Vintage VW Volkswagen Buses

The Volkswagen Type 2 (the Type 1 was the Beetle) was introduced in 1949. Featuring a split windshield, which gave the vehicle the nickname Splittie, the first version of the Type 2 (confusingly designated as the T1) featured a gutless 1100 CC, air-cooled rear engine. Almost from the beginning, in 1950, VW hired a company called Westfalia to produce a camper version of its microbus. It was also manufactured in a pickup version and as a panel delivery van. In 1967, the split-windshield was replaced by a single bay window in a model that was known as the T2, and the van’s front end was redesigned, eliminating the characteristic V that swooped to a point just above the front bumper. The T2 version of the Type 2 was replaced by the T3 or Vanagon in 1980, but the vehicle did not get a water-cooled engine until 1983.