1982 Volkswagen Vanagon (T3)

I came across this poor T3 in a self-service wrecking yard in Salt Lake City a few weeks ago. Row52.com, the service the yard uses for its inventory, has it listed as a 1982 model. Even without having the model year confirmed, we can tell from a quick glance that this Vanagon left the factory in Germany with an air-cooled engine—the T3 switched to a water-cooled engine part way through 1983, and those vans had another grille below the headlights for the radiator. Although the Beetle and T2 bus continued to be produced with air-cooled engines in Central and South America into the 2000s, the T3 was the last new Volkswagen design to feature an air-cooled engine, and also the last new rear engined model, making it a significant vehicle in automotive history.

1971 Volkswagen Type 2 (T2)

Another find in southern Utah. This second generation (T2) VW Bus is easily identified as an early production model (1968-1971) by the front turn signals being mounted below the headlights. In 1971 the Type 2 received front disc brakes, along with new wheels that had brake ventilation holes, as seen on this example. Assuming the wheels are original and haven’t been retrofitted to an earlier model, we can narrow down the year to 1971.

1973-1979 Volkswagen Type 2 Westfalia

This VW Bus appears to be highly original, if somewhat faded and rusty. The high-mounted turn signals and squarish bumper indicate that it can’t have been built any earlier than 1973. I love the very ’70s lime green paint, and of course the Westfalia camper conversion scores it some points, too.