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Fri Mar 17, 2006 9:11 pm

I received a very nice 1965 bus sales brochure from David Evans aka Herbie Love Bug this week. The factory brochure had a very interesting reference:

"The Volkswagen's double doors are more like a barn door than anything else."

Now I know we have all done our share of snickering bashing and correcting the newbie and uneducated on this topic but perhaps this factory statement sheds a little different light on why there is some confusion. I think the naming of barndoors as 1955 and earlier buses may have come sometime after this brochure was printed.

maybe we should go a little easier on the newbies...

Fri Mar 17, 2006 9:20 pm

Or the term was already used in the past..... and they decided to recycle it again for the '60s???.......

Sun Mar 19, 2006 2:12 am

People get confused because barndoors dont look anything like the engine lid on a pre march 55 bus, I have no idea what kinda farm the guy that coined that farm lived on.
Its stuck now and any logical new vw bus person is gonna look at there cargo doors and think "hey a couple of barndoors" :?

Fri Jan 11, 2008 10:40 pm

When I talk to guys that have been in the VW scene since the 1960's, they also call the cargo doors "barndoors". They also called the large engine lid {Barndoor} the treasure chest, because when you opened it, there was a little treasure inside (a 25hp motor).
I believe Jeff Walters from Hot VWs magazine started calling the engine lid a barndoor in the late 80's, and it has stuck ever since.

Sat Jan 12, 2008 10:33 am

busses were also called "station wagons" in vw literature back in the day. but we dont call our busses station wagons. the term barndoor has come about as a way to differentiate march 55 and down busses from march 55 until 1967.

Mon Jan 06, 2014 1:21 am

I posted pics up in the gallery of one for 1950. 8)

Mon Jan 06, 2014 9:07 am

Red Fau Veh wrote: I posted pics up in the gallery of one for 1950. 8)

interesting that the dutch poster would have a panel with cargo doors only on the left hand side... artistic freedom i guess

Mon Jan 06, 2014 10:05 am

Red Fau Veh wrote: I posted pics up in the gallery of one for 1950. 8)

Nice!

Here is that same Flemish one scanned in:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/lit/50bus_dutch.php
and French too:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/lit/50bus_french.php

Mon Jan 06, 2014 10:44 am

Do we have the 1951 brochure scanned in yet Everett? :o

Mon Jan 06, 2014 12:33 pm

mandraks wrote: Red Fau Veh wrote: I posted pics up in the gallery of one for 1950. 8)

interesting that the dutch poster would have a panel with cargo doors only on the left hand side... artistic freedom i guess

Is it possible that the poster is Afrikaans and not Dutch? They were RHD over there, which would make the doors on the correct side.

Mon Jan 06, 2014 2:43 pm

IN2VWS wrote: mandraks wrote: Red Fau Veh wrote: I posted pics up in the gallery of one for 1950. 8)

interesting that the dutch poster would have a panel with cargo doors only on the left hand side... artistic freedom i guess

Is it possible that the poster is Afrikaans and not Dutch? They were RHD over there, which would make the doors on the correct side.

That's definitely Dutch if you ask me. I don't see any indications that it would be Afrikaans.

Mon Jan 06, 2014 5:14 pm

Red Fau Veh wrote: Do we have the 1951 brochure scanned in yet Everett? :o

Yes, as long as those are the same as these:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/lit/1951dervolkswagen.php
and
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/lit/1950pricelist.php

Mon Jan 06, 2014 5:39 pm

mcdronkz wrote: IN2VWS wrote: mandraks wrote: Red Fau Veh wrote: I posted pics up in the gallery of one for 1950. 8)

interesting that the dutch poster would have a panel with cargo doors only on the left hand side... artistic freedom i guess

Is it possible that the poster is Afrikaans and not Dutch? They were RHD over there, which would make the doors on the correct side.

That's definitely Dutch if you ask me. I don't see any indications that it would be Afrikaans.

If you zoom in on the picture, I think I can see a steering wheel on the right hand side.....or am I imagining it?

Tue Jan 07, 2014 1:28 am

Prototype/49 buses too
Low cab door top hinge, early bumpers, raised headlight area

Wed Jan 08, 2014 7:46 am

IN2VWS wrote: mandraks wrote: Red Fau Veh wrote: I posted pics up in the gallery of one for 1950. 8)

interesting that the dutch poster would have a panel with cargo doors only on the left hand side... artistic freedom i guess

Is it possible that the poster is Afrikaans and not Dutch? They were RHD over there, which would make the doors on the correct side.

Writing from South Africa... It's Dutch; not Afrikaans. :)

On the subject, barndoors were never sold here.

Wed Jan 08, 2014 1:05 pm

Ok, it's Dutch.

No barndoors in South Africa? While there were not many in South Africa, there were a few there.

Wed Jan 08, 2014 2:39 pm

You are correct; there were a few.

There are now four BDs here, one of which is the former ambulance shown in your post, one in the local VW museum, a Westy and my Kombi.

I got confirmation some years back that the Palmietfontein buses were crushed, many decades ago.

None, however, were ever sold here by VW. Local bus production/assembly started here in late '55.

Wed Jan 08, 2014 9:08 pm

According to VW, they exported the following to South Africa:
1951 - 433 cars (0 Transporters)
1952 - 518 cars, of which, 24 were Transporters
1953 - 715 cars, of which, 6 were Transporters
1954 - 711 cars, of which, 38 were Transporters

Wed Jan 08, 2014 10:38 pm

That's very interesting info'. I've never heard or read of it, from VW, its employees, past and present, private sources or otherwise here, or abroad.

Every one I've ever come to know of was as a result of private actions.

Would you mind elaborating on your source, please?

Wed Jan 08, 2014 11:42 pm

The 1955 edition of the VW Salesmans Manual.