Newb question? I hear many different names for these Buses!

[sharkie157]

Ok so I'm on a quest to buy my first pre 67 bus 13 window.....but I've heard them called mocro bus, kombi, westy, mini, standard and deluxe.....what the heck makes them all different? And can you post pics so I can see? Is the micro smaller than all the other buses is the deluxe the only one with the chrome side trim?

[Spitty1974]

[floyd1969]

Go into Technical section , and click on dictionary and all will be reveald .

[Vintagespeed]

it's sometimes difficult indeed.

I believe the official term remais Transporter, but T1 is usually used for the busses and derivates.

In a nutshell :

single cab (and utility like cherry picker etc)
double cab
panel
camper (Westy = Westfalia and lots of other like Dormobile etc)
11 window combi
11 window standard (= more luxurious then combi)
13 window deluxe
15 window deluxe
21 window samba (later up to '67)
23 window samba (early)

Lots of changes, nearly every year of production.

[OG67westy]

this has long confused me, here ( in US ) we call bugs T1, and busses T2, but I've noticed that the europeans call a bus a T1? what gives? I wondered if it was just a reference to the "upright" style engine, but it doesn't seem to be?

[Clara]

Hm, I don't call bugs T1, but they are type 1.

Type 1 is bugs/ ghias, etc.
Type 2 is buses.
Type 3 is squarebacks etc

T1 is 1st generation buses, ie splits, T2 is 2nd generation - bays

Here is a list of bus models:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/info/modelstype2.php

type 21 is a panel van (no windows)
type 22 is a standard microbus (windows, interior trim)
type 23 is a kombi, (windows, minimal interior)
type 24 is a deluxe microbus, etc---see the above link


samba dictionary:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/dic/

[sharkie157]

Thank you everyone! So one more question.....can the side trim or belt trim be added to any bus? And this is the name for the chrome piece on the outside of the body that follows the "v" on the nose and down the side of the body rite?

[Dustin B]

Yes the trim can be added to any bus but it is only correct for the deluxe and somba models.
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Wanted Victoria motors licence plate frame.

62 og paint L469 type 1
61 og paint L31 DD panel type 2
64 heilite viscount tent trailer
71 sears clamshell trailer

I <3 Brazilian busses

Original paint and patina extravaganza http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=187156

[OG67westy]

^^^translation- expect to catch some grief on here if you put deluxe trim on a non-deluxe bus , but I say it's your bus( or will be anyway) , have it your way!

[RPGreg2600]

If you put deluxe trim on a non-deluxe, you might like it at first, but then after a while you will feel silly about it, regret it, and eventually be embarrassed to be seen in your bus.

[dawerks]

[Old Paint]

Thanks for not calling it a "van"
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Greg

1961 Ragtop
1961 Single Cab (Old Paint)

[DerrickfromNC1]

[Old Paint]

Worth it...... A "van" is something Eric Estrada drove around in the 1970's, it had mag wheels, a coyote howling at the moon painted on the side and a heart shaped window in the rear....
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Greg

1961 Ragtop
1961 Single Cab (Old Paint)

[Clara]

[rebapuck]

Can you even get the trim anymore?
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Judy
1966 Camper "Hannah"
1967 SingleCab "Khady"

[pondoras box]

Say what you want about Hot VW's magazine but its a pretty good place to start if your new to VWs.

But my point is that just recently they finished up a series in the transporter talk column that went year by year changes that I found to be a good read. I am by no means an expert on the year to year changes so I can not vouch for the minor changes and what dates they occured but on the major items such as 15 to 13 window changes and ice pick to push button changes high hinge to low hinge and so on they were pretty accurate. You can get back issues through Hot VW's.

Plus there will be a lot of other good stuff to read just for entertainment value.

Do not put deluxe trim on a non deluxe bus it just doesnt look right, give it a few years and you will know what we mean.
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Looking for anything from Hal Casey Motors out of Hamburg New York, from license plate surrounds to matchbooks.

1961 23 Window (Bobo)
1965 11 Window (Zelda). https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=563183
1965 13 Window (Lucas)
1957 Oval ragtop
1960 hardtop
1964 hardtop
1965 hardtop
Another 65 hardtop
1973 standard bug
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=804912
1988 Cabriolet VR6 conversion

[mandraks]

i would go to the next big VW show in your area, look at all the buses, talk to the people whose buses you like, and simply ask them what exactly it is.

Chances are that a 63-67 Kombi or Deluxe will be what you are looking at... as in 11 window or 13 window.

21 sunroof deluxes will be anywhere in the 5 digit budget range.

Think about what you want to do with it, like camping, cruising, daily driver, etc, and most importantly what your budget is.

Volkswagen built buses for all of the above uses. Don't buy a deluxe and make it a camper, or parts hauler.

if you do not have a 5 digit budget, then a deluxe is probably not in your future, unless you can restore a fixer upper.


if you are looking at a lowered, vehicle with a bigger motor, drive one that already is lowered with a big motor, and find out if you can live with the ride.
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regards

Uli

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'53 3-Fold Oval, L35 Metallic Blue, looking for a narrow hatch panel