90 1967 CUSTOM KOMBIwww.volkswagencamper.co.uk
1967 CUSTOM KOMBIt was finally rescued
and imported to the
UK, where sadly it was
robbed of many parts
to help resurrect another split. Paul
Ferns bought it in January 2015 from
an advert on eBay and didn’t realise
initially that it was just a mile away
from his home. “I had a walk down
to see the bus and passed by the
other lovely Volkswagen the seller
had rebuilt, I continued down into
his garden to find an absolute wreck
which really wasn’t really fit even
for scrap! However, in my mind’s
eye, I could already see it finished
& sparkling. I knew that it could be
saved, so a deal was struck.
“I began by removing what was
left of it, before having the shell
dragged to the side of my house,
where I completed all of the work- from start to finish. I wanted a
new project and my partner Amina
liked VW’s and was happy to let
me work on it... Welding was my
first task, which only took about
a year and a half! I spent every
Thursday and a few odd days when
I could, rebuilding the floors, the
rear section and both cab doors.
The front clip needed replacing
as well as essentially, the whole
bottom half, both side seals, the floor
strengtheners and the windscreen
lower panel. The roof was badly
dented after being hit by a falling
tree whilst in the olive grove, so
rather than repairing it, I fitted a
78 inch rag top which wasn’t very
popular with some of the Anorak
wearing members of the split screen
community. I fitted Safari windows
in place of the stock windscreen and
added pop outs all around.
“There was no engine when II
This bus started life in the Netherlands but
somehow ended up in Zakinthos where it
was found in a olive grove having sat for a
number of years, just waiting...
WORDS DAVE RICHARDS, PHOTOGRAPHS, SIMON COOKEThe apparently
stock cab has a
few tricks up its
sleeve
Here you can
see the banded
steel wheels
and the slightly
lowered, just a
single notch,
stanceHomegrown
Kombi-camper