1976 Volkswagen Type 2 Kombi Bus
Kombi comes from the German word Kombinationskraftwagen which means "combination motor vehicle". If you remove the rear seats, you can combine the passenger van with a cargo van. By those terms and with fold down seats, most modern minivans could be considered "combination vans" and it all started in 1949 with VW's van concept.
For consignment, one iteration of the Type 2 Kombi, a 1976 seven passenger Kombi bus in beautifully restored condition. When we asked the consignor which roads were taken to get to the mall, we expected to hear about the scenic backroads. The response was the Pennsylvania Turnpike. For those of you unfamiliar, that's our interstate highway! Not bad for a 48 year old VW. As we'll learn, everything works on this van and the engine was replaced about 9,400 hundred miles ago.
Exterior
Wonderfully bright Kasan Red coats the bottom half of the van and is offset by the Blizzard White upper. The consignor states it was painted just two years ago. The white is repeated on the bumpers and the wheels and creates a striking van in retro style. Three colorful stripes encircle the van, and they are painted, not tape or decal, adding a cheerful detail to an already cheerful bus. The headlight bezels and door handles are shiny chrome, and the dog dish hubcaps look great. The Empi roof rack provides room for more luggage but more likely serves as an aesthetic bonus, and it looks cool! Looks like our attempt to spiff the car missed some leaf debris in the rain rails, they are not rusted! Other things of note include a touched up scratch on a door, some bubbling on the rocker panel, and some rust that's been encapsulated by paint on those panels as well.
Interior
Black vinyl door panels greet us upon opening the van and they contain the ingenious integrated heat vent that doubles as an armrest. The front bucket seats are also black vinyl with basketweave texturing and tall headrests in excellent shape. The two benches in the back are covered in the same black vinyl and look barely used. We note some delaminating of the white perforated vinyl that surrounds the windows in back but it's all there and seems like an easy fix. Consignor notes each seat has seat belts, not something you commonly find on the vans. The vinyl covered side panels are in fine condition with the exception of the rear hatch, where it is starting to separate from the backing. The perforated headliner, per our consignor, is new and looks great. Up front, we have the standard two spoke black plastic steering wheel followed by a simple but efficient dash with gauges housed in plastic bezel. An AM/FM radio is in the center surrounded in textured plastic where we note one small crack. The floor is covered with a utilitarian rubber mat and the shifter rises tall from the floor. DrivetrainA 2.0 liter four cylinder engine was installed in the van about 9,400 miles ago and as noted earlier, runs well enough for highway use. It's fueled by the Bosch L-Jetronic injection and tied to a 4-speed manual transaxle that keeps power in the back via 4.02 gears. Front disc brakes are coupled with rear drum brakes to slow things down on the offramp. Visually, the rear mounted engine is essentially driver quality with no visible leaks or missing parts.
Undercarriage
This is often where things can go south be we're happy to report it's relatively clean and dry and driver quality underneath. There's certainly some surface rust present and some of it has been encapsulated, but no invasive rust or structural issues. Wunderbar! There's a bit of grease built up by the wheels but not unexpected for a driver. The exhaust flows a short distance to a stock style muffler that hangs below the rear bumper. Independent torsion arm suspension makes up the front while transverse torsion bars are out back. The heater channel under the van is in good condition.
Drive-Ability
Already impressed with the van's trip to the mall, we roll onto the test loop just to confirm the consignor's claim that everything works. The blinkers, lights, radio, heat and all the rest do indeed function and in our experience with Kombi's, that's a fantastic bonus. With 70 horsepower, Kombis are notoriously underpowered but there's no rush in this fine running bus. Pulling back into the garage we confirm the brakes work as they should.
Here's a 1976 Kombi in a bright and cheerful color that runs well and has a complete and clean interior. Essentially, it needs nothing other than a new owner. We even note that there are no Peace or Grateful Dead decals, so you can leave it clean as is, or dress it up to your musical tastes. Be cool, but don't chill too long because we expect the interest in VW vans to find its way to the mall.
Classic Auto Mall is home to more than 1,000 classic and collectible vehicles for sale via consignment in a climate controlled 336,000-square foot showroom (that's more than 8 acres!). The largest single location consignment dealer of classic and collectible vehicles in the country is located in Morgantown, Pennsylvania, just 1-hour west of Philadelphia off Exit 298 of the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. For more information visit www.classicautomall.com or call us at (888) 227-0914. Contact us anytime for more information or to come see the vehicle in person.
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