RHD 66 VW Splitscreen Splitty Panel Devon camper / van, vtg accessories, 911 reg

‘Der Brotkasten' RHD 66 VW Splitscreen Splitty Panel Devon camper / van

Lots of NOS period vintage accessories. lots of 60s period vintage camping equipment. valuable 911 reg no

I have built a Onedrive photo album on the Splitty.

PLEASE LOOK AT IT!

There are 140 pictures - eBay's 12 pic allowance is hopeless!

Here's the link to it (you'll need to cut and paste. because it's not a hyperlink):

https://1drv. ms/f/s!AoCJmOvXusCZyXkA6H_BPG5muloF

I was hoping to never have to write this. but I have to. so here goes. This is the auction for ‘Der Brotkasten' (‘The bread bin'). my beautiful right-hand-drive 1966 VW Split Panel Devon. As far as I know it is totally unique. and it was a long-standing dream for me to create this one-of-a-kind vehicle. I have always wanted a Panel Van Splitty and a Splitty that had a beautiful interior. and (until now) you can't have both.

I have always loved the look of Panel Splits. because I like the unbroken lines down the sides. uncluttered by windows. It's very important to have an RHD Splitty if it is going to be a Panel. because (apart from the difficulty of insuring an LHD one). the blind spots make LHD ones horrendous to drive. Not so with this one. which is one of the few remaining RHD panel vans – it is a doddle to drive. and the lovely. multi-adjustable. period ‘Wassell' mirrors help no end.

I have always thought Split Panels looked like a 60s bread bin (hence my van's nickname). and I picked the colours specially to enhance this impression – it was a dull shade of ‘hearing aid beige' when I bought it. and I decided to do the repaint the bodywork in VW Reseda Green and Thingy Grau. partly because they are fantastic VW 60s period colours and partly because it is easy to get them matched if the van needs a repair in future.

My dream began to come true in 2011 when I was offered the van by a restorer I knew – I ran a small restoration company in the west country. and he had been using the van as his ‘daily driver'. It had been restored around 8 years earlier. but it had been stored outside for some of the time. and although the work was of good quality. it needed the doglegs. cab doors and cargo doors repairing. It also has a GREAT (and transferable) registration number – MCH 911D (“My name's Michael and other car's a Porsche 911”…). That's been valued at between £750 and £1000 (different agents gave different valuations). and it is included with the sale.

I had a very talented welder and fabricator working for me at the time and I knew I could get the work it needed done well. so we struck a deal and I bought the van. Not long after I bought it we repaired the cab and cargo doors and doglegs using repair panels from VW Heritage (you can see pictures of his work in the Onedrive album). and I was toying with the idea of having it signwritten and using it as a publicity vehicle for the business.

However. I was lucky enough to be able to buy an absolutely reproduction beautiful curved Devon interior made by Kevin Morgan. If you are in the SSVC or on Facebook you may know him as ‘Bu5nut' – here is his Facebook page:

https://www. facebook. com/Vw-splitscreen-Devon-interiors-539655879381656/

Anyway. that changed everything! Kev's interiors are fantastic. and he puts hundreds of man-hours into making and French-polishing the most beautiful. and accurate. interiors from oak and oak veneer. which are all but indistinguishable from the original Devon ones. both in appearance and workmanship. Sadly they are not cheap (around £3-4000 depending on spec). and even more sadly it looks as if Kev is going to stop making them. so this opportunity is even more unique than it would have been. My interior was one of the first ones that Kev made. and it had been in his Samba for a number of years. so it has acquired a beautiful ‘patina'. which makes it even harder to distinguish between it and an original one. I have built a photo album of pictures of the van during restoration and now. and some of the pictures show the interior when it was still in Kev's Samba (please see link to pictures below). IMPORTANT: I have been very careful to fit the interior to my van with almost exclusively concealed screws. and I haven't fitted the roof cupboard. door cupboards or table bracket yet. so if you decide you would like to sell the interior separately or fit it to another Splitty and do something different with mine. it can be removed without damaging the interior trim. There are two tables – a larger wooden one which also forms the bed base for sleeping and is usually stowed in the roof cupboard. and a smaller formica-topped one that forms the top of the curved cooker cupboard and is removed and fitted to its leg when needed. The pictures showing the tables and door cupboards show them just resting in place. but they will be very easy to screw in should you decide that that's the way you want to go. Personally I think you'd be insane to remove the interior because it is so beautiful and Kev is stopping making them. but you could if you wanted to. And one of the best things is the table leg – it is IDENTICAL to the ones on my parent's 60s TV set when I was a kid!

As I said. acquiring the interior changed everything. and I decided to create the first (as far as I know) Split Panel Devon. However. things took another twist in 2013 when I sold the business and retired. and so the van stayed stored in primer for a couple of years while we moved house and sorted our affairs out. Last year I was able to save the money to have the exterior paint done. by a local painter who used to help me out and work on my own cars sometimes when my own paintshop was busy (thanks to Ubi at Y&R Motors in Exeter!). When Ubi had finished the paint. I had the van taken to a very well-known and respected trimming company in Bovey Tracey. West Country Trimmers. and Guy. the resident genius there. lined and headlined the interior according to my specifications. which are aimed at making the van ‘as close as possible to what VW and Devon would have done'. I chose dark green vinyl as the main interior colour. and I had the interior trimmed to the beltline with perforated headlining material. because I think that's what VW would have done (60s VWs usually had headlining material to quite a low level – I can remember sitting in my dad's 66 fastback and noticing that. when I was 8!).

When I got the van back I set about installing the floor coverings and the Devon interior. which was easy because I knew it had been in Kev's Samba (I helped him take it out!). but not quite as straightforward as it might have been because Kev's Samba had a bench seat and my van is a ‘walk-through'. I designed and made a blanking panel to go between the front seats and cover up the front of the seat and cupboard. and my plan. if I had kept the van. was to fit a ‘Busbox' made by Mad Matz. and cover it in green vinyl to match the rest of the interior. However. I haven't done that yet and so you can choose whether to or not. I also have a large collection of vintage kitchen items. and I was intending to fit things like a spice rack and possibly even a tea dispenser to the vertical divider between the seats. in keeping with my ‘what VW and Devon would have done' approach. Some of the pictures of the front show the van without the seat belts. but don't worry – they are there. but I was taking my time cutting the holes for them. as I didn't want to spoil the lovely carpets!

I am very pleased and proud of how I have fitted the interior – I was a restorer for 10 years and I used to pride myself on the accuracy of what I did. and so I have tried to make sure there are no ‘loose ends'. and I spent an especially long time trimming the edges. sill strips. fitting double door seals to stop draughts and rattles. etc. The door seals are VW Heritage ones. but I sectioned them half way through and fitted half to the doors and half to the channels – this not only looks neater. but makes the doors shut with a lovely click. and. as I said. eliminates draughts and rattles. I have fitted a Van Werks stainless steel side door sill strip. and I think that complements the interior and finishes off that area much more nicely than if I had just left a blank metal edge.

My beautiful front compartment is pretty much thanks to Mark and Odette at Mad Matz – what fantastic work they do! I wanted a bit more of a luxury feel than a van would normally have. but I wanted to keep the period feel. and Mad Matz' ‘German weave' carpet on the floors and front panel gives exactly that 60s look that I wanted. I have made them even better by adding underfelt (period-looking 60s-style jute underfelt. of course…) to the back of the carpets. to add some sound- and heat-insulation. and the difference in quietness since I installed the interior is incredible – an empty van is like a tin drum. but this is now a padded and insulated vehicle with extremely efficient seals round the doors. I have lots of photos of the work in progress. so that you can see what's under the trim and reassure yourself that the beauty isn't just skin deep and that I've not bodged over a lot of nasty rust holes or something like that. and I am posting the photos in an online album.

I have covered the remaining bare metal areas with green vinyl to harmonise with West Country Trimmers' work in the back. and I think the interior of my Splitty is the nicest and cosiest I have ever seen – and the quietest. as I said. About the only thing we didn't redo was the seats. which must have been done a long time back in a very nice and soft pale green vinyl. and are so superbly comfortable (I think they have some extra padding) that I kept them exactly as is – I have been riding or driving in VWs for 50 years now. and I have some very uncomfortable memories of rock-hard hot black waffle-pattern vinyl in some of them…

Mad Matz also supplied the vinyl floor tiles in the back. which not only have a fantastic period look but are also an amazingly close match to the exterior colours of the van. In my online photo album there are pictures of me painting the floor before I fitted them. and then of them without the furniture fitted. so that you can see that I did this job to last (it is not a ‘bodge it and flog it' job – I did this van with the intention of never selling it. so the interior work has been done to my extremely high standards. with the intention that it would be me using it).

To protect the beautiful carpets in the front and the lovely floor tiles in the back I have acquired four ‘Café do Brasil' coffee sacks. which not only look great but keep the floors clean and free from marks and scratches.

The underneath of the van was repaired and rustproofed back in 2002. and in the main all I needed to do was check it and rectify a few minor areas – as I said. the previous restoration work was very extensive! I have an enormous history file of work carried out by the previous owner. and if you add up all the money on top of what I have also spent. this van has eaten an enormous amount of money!

Now the mechanical work. which in some ways is the best bit! One of the reasons I was attracted to the van in the first place is because the person I bought it from is a racing enthusiast (there is still a Castle Combe pitlane sticker above the windscreen). and he would not have been seen dead driving a vehicle that didn't handle well. And boy. does this handle well! I am not an expert at Splitty drivetrains. but what seems to have been done is that an independent Bay Window rear end has been fitted. and the suspension has been decambered. and also lowered front and back. Add to that the 1600cc engine. wide wheels and twin Webers. and you have a recipe for a very good-to-drive van – and that's exactly what this is! It corners really well. ‘leaning into' bends because of the decambered wheels. with very little roll and no bouncing or pitching. and the engine is torquey and pulls amazingly well. To start it. as with all Webers. you just give the throttle a few pumps and away she goes. The only drawback is that because of the Webers the heater had to be disconnected. but Splitty heaters are useless – and anyway. I don't drive it in the rain (if I can help it!) or in winter (under any circumstances). and I hope you won't either (salt…).

The best (and to me most amazing!) thing is the fuel consumption – the best I have had is 36 mpg! I can't imagine why this might be. because twin Webers and a van body with heavy wood interior fittings sounds to me like a recipe for a gas-guzzler – but that's how it is! I had a 2-litre petrol T25 pickup a few years back. and however hard I tried I couldn't get more than 15 mpg out of it. But I usually get well over 30 from this van – and. as I said. a lot more on a long run. So it is actually a practical and usable van for driving long distances round the continent in (which is what I am doing at the moment – I will be doing nearly 1000 miles in it on Sunday and Monday!). Talking of miles. the odometer shows around 10. 00. but that's a completely irrelevant figure because I assume it has been round once and possibly twice. However. as virtually all the mechanicals and most of the paint. body and interior are new or nearly new. it doesn't matter at all! I suspect but don't know for certain that the guy (two owners ago) who had the mechanical work done circa 2002 had the odometer zeroed when he fitted the new engine. I have done around 5-6000 miles in it in the 5 years I have owned it (most of the time it has either been being restored or stored!).

The wheels are chrome Porsche 356-style ones with smoothie hubcaps from AAC. and I think they look fantastic – the tyres are also quite wide. which again helps the roadholding. In some ways I think it looks better without the hubcaps. but I usually run with them on and they are included with the van. so you can choose what to do.

The exhaust system is AMAZING (and sadly also slightly vulnerable!). Like all the other mechanical improvements. it is brilliant and was done by the previous owner. It was supplied by a guy called Turbo Thomas. and it has a fantastic engine note (and I think may in part be responsible for the vehicle's brilliant performance). It looks absolutely wonderful. but as I said its problem is that it sticks out a bit further back than the bumper and is easy to catch on things. It has a couple of smallish dents in (done before I had it!). and although they don't detract massively from its appearance they aren't easy to remove because you obviously can't get inside to knock them out. Last year I called Turbo Thomas to ask if he could make me a new silencer to replace the dented one. and he was very helpful and said that if I brought the van to him he could help me. However. I never had time to do that. so if the dents annoy you. you can choose between taking the van to Turbo Thomas for them to be sorted at my expense. or me just discounting the appropriate amount from the price. and then you can choose between keeping the money and living with the dents. or getting them fixed! The whole system cost about £300 when it was done. so I imagine it would be somewhat less than that as it is only a box that needs replacing. It doesn't blow or leak. and as it is stainless steel it will presumably last indefinitely.

I managed to acquire a genuine 60s fitted roof rack which I know is either a genuine VW accessory or an aftermarket one made specially for the vehicle. because the fittings and legs are identical to the one that my dad had on his Fastback in 1966! It has a broken wooden slat. but that's very easy to fix – I just haven't got round to it yet! But this roof rack is SO much nicer than a nasty modern repro one. and as I say elsewhere it is very similar to the one my dad had on his Fastback in 1966.

Included with the van is an EXTREMELY high-quality 4-layer fitted ‘Stormforce' cover. which cost around £200. I would never keep a car or van outside. because in 10 years as a restorer I saw the damage that is caused by this. even when under a cover (because of condensation). I bought it because we had to store the van outside for a few weeks while it was having the door bottoms and doglegs fitted. but that was before it was painted. However. this is a great cover for inside use. and also to take with you so that if. for instance. you are at a show and it rains. you can protect the van while it's there. But please don't use it long-term. If you haven't got a garage or a storage building you need to buy or rent one BEFORE you buy a Splitty.

There is an external windscreen sun visor which I had painted to match the van but have not fitted because to do so would entail drilling holes. and if the person who buys the van doesn't like it they wouldn't be able to remove it (as with the interior). But it is straightforward to fit if you want to (and personally. if I were going to keep the van. I would definitely fit it. as they are not only amazingly cool to look at but are also very practical accessories in that they really do keep the sun out of your eyes!).

The van is a van on the V5C document and can be changed to a camper with the DVLA if wished. but I have not wanted to do this. as in order to meet their criteria for calling it a camper and not a van I would have to fit side windows. and I'd rather die than do that. I suppose the easiest way to achieve it would be to fit cargo doors with windows. and that would be what I'd have done if I had done it – but I would rather keep it exactly as it is. In theory vans can cost a bit more to insure. but even with all the modifications and its high agreed value it is insured (with RH Insurance. who I can't recommend too highly) for £150.

Most eBay auctions for cars have a section entitled ‘the bad bits'. and while there aren't really any things about the van that I would say were ‘bad'. there are a few things which I wanted to sort but have not had time. Firstly. the fuel tank has a small split where the filler pipe meets the tank. and this means that if you brim the tank right to the top it leaks a bit until the fuel has gone below the level of the filler pipe. I have been living with it for the 5 years I have had the van and it doesn't worry me (I just never quite fill the tank to the top). However. I do not feel that it is right to sell the van like this as it could be a potential fire hazard for someone who doesn't know the vehicle. and so I have bought a VW Heritage tank. and it is supplied along with the van but is not yet fitted to it. I will happily discount the appropriate amount to pay for fitting the tank. as with the exhaust pipes mentioned elsewhere. Secondly. there are a few minor areas where the paint seems to have reacted with the old paint below. and this has manifested itself in the form of small cracks. I must stress that these are very minor and hard to see. but they are there. The paint was done a year ago and they don't appear to be getting worse. so I don't think the problem is progressive. and it doesn't bother me. However. you may wish to get them attended to. and again. as with the tank fitting and exhaust pipe. I am happy to take account of the cost of doing this by refunding some of your bid price (if the reserve is met) or simply negotiating a discount for you (if it isn't and you are just agreeing a price with me). There are two aerosols of matched paint supplied with the van. and about half a litre of the original grey paint from when Ubi did it (so that's a guaranteed perfect match!). and both colours are readily available and easy to get matched at any paint supplier. If you live in the southwest I'd recommend taking it back to Ubi to do any work it needs now or ever. as he is a great guy. The van has a current MoT which expires in December but if the reserve is met I will get it tested again before sale so that you have a full year.

That's it - I think I've nearly covered everything – the last thing of all is the accessories and vintage camping equipment. I first went abroad in my dad's VW fastback in 1966 (the year this camper was built). and several of the vintage camping items you see in the photos date from that holiday – the li-los. camping table in particular both came in the Fastback to La Baule in Brittany for our first foreign holiday when I was 8. I also have a big collection of accessories and vintage camping things. and I have been collecting things specially to go with the van. ever since I got the interior from Kev.

Why is the van for sale? Simply because I have ‘cleaned myself out' restoring it – it has taken all my money and most of my time for the last five years. and I have invested so much in it that I need to sell it just to get my money back (and stay married…). The reserve is a very fair price for what the vehicle is. and even fairer in view of the fact that I am going to lose money on it (when I added up the cost of purchase. the work we did on it when I had the workshop. the cost of the parts to restore it. and the cost of the interior trim parts. I was horrified to realise that I have about £5000 more in it than I think I will get for it). So there is no ‘scene tax' in my price – I am just hoping to get as much of my money back as I can. I can't get my time back but it's been much more fun than watching telly! If the reserve is met absolutely all the vintage camping items and accessories shown are included free of charge. and if it isn't all or some of them (plus plenty of others if you like that kind of thing) are available by negotiation if you'd like them. I won't sell the interior separately from the van. but as I said above. if you want to buy the van and then separate them this would be an easy thing to do. and its market value is around £3000 – maybe more now that Kev is stopping making them. So it is an extremely good investment. If you do buy the van I would like a £1000 deposit to hold it. and payment in full in cash within 10 days from the date of the deposit. No cheques or PayPal (I hate their fees!).

The van is currently in southern France. and I am bringing it back to the UK on Monday (22nd August). after which it will be stored at a friend's house near Framlingham in Suffolk (I spend most of my time in France now. and that's obviously not a very practical place for it to be. in view of you needing to come and look at it. so I am storing it in Britain from now until it sells).

If you would like to look at it. please send me an eBay message or text me on my wife's mobile (mine's broken!) which is 0044 7737 005896. and I will arrange for my friend to open the storage building and show it to you. I shall be in Thailand and Vietnam from 23rd August until 15th September. so I will be a bit hard to get hold of (although I hope to have internet access). but in the week after that I will be available to show you round the van myself. if you'd like me to.

If you are likely to be in the Dover – London – Suffolk area on Monday 22nd I could even meet you on the road and show it to you. but time will be tight so I won't be able to make any big detours and you'd need to come and meet me. But if you live in that area and would like to see the van en route please text the number above (0044 7737 005896) and we will call you back and try to meet you. You won't be able to call the number because we will be driving along in the Splitty. and as it has no cigarette lighter we are going to keep the phone switched off to save charge. and just switch it on for a few minutes every couple of hours to read texts and call people back.

As you can see from the pictures. the vintage camping items include:

2 60s li-los (mine and my sister's!)

Table

60s Campingaz ‘Groenland' 3-way camping fridge (has 3 cigarette burns on front but works fine!)

2 vintage gas cookers

1966 vintage camping table

50s or 60s Parker-Knoll folding stool

‘Tartan' cooler

2 period insulated food containers

Period 50s or 60s fan

Unused period 60s paraffin heater

Unused vintage picnic set

2 vintage 60s beach windbreaks

60s vintage folding sunbed

50s/60s army kitbag (my father-in-law's old one)

Vintage circa 1970 drive-away awning

Repro Bush 60s radio (I like the originals better but you can actually listen to this one because it has FM and headphone sockets!)

Vintage groundsheet

In addition to the vintage camping equipment there are a lot of vintage or repro accessories and other features. including:

Rare period 60s NOS 'red ball' radio aerial

‘Vunder Bra' nose bra

‘Silver Screens Solar Frost' window cover (this is brilliant. because as the van doesn't have side windows it is great for sleeping in because all you need to keep the light out is this and a cover over the back window)

Period vintage accessory fitted roof rack

Helphos suction spotlight

Pair of NOS MIB 'Sabre' 60s white rubber door buffers

4 ‘Café do Brasil' coffee sacks to use as floor mats

AAC repro solid aluminium cup holder – I don't usually like repro accessories. but AAC's stuff is so nice that I made an exception!

Set of AAC engine vent trims – supplied with van but still in box because I don't want to drill holes to fit them

‘Hippy foot' accessory accelerator pedal cover

Set of ‘Bay Window' playing cards

Beautiful period 50s or 60s translucent blue sun visors

Pair of period dash trays

Pair of side window ‘breezie' vents (not shown in the pictures but you can have an NOS set)

Steering wheel ‘suicide' knob (not pictured on van but included – see pictures in online photo album. This is a fantastic accessory because it really does make driving the van easier – especially manoeuvring in tight spots)

Period 50s or 60s tissue dispenser (clipped to inside of cargo door)

Set of green dice tyre valve caps

Beautiful pair of period ‘Wassell. England' external mirrors

Repro ‘flip-up' mirror visor

SCAT shifter

‘Turbo Thomas' exhaust system

Blue translucent distributor cap (looks amazing at night…)

Tinted windows

Jail bars (marked VW so maybe genuine factory period ones). Not currently on van but easy to put back – I only took them off to clean the inside of the back window.

Chromed Porsche 356 wheels

Smoothie hubcaps

Original RHD vehicle

MCH 911D reg. no

Extensive history file

Last-ever paper tax disc. with SSVC tax disc holder

Period 60s German ‘Parkuhr' parking timer

Period 60s German dashboard temperature gauge

DIN-size under-dash radio box painted to match dash (there was a radio in it when I got it but I removed it because I don't like modern radios in old vehicles; however. the box will be supplied and you can use it to fit any DIN-size radio unit)

Dashboard bud vase if wished (not shown in pictures but I've got lots of them!)

‘How to Keep your Volkswagen Alive' book – just a curio. really. but I have always kept it in the drawer under the cooker as it is a mine of useful information. and an interesting read as well!

And finally. a ‘Stormforce' 4-layer high-quality cover. to protect the van from dust and damp!

On 20-Aug-16 at 11:02:58 BST. seller added the following information:

 LATE NOTE: I can't edit the description now because there has been a bid. so I will add this as a footnote.

As you may possibly have gathered(!). the name of the grey paint colour is not 'Thingy grau'!! I had put 'Thingy' temporarily because I couldn't remember the name without going to look at the tin. and then I forgot to go and look.

The grey paint's real name is 'Kiesel grau'. which sounds nicer but possibly a bit more boring than Thingy grau. :-)

Thanks

Alan

On 20-Aug-16 at 16:49:41 BST. seller added the following information:

 I knew that once I had launched the description I'd keep thinking of things that were missing! Two more that I have just thought of are the 'German-style' number plates with Germanic font for the numbers. and the beautiful cushions that I had made. They are made of (I think) 4-inch foam. and after a long search we found some green chenille material that bears a remarkable resemblance to the 'Duracour' material originally used by Devon of Sidmouth - except that it is lovely thick warm chenille and is really nice and cosy to sit (or lie) on. As you can see. the cushions fit the seats when they are in seat mode. but three of them also line up to form the correct length for the bed. which is what you did 'back in the day'. The fourth one can be left against the seat backrest to act as an extra pillow.
I haven't slept in the van yet. but we will be doing on Sunday night on the way to Suffolk.

Thanks. and sorry about the oversights - I'm sure there will be more!

Alan

Also published at eBay.co.uk

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