We were living in Seaton, Cornwall and our lovely friends John & Sue who’d been camping for years, invited us to join them for a BBQ as they were camping locally. The gorgeous ambience of camping was exhibited at its very best whilst we relaxed by their tent having a jolly good time. On returning home, we enthused about camping and the freedom to freely travel around staying wherever took your fancy. We discussed the pros and cons of tents and motorhomes etc and decided that a campervan would be best suited for us. It would allow us to travel around the country and beyond with our small Jack Russell, Scamp”.
Bert Tonks was due to retire in 2011 and he & his wife Wendy had suddenly become interested in campers. “We don’t really know why we chose VW campers in particular, although they’re about the same size as a family car and no problem to drive along narrow Cornish Roads. And let’s be honest, how can anyone not want one? We looked at lots that were ‘ready to go’ but couldn’t decide which one to buy. We test drove a new Danbury and decided that they were no more luxurious than an older vehicle, although they did cost a lot more money”. Finally the couple visited Southwest Splitz in Exeter, where Shaun located & imported a bus for them from Australia.
“When we first saw it, the headlining was ripped & hanging, and the seats were really manky. We expected a great tarantula or something to crawl out. Even the ash tray was still full of old ash and the whole bus looked & smelled pretty sorry for itself”.
What is life without a challenge? And here’s another one...
Denne historien er fra Issue 154-utgaven av Volkswagen Camper and Commercial.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Denne historien er fra Issue 154-utgaven av Volkswagen Camper and Commercial.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Lance & Lisa Beaver tell the story of their...‘Old School' Westfalia Bay
The history of our bus is varied. I heard that it used to belong to a soccer player who lived in it for a while, and a tale of a cross country trip that was taken in it. Since we’ve owned it, we have been to numerous car shows with our car club Kahiko Kula and enjoy that immensely, but taking it camping is our joy.
Messing About in Boats
“Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing — absolutely nothing — half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats.”
Hector A Cautionary Tale.
We’d wanted a splitscreen bus for years. And first got the bug, after hiring one for a holiday in Cornwall in 2009.
Ruby Red
Since the tender age of just 3, Joanne Dix has been into splitscreen Volkswagens.
Playing with Fire
‘There we were, all just sitting around the campfire...’
Four lads take on Le Mans
We’d had the Le Mans 24 hour race on our bucket list for a long, long time...
Happy 70th Birthday, Miss Sofie!
This T1 Bulli from 1950 is the world’s oldest street-legal VW bus and is kept in VWCV’s Classic Vehicles collection in Hannover.
Sitting on the Dock of the Bay…
Lockdown Projects.
California Dreamin'
The beginning of our second week and we were being treated to a day out...
Brochure Line - A 2.6 litre T3!
Taking a peep at a highly desirable VW Bus few of us will ever see in its ‘Exclusiv’ finery
