Description
West Coast Classics are proud to present a 1974 Volkswagen conversion tribute 23 Window Deluxe Samba Microbus with skylight windows and cloth sunroof!
This Brazilian-made 23-window bus with a third headlight option is powered by a 1830cc engine paired with a 4-speed manual transmission. It is equipped with a new clutch assembly, dual carburetors, a new alternator and a new exhaust header. The bus rolls on new 15x6-inch polished aluminum wheels wrapped in new tires. It features pop-out Safari front windows, as well as front and rear roof racks with a sliding black canvas top. The interior is gray and white with third-row seating and curtains on the windows.
The bus is finished in two-tone colors with an Ivory White top and a Red bottom over a White and Gray interior. It features safari front windows, two sets of pop-out windows on each side, a full center retractable ragtop sunroof, double cargo side doors and seating for nine. The rear wooden roof rack provides for additional storage.
This a highly desirable conversion tribute to a collectible Type 24 Bus (Deluxe 9 passenger Microbus). Most Deluxe Microbuses were ordered as Samba models (a $160 option) that included a sliding canvas sunroof flanked by 4 skylight windows on each side of the roof (that's a 23 window bus through model 1963 and a 21 window bus starting in model year 1964). The deluxe Microbus was Volkswagens top-of-the-line transporter.
This is a striking tribute to the iconic Type 24 Bus (Deluxe 9 passenger Microbus) which were originally marketed for touring the Alps with small skylight windows embedded into the roof for added viewing capabilities and were manufactured with the highest trim level available which included trim strips along the beltline and a dash clock! Most Deluxe Microbuses were ordered as Samba models (a $160 option) that included a sliding canvas 'Golde' sunroof flanked by the 4 skylight windows on each side of the roof.
The Type 2 was sold in many combinations. As a panel van without windows, a double-door panel with cargo doors on both sides, with a raised roof, with removable rear seats, as a flatbed pickup, crew cab pickup, Westfalia converted camper van (the ones with the pop-up roof and a stove), and the Samba. Also knows as the Sunroof Deluxe, this was the luxury model. It had more windows, designed to improve sightseeing for passengers in the back. It also had a massive fabric sunroof that opened up nearly the entire roof.
When it comes to the Type 2, the number of windows is a huge part of it's attraction and status. Like having a numbers matching big block in a muscle car, more is better. The basic Kombi was an 11-window. The Deluxe got 15 panels. But the Samba ruled the roost. 23 windows with a split windshield and eight skylight panels in the roof. In 1964, the rear door was widened and two rear panes went away with bus reduced to 21 windows. So the rarest and most desirable for collectors bus was, and will always be, the 23-window Samba, built only from 1951 to 1963.
The bus is fitted with highly desirable 'original German' Safari front windows. The 1830 single carb 4 cylinder engine was rebuilt and is matched to a 4 speed manual transaxle. It features eight chrome framed panoramic samba windows, a retractable ragtop canvas sunroof, a split windshield with safari windows, a wider trunk lid and a roof rack and ladder that combines stainless steel and wood.
This bus must be seen and driven to be fully appreciated - the engine is extremely strong and responsive and the original factory 4 speed transmission shifts smoothly through all the gears, the van brakes great and the engine temperature always remains cool.
