If this were spotted in Germany or some other European country, it would barely be worth shooting. But runningonfumes shot this in the state of Washington, and I can vouch for the rarity of a T3 VW double-cab pickup on this side of the pond. Or single cab, for that matter. Despite the chicken tax, there were a modest number of T1 and T2 pickups imported, although perhaps the lion’s share went to VW dealers to use as parts and service trucks. I did still see one or two T3 pickups at a VW dealer, but by the eighties, most VW dealers couldn’t be bothered to incur the extra expense purely for the promotional value. Of course, this may well be a gray-market import.
From the front end, I’m 99% sure it is a more recent import. That is an unusual bumper; maybe it was originally used in some kind of service that called for battering rams.
An artist’s car; explains everything and nothing. Well, I’m not an artist, but these trucks do speak to me. Love the seating height, driving position, visibility, short length, tight turning radius, superb suspension, room to carry five in comfort, and the bed in back that converts to a flatbed. What’s not to like? I shouldn’t have asked.
Undoubtedly it’s got a diesel tucked in under there, as does virtually every commercially-used Transporter in Europe since the diesels became available. Just no dump bed; at least not in this configuration.
Can’t recall seeing one of these in the states. The old style were plentiful during the sixties but not these. Good find.
Wow, I have never seen one of these before, ever. I am intrigued. Not attracted, but intrigued.
Shit… I snoozed and I loozed! I found this one about a month ago:
If this has a diesel, did VW ever make a boxer diesel, or did they tilt an inline diesel on its side?
It’s rough getting old–i can’t recall when the rear engined VW “trucks” died off.
Another idea–how come the flat bed with fold down sides concept never caught on here?
Only the inline 827 family diesels. The vanagon was available with the diesel in the US for one year only, 1981. But in Europe, VW vans, Transporters and Pickups are almost exclusively diesels, and of course the later ones with the more powerful TDI engines, including the five cylinder. There is no shortage of power in them.
As with European cars the diesel is the one you want not the gas engine
Many of the VW Vans here in the Reno Tahoe area have been retrofitted with Subaru Engines. I’ve seen & heard several of them with the distinctive 2.2L Subaru sound but I have yet to find the shop that is doing them.
Syncro Westfalias go for stupid $ up here, in the $8-10k range for a good specimen.
J’s VW vans does the Subaru conversions in Reno. http://www.vwvansreno.com. I’m saving up to do the Subaru conversion myself on my 1984 Doka since the motors are easy to find with much more power, longevity and fuel milage than the stock 1.9L.
The diesel was an inclined (but practically vertical mounted) inline 4 engine from the Golf GTD. Not really roomy in that engine compartment…
Closest I got to one of these was an early 80s Caddy, with diesel. We leased one to see how VW was coming along with diesels, and we were planning for the S trucks. The proving grounds have a 4% bank to get onto the track. It is easily about 50 feet. The Caddy couldn’t make it up the grade unless it was unloaded and with only one person. the gasoline version had a 1.5 I think which was only marginally better. We could never figure out what the intended market for this was as most domestic built trucks see a lot of commercial duty. I assume the Europeans found more use for the truck.
Given the painfully slow travel speeds of the air-cooled Bus, I cannot imagine these being used for anything other than very light dense urban transport.
Please don’t take this the wrong way, but I don’t believe it. The very first generation (1949-1954) VW bus had 25 hp (30 gross), and was capable of starting and climbing a 23% grade in first gear, loaded to full capacity! Furthermore, that same bus could climb a 3.5% grade in top gear fully loaded to capacity. Later generations of buses with more power improved on those numbers substantially.
A 4% grade is nothing; I refuse to believe that a VW Caddy diesel had a problem with that. Given that the Alpine countries are critical to VW, and VWs have always been popular there, and given how low geared the VW Rabbit/Golf was, I simply find that statement not credible.
I may look up the climbing ability of a Diesel Golf/Caddy, but I’ll bet you it’s a lot more than 4%. A whole lot more.
Maybe the GM test track driver had it in third gear?
Now that I worked it out on paper, the incline was more like 35% it was severely steep. Some long low vehicles like Cadillacs used risers to lift the rear wheels up a bit to clear the curb. This was 30+ years ago but I was in the passenger seat there were weights in the back, I had to get out of the vehicle. Eventually the removed the weights. The purpose of the inclined was for that reason to measure the torque limit of a vehicle in different gears, unfortunately for the VW there was no acceptable gear. The VW was not the only vehicle or scenario that failed just mentioned it for this article. Suffice to say the Caddy (especially diesel) seemed to be woefully underpowered for all but the lightest duties. Trucks were done with weights usually up to rated capacity, cars with people.
Craig, there’s a hell of a difference between 4% and 35% grade. Filbert Street in SF is widely considered the steepest street in the Western Hemisphere, and it has a 31% grade.
What you’re describing now is very different than in your first comment; you made it seem like it was a little bank that other cars routinely went over. Now it’s being described as what it really was: a device to torture cars beyond normal use.
Your first comment came across as a slur; the VW Diesels were not exactly brimming with power, but they got the job done, even on the steepest streets. At least they didn’t blow up routinely like the Olds diesel.
And how much power did the Diesel Chevette have?
I’d have to side with Paul. I had several Rabbit Diesels, all German ones and that little diesel was the Little Engine that Could. All VW’s of the era had super low gearing. You could let out the clutch on first gear and it would just idle on and the throttle was so linear you could just add more power, no bucking or fuss. It could climb anything I ever threw at one. It might take a while but you got there and keeping up with traffic was never a problem.
I had one four door L diesel, a 1978 in safety orange and we’d put four college students, all our gear, a load of beer and four sets (!) skiis strapped to the roof. With four snow tires, the Little Car that Could was unstoppable. Big 4X4 PRD’s with fat tires would be sliding in the the ditch but Scuba Bunny just plowed on on its 155SR13 pizza cutters.
A tank of fuel lasted three weeks and cost me $17.00 at the time. The really great thing about these cars is they really drove beautifully. They were the last of the no power-steering cars and the road feel was wonderful.
Paul these guys cant drive and underpowered vehicle they dont have a clue I know what a 25hp VW can achieve with a load its quite impressive it isnt fast but it will go there I drive in steep country constantly if you know how its easy if your dumb you buy lots of HP and think your cool.
I’ve seen a few in the US, including a Syncro version on Catalina Island.
The diesel version of these was GLACIALLY slow. My friends had one. I had a 1.6 liter single port 1970 bus, so I was not accustomed to fast cars. I can appreciate a diesel rabbit, etc but these were dismal with that diesel.
I’m thinking a gray-market import.
When I was doing my Navy time in San Diego…there were plenty of these roaming the streets of Tijuana; and a few would occasionally make it across the border. Wearing Mexican license plates, of course.
Now back in those pre-electronic-scanner-of-plates-and-VIN days, it wouldn’t be hard to make a deal with a Mexican owner of one…you have the Vanagon; he has the T3; bring it up and let’s swap VIN plates! When accompanied by a large CA$H adjustment, it would probably find a receptive audience.
And, viola!! One more Vanagon that’s not a Vanagon!
I’m sure that’s what happened. That front bumper looks like a Third-World market item.
Bumper looks regular to me we had these not many it took VW another 20 years to gain commercial recognition here, nowdays they are a good choice.
I waited around to talk to the owner, but he didn’t show, so I have no info to add. It’s the second Transporter pickup I’ve seen in Seattle in the last year.
Never seen one of these, I thought the “trucks” stopped with the round VW vans. This thing is off the charts awesome.
From the article:
“Despite the chicken tax, there were a modest number of T1 and T2 pickups imported, although perhaps the lion’s share went to VW dealers to use as parts and service trucks. I did still see one or two T3 pickups at a VW dealer, but by the eighties, most VW dealers couldn’t be bothered to incur the extra expense purely for the promotional value.”
If I follow correctly, what Paul is calling the T1 and what calibrick is calling the round VW vans are the same thing, the generation of VW Transporters built from the early 1950s to late 1960s. The generation built from the late 1960s to the late 1970s would then be the T2, and the Vanagon (1980s/early 1990s) the T3.
With the caveats that I was born in 1970 (so any T1 would have been several years old by the time I was paying that much attention to cars) and have lived my entire life in the northeast (not the most conducive climate for preserving old vehicles), I don’t ever remember T1 pickups being a common sight, but I remember seeing a few when I was a kid, and I still see one once in a while, usually as a collector/enthusiast vehicle. I’m guessing that the market for them was never huge, and that the chicken tax cut what market existed down to size.
I’m not sure if I have ever seen a T2 or T3 pickup in the U.S. I would have assumed that the T3 was never sold here, and that the T2 was either never sold here or was dropped in the U.S. early in the T2’s run with only a small number having been sold.
There’s at least one T2 “Bay Window” pickup in the Iowa City/Coralville area. I did an Outtake on one last year: https://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/cc-outtake-we-dont-need-a-giant-modern-pickup/
The lack of rear side-marker lights paints this one as a non federalized grey import. Why for/customs didn’t force installation of lights to bring to code would point to the vin swap suggested above, an expat bringing back, or that it was brought over before regs were tightened about 25 years ago.
some quick comments…
bumpers – Go Westy sourced (US after market bumpers). Yeah, they are clunky looking.
side markers (lack of) – yes, probably a Euro import. But bear in mind dokas and sinkas were sold in Canada.
engine – 1.9 boxer, 2.1 boxer, 1.6td all possibilites. Looking at the left side
exhaust pipe I’d say it was either a 1.9 or 2.1 boxer. The diesels were not installed upright or close to, more like leaned over (head to the left) 55 degrees.
paint – never seen *quite* that shade before, I’d guess a re-spray. The black paint on lower part of body reinforces that idea.
rims – not stock. I recognise them but the old brain is not giving me the name.
Round headlights – well hard to pin a model year based on them. In NA, ’86 and newer vanagons had a 4 unit rectangular set up. In Europe, I believe, the rectangular headlights were available before 85, and the round ones available after ’86. The DOT rectangular headlights in NA market vans were inferior to the euro code rectangular units. Many NA owners just swapped in the old round light grill and used good H4 lights.
The lefthand side windscreen washer squirter was moved towards the centre of the van starting circa the ’88 model year.
If I had to guess, I’d say it was an ’85, imported from Europe, (not Canada), with a 1.9 l water cooled boxer motor.
alistair
ba-ba-baaaaadd-ASS!!!!!! ,,,all I know is I want one!!!!!! Recently seen one up in Washington state…..Do remember the V.W dealer in nor-cali had one,(was a wee girl with me dah,on the back of his new 79 panhead……a memorable day),,,years down the road, NO one believed me when I described this vehicle…..alas,won alot of bets with the internet!!!…one word describes them…..sssswwweeeeet…..