I found this 1963 Volkswagen Stretch Double Cab with teal and white paint, surfing the web last night.The engine is an 1835 cc dule carb, the transmission is a ’67 4 spd man, and it has a Sunroof from Deluxe micro-bus but I don’t know much more about it than that.There are a lot of custom buses out there and from my point of view I like original VW buses just the way they came off the line maybe a engine upgrade and a new set of wheels but other than that stock is king to me. This little VW truck for some reason caught my eye and I have taken a liking to it.Maybe because it is a custom double cab and I have a soft spot for the VW truck but I think mostly it is just a well done resto combining two classic VW that are very similar to begin with the cab of a late ’60 double cab and the bed of a Late ‘50/early ’60 single cab.In the end you get the best of both worlds the extra room on the cab to fit more people and the longer bed in the back for more cargo room, not to mention the sunroof for that California going to the beach feel. The deluxe Chrome and the Canvas Tilt Canopy don’t look bad ether.I would love to know more about this bus so, If anyone has more info on it let me know.
The classic VW bus comes in many forms and shapes, from the unique VW barn door to the VW single cab.There are so many opinions out there about which is the best and greatest of them all but in the end it is a matter of opinion. I personally favor the beautiful 1961 Volkswagen Double cab with the late 50’s VW camper coming in a close second. Volkswagen buses have a colorful history, with each owner having numerous stories of conquest and disappointment with their beloved VW. I would love to hear and read your VW bus stories or your opinion on the greatest VW bus. So send in your Volkswagen stories whether they are bus, bug or any other VW and let the VW fun begin.
63 VW Double cab restoration from junkyard to the final product. It would be nice to find a VW junkyard like the one in this Video. it looks like there are a few god find in there. Nice job Parkers on the Double Cab restoration it looks fantastic.
This single cab is in great shape and looks outstanding in black. I like the lowered look and the BMI rims that you can’t see in this pic.
McNeil’s shop Dove blue VW single cab. I love this color it just so classic. I will paint my 61 double cab this color.
Volkswagen Double Cabs
Light blue and white vw. You like ratted out and slammed double cabs then you’ll like this gem. Its has everything you are looking for and a motor bicycle in the back to boot.
Here is a sweet pic of a original paint Dove Blue Volkswagen Double Cab. Dove blue is one of my favorite double cab colors and is more then likely what I am going to go with on my 61 double cab.
I have had a few questions as of late about the latches on the VW double cab and single cab. What most of you want to know is. Are the double cab latches interchangeable? The answer is yes and no. Innately the latches for the Double Cab and Single Cab are different. The forward latches bolt through the cab with the bolt going from the inside of the cab and screwing into the latch on the outside.
The rear latches have a Phillips screw that is counter sunk in to the latch that screws in to the gate.
If you put the forward gate latches on the opposite corners in the back, they will work. There are no counter sinks for the screws on the forward latches so they don’t look perfect but they will function. The problem is, the arms will stick out on the side of the Double Cab, instead of curving around the back like they should. This could cause a problem when you walk buy, dinging your arm or catching your clothes. Once you have the forward gate latches mounted on opposite corners you can take the leaver part of the latch off of the mount shaft and swap them so that they bend around the back, like they should, instead of outwards. This is not as easy as it sound, usually the latches are on there really good and it takes some doing to get them off. My suggestion to you would be to get the right latches for you double cab. You can usually find latches for sale on The Samba for around $50 a pair (some go for more). There are also 2 different kinds of latches. Pre-1967 latches have a sharp curve on the handle. The post 1967 latches have a rounded curve. If you don’t care about being original they both fit the same.
There has been a lot written about the history of the VW bus.A classic car since it conception in 1949 the Volkswagen bus has a loyal following that rivals many classic cars today. In 1947 Ben Pon, a Dutch Volkswagen distributor drew the initial idea for the Volkswagen bus. It wasn’t until November 1949 that the first Volkswagen bus was put in to production and Ben Pon’s idea becomes a reality. The original Volkswagen buses were designed as work vehicles and were a hit for new businesses staring up after WWII. As the market grew Volkswagen introduced a new line of more lavish buses the Type 2 offering a wide range of additional features, and then the variation began.Not only could you have options like more windows and rear seating but a line of specialty buses came available. For major loads you could get a special high-roof panel van. There were fire trucks, food buses and an ambulance conversion as well. Another option was a double door bus, with loading doors on both sides. One of the most renowned modifications of the bus was the Volkswagen single cab and double cab pickup. With all of these variations available, in addition to the window configurations choices, it made for a seemingly infinite number of different busses.
With the addition of the Volkswagen single cab in 1952 Volkswagen introduced there first pick up version of the vw bus. The intended use for the VW single cab was for farm workers and construction companies. The unique fold down gates allowed the Volkswagen single cab to carry objects larger then itself and made the truck versatile in many situations
History of the Volkswagen Double Cab
The story goes that in the early 1950’s a florist went to BINZ, a German coachbuilder that was synonymous for special purpose vehicles, requesting a vehiclethat he could use for transporting materials, workers and plants in, but also had an area that was safe from the weather. Apparently, the single cab didn’t fit his needs Binz solution was to take the Volkswagen Single cab and modify it into what is now known as the Binz double cab. Binz realized that they had a good idea in there hands and began to produce and market the double cab. They would make the conversion, upholster a rear seat that they made,and then paint the new double cab (the single cab came from Volkswagen primed). Because of its success Volkswagen contracted Binz to start making the VW double cab. It should be noted that there is no solid evidence to verify this story about the VW double cab. The only documented information is that VW contracted Binz to coach build the Double Cab in Oct, 1953 according to a Volkswagen Special options brochure. Although Binz Started making the double cab Type 2s in 1953 for Volkswagen, a few years later in 1958 VW took the production of the double cab in house started making the vehicles at there own facilities. They sold for about $1800 that was about $300 more than the single cab.
Thursday is what my wife lovingly refers to as double cab night.This is the night if the week that is singled out to work on double cabs and such. On this glorious night me and a close friend get together and work on our own Volkswagens (Me on my 1961 double cab and him on him on his 1955 VW Spring frame). Starting directly after work this will usually take us into the wee-hours of the night and more times then not into Friday morning. This makes for some interesting Fridays at work. We both have a lot of work to do so we can get these on the road but on the whole it is a lot of fun and for some reason we cant seem to get enough of it. Last week we worked on getting the electrical done on my 61 double cab. Any of you that have worked on old Volkswagen electrical know that it can be a simple fix or you rewire the whole thing and it still doesn’t work properly, rarely is it something in-between.The funny thing abut this situation is that the only thing that wasn’t working was the rear driver side blinker. After 6 hr of working on it we found that the problem was the ground.Buy the way that was the first thing that we check when we started. We just did not check it out properly.
This double cab has seen better days in her life but as a whole this VW gem is in great shape. Most of the rust that is there is surface rust, except for a few spots on the rocker panels that will need to be replaced. The floors and nose are solid and the under belly is very clean for a 45+ year old double cab. All the interior is there but the upholstery is in bad shape and is not the original for the 61 double cabs. I will be working on this weekly and keeping you updated right here.
