Cult following - Can the VW T2 tow? Need a Type 2 towbar?

With its Cult following the classic VW buses are a collector's item.  Can the VW T2 tow? Need a Type 2 towbar?

The ID Buzz is coming, more in another blog - so we thought we'd look at its inspiration.

The Volkswagen Type 2—a.k.a. Kombi, Transporter, or Microbus, depending on where you’re from—is a classic. It has served generations around the world as a commercial vehicle and family hauler. It has moved tents, guitar cases, surfboards, and bongs to rock concerts, political rallies, and beaches worldwide, earning a special place in the hearts of those at the centre of the Sixties counterculture movement. 

The original front end of the bus, famously, had a face, a loopy, goofy, smiling face: the eyes two perfectly round, bug-eyed headlights, the nose a swooping piece of chrome trim, the mouth a gently curving bumper.

After the war, the T1 and T2 sold like crazy. In Europe, the VW bus could do anything: it was used as a fire truck, an ambulance, a delivery vehicle, a taxi. It didn’t have a lot of power, but it could go anywhere and park in any spot, and it could carry a lot more than you’d think. People loved it for camping, especially if they got the Westfalia. This model came with two beds, a hammock, a refrigerator, a stove, a kitchen cabinet, and a dining table. 
Motor Trend wrote, “More a way of life than just another car, the VW Bus, when completely equipped with the ingenious German-made Kamper kit, can open up new vistas of freedom (or escape) from humdrum life.”

In late 1967, the second generation of the Volkswagen Type 2 (T2) was introduced. It was built in West Germany until 1979. In Mexico, the Volkswagen Kombi and Panel were produced from 1970 to 1994. Early models are often called the T2a (or "Early Bay"), models after 1971 are called the T2b (or "Late Bay") and models after 1991 are called the T2c.

This second-generation Type 2 lost its distinctive split front windshield and was 22.5 cm (9 in) longer and considerably heavier than its predecessor. Its common nicknames are Breadloaf and Bay-window, or Loaf and Bay for short.

Volkswagen made millions of T2s. 

The T2b was introduced by gradual changes implemented over three years from the T2a. The first models featured rounded bumpers incorporating a step for use when the door was open (replaced by indented bumpers without steps on later models), front doors that opened to 90° from the body, no lip on the front guards, unique engine hatches, and crescent air intakes in the D-pillars (later models after the Type 4 engine option was offered, have squared off intakes). The 1971 Type 2 featured a new, 1.6 L engine with dual intake ports on each cylinder head and was DIN-rated at 37 kW (50 PS; 50 bhp). An important change came with the introduction of front disc brakes and new roadwheels with brake ventilation holes and flatter hubcaps. Up until 1972, front indicators are set low on the nose rather than high on either side of the fresh air grille – giving rise to their being nicknamed "Low Lights". 1972's most prominent change was a bigger engine compartment to fit the larger 1.7- to 2.0-litre engines from the Volkswagen Type 4, and a redesigned rear end which eliminated the removable rear apron and introduced the larger late tail lights. The air inlets were also enlarged to accommodate the increased cooling air needs of the larger engines.

In 1972, for the 1973 model year, exterior revisions included relocated front turn indicators, squared off and set higher in the valance, above the headlights. Also, square-profiled bumpers, which became standard until the end of the T2 in 1979, were introduced in 1973. Crash safety improved with this change because of a compressible structure behind the front bumper. This meant that the T2b was capable of meeting US safety standards for passenger cars of the time, though not required of vans. The "VW" emblem on the front valance became slightly smaller.

Later model changes were primarily mechanical. By 1974, the T2 had gained its final shape. Very late in the T2's design life, during the late 1970s, the first prototypes of Type 2 vans with four-wheel drive (4WD) were built and tested.

The Volkswagen Type 2 (T3), (T25 within the UK) or Vanagon in the United States, the T3 platform was introduced in 1979, and was one of the last new Volkswagen platforms to use an air-cooled engine. The Volkswagen air-cooled engine was phased out for a water-cooled boxer engine (still rear-mounted) in 1983. Compared to its predecessor the T2, the T3 was larger and heavier, with square corners replacing the rounded edges of the older models. The T3 is sometimes called "the wedge" by enthusiasts to differentiate it from earlier Kombis.

This year, Volkswagen is bringing back the classic bus—as the ID. Buzz. “ID.” stands for “intelligent design,” and “Buzz” means that it’s electric. It might be the most anticipated vehicle in automotive history. Volkswagen has been teasing a return of the classic, iconic, drive-it-to-the-Grateful-Dead bus for more than two decades. The company keeps announcing that it’s coming, and then it never comes. Finally, it really is coming, and not only is it electric but it can also be a little bit psychedelic, two-toned, in the colours of a box of Popsicles: tangerine, lime, grape, lemon.

The VW bus has become the iconic image of the counterculture. You could go to concerts in it, or to protests. You could smoke pot in it, or fool around. You could sleep there, on the cheap. You could plot a revolution, or you could store your surfboard.

VW's buses have a massive cult-like following, and a lot of the classic van's fans love nothing more than to modify it to a whole other level.  

If you’re only now awakening to the charms of the VW transporter, be it as bus, box van, truck or camper, and itching to get it on the game, most are now collectables and not cheap - might be better to wait for the Buzz.

If you need a towbar, fear not. Due to huge demand, we now have towbars for the T2 and T3 classic buses. The T2a, T2b  and T3 towbars do differ, so ensure your order the correct towbar.  

The T2's tow rating depends on the engine: Type 1 motor 1200 kgs, Type 4 motor 1800 kgs
The more modern T3 will allow you to tow up to 2000kgs.

Order your VW T2 or T3 towbar today.