About the VW Type 2 Vans
Probably no other vehicle can claim the history and variety of uses that the VW type 2 can. It has been used by armies, by rescue agencies from fire to ambulance, as a mobile home and extreme terrain vehicle; just about every continent has seen this iconic motor workhorse on its roads at some point in one or other of its styles.
One of the things that the Club officers hear most often from new owners of VW vans is "But I don't think it's a type 2!". So here is a bit of a guide:
The Type 2 refers to the chassis, and an easier wasy of identifying them is that it is any VW van either labelled a "Transporter" (as with the T4 and T5 models available as new or nearly new) or any of the following:
This is a Splitty - a small van, with the front screen quite flat and in two halves.
This is a Bay - a smallish van with the front screen whole and more rounded, but still essentially loaf-shaped. This does influence the nicknames it enjoys, especially in Europe...
A T25 - a more bull-nosed van, with angular edges and a distinctive look that has the eighties written all over it.
Above is the T4 Transporter, which is also a type 2. Below is the T5, the most recent VW Transporter.
And here is the new water-cooled version of the classic bay, available through Danbury:
