first ever hybrid engine using electricity and diesel fuel, this took place in the late nineteenth century though the hybrid engine was powering German war tanks. Dr Ferdinand Porsche is also the designer and founder of the legendary Porsche sports car company. The unmistakable dramatic design and unrivalled performance of Porsche Cars’ Carrera 911 is the result of his very own personal work.

Volkswagen is diverse vehicle producer which has branched out into manufacturing a range of different types of vehicles – from small passenger cars to heavy duty commercial vans and cross country vehicles. One of VW’s most iconic models is the Transporter, which became known as the ‘hippy van’ of the swingin’ sixties. VW Transporter was first put on the market in nineteen fifty six. The first ever Transporter van rolled off VW’s Hannover factory on eighth of March that same year. Since then the Transporter has achieved an almost mythical status, with the van still being in production nearly sixty years after its initial appearance. The man behind VW’s Transporter is the brilliant Dutch-born businessman and importer Ben Pon who came up with the original ingenious vehicle concept. Since then the van has become an institution, a symbol and a trusty workhorse for nearly two generations of people. Man and van companies, delivery businesses, removalists and all sorts of other professionals embraced the VW Transporter for its innovative design, simplistic mechanics and last but not least its robustness.

Sixty years ago, Ben Pon who was doing business at VW’s Hannover Factory saw how clever workers were using a stripped down beetle to transport car parts around the factory. He was hit by a brilliant idea – a purpose built vehicle that was able to do the same. He literally began work on his design the very same day – his project’s work title was ‘box on wheels’. His idea was to come up with a versatile and practical commercial vehicle which could be adapted to a multitude of uses. Little that he knew then, his box on wheels was to stir a revolution that still echoes today.

In the UK, the first ever right hand driver Transporter appeared sixty years ago. The van was known as T1 Transporter and was simplistic yet amazingly practical. The van saw great market success almost immediately, embraced by industry professionals and fans alike. VW’s Transporter has set the benchmark and has become the blueprint for the panel van segment of the world’s auto manufacturing industry.