Sommaire pour Issue 91 de VWt

All new Caddy Volkswagen’s fifth generation Caddy is due to be unveiled to the public just after this issue goes to press, and this time it’s a lot more than just a facelift. VW says practically every part of the vehicle has been re-designed, making this essentially an all-new model. Expect a stylish new side profile, a new roof line that slopes down towards the rear, re-designed headlights that blend into the grill and space in the wheelarches for the larger wheels fitted to the R model. Urban delivery van and family MPV versions of the new Caddy will be available with more driver assistance systems than ever before. Technology fans will love VW’s new ‘Ever Connected’ ethos, so expect to see onboard Wi-Fi and internet services similar to those…

Poppy’ is a 1998 1.9 TDi T4, which I bought around three years ago with a DIY camping conversion already completed. It’s been lowered all round and is rolling on 18in Golf Monza rims and drives great. In the time we have been together I have updated the Van with a new rock ’n’ roll bed, changed the interior units to freshen things up inside and made it a whole lot comfier to sleep in. I use the Van for regular trips to Cornwall as I am an enthusiastic body boarder, and so far Poppy has never let me down on our adventures together. “Poppy has never let me down on our adventures together” I also use the Van to attend various VW shows, and I’m hoping to cover even…

“something easier to throw all the kit into and head off at a moment’s notice” You have to learn to walk before you can run. Everybody knows that. But who has the sensibility to apply that logic in our modern, fast-paced world? A world where everything is at our fingertips and just the prospect of waiting more than three seconds for a website to load has 90 per cent of us heading for the exit. We don’t want to wait any more. We want it all, and we want it now! But preferably without the adverse effect on the environment of a million hell-bent, underpaid delivery van drivers. But hold on a second. Is it not true that good things come to those who wait? We’re living in a paradox,…

You may wonder why we decided to go on a road trip to the most northerly isles in the UK? Well, this is our second visit to the area in the last four years and it’s really grown on us. Watching the UK drama series Shetland really put a stamp on it so, at the beginning of the year, we booked the overnight return ferry from Aberdeen to Lerwick for a two-week road trip in September. “killer whales and otters in the area” Come Friday September 6, I filled the T5 with diesel, together with Forte diesel treatment, and then set off from North Wales to Carlisle for our first night’s stay to break up the long journey. We got up early the following morning and drove the 524 miles…

Having forced ourselves to get up ’n’ out to join this annual Charity Cruise last year, Jolly Jim and I decided to kick off this New Year the same way. Unlike last year, however, this time round we arrived looking fresh and feeling fine. Likewise, the trusty VW fired up right away and didn’t miss a beat all day. Incidentally, my original plan was to take the T5, which is a delight to drive and has a great heater / hob / kettle so we’d be able to fix up a brew when we arrived at Uncle Tom’s Cabin but, as it was still away having some trim work completed, we were left with my trusty ol’ Notchback. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a rad ride and I love it…

“Ashley is more like an artist who chooses Campervans as his medium” If you’ve ever been to a VW show – which I’m sure includes about 95 per cent of the people reading this magazine – then you’ll likely have looked through the windows of more than a few Vans to check out what the inside is like. Quite often, you can at least get an inkling about the style of the interior of a Van by checking out the exterior, but every so often along comes something completely different. Completely unexpected. Inspiring even. We’ll be honest, unless it’s a brand new model, we here at VWt don’t tend to stop at Vans with zero modifications outside when we’re hunting for feature Vans. I mean, you don’t want to just…

Wrap it up Dear VWt, Whenever VWtmagazine pops through the letterbox I have a dilemma. Do I read it all in one go and then have to wait a whole month for the next issue or do I show a little restraint and read it over a few days? I have trained myself to do the latter! I have a request, though. Do you think you might do an article on vehicle wrapping, particularly the pros and cons? I have a white T6 that has been converted into a Camper and am debating whether to have the lower half wrapped or not. It would be useful to be able to make an informed decision. Kind regards, Diane Warburton via email VWt: Funnily enough, we have been looking into the possibility…

We’ve been on quite a journey to get this far after being stung for a lot of money by a fraudulent Camper conversion business in Cornwall a couple of years ago. “I don’t think I will ever stop spending” Putting that behind us, after some serious saving, we bought this Van off a guy from Liverpool and it was the best thing we ever did. It was already partially converted with a pop-top and a full-width rock ’n’ roll bed, but we wanted a full camping conversion, what with having two children and a dog. So we set about converting her to what she is now. Since having her we have also upgraded to So Low suspension from Transporter HQ, 19in rims from LK Performance and a cheeky little hub…

February 16 Dubfreeze Stafford County Showground, Staffordshire ST18 0BD www.dubfreeze.co.uk March 08 Ultimate Dubs Telford International Centre, Telford TF3 4JH www.ultimate-dubs.co.uk 21-22 The VolksWorld Show Sandown Park, Esher, Surrey KT10 9AJ www.volksworldshow.comEmail: volksworld.show@kelsey.co.uk April 04-05 Dub Shed Eikon Exhibition Centre, Lisburn, Northern Ireland BT27 5RF www.dubshed.com 09-13 Camperfest Chester Racecourse, Chester CH1 2LY www.camperfest.co.uk 10-13 Wonderland 2 - The Dubbers of OZ Chillington Hall, Brewood, Wolverhampton WV8 1RE www.dubscollective.com/ dubs-in-wonderland 19 GTI Spring Festival Santa Pod Raceway, Podington, Wellingborough, Northants NN29 7XA www.gtifestival.com 24-26 Dubs at the Mill 2020 Haselbury Mill near Crewkerne, Somerset www.scrumpydubbers.co.uk 24-26 Techenders Victoria Farm, Lutterworth, Leicestershire LE17 5AU www.techenders.co.uk May 03 Stanford Hall Stanford Hall, Stanford-on-Avon, Leicestershire LE17 6DH www.stanfordhallvw.com 07-10 Derbyshire Dubs Wardlow, Buxton, Derbyshire SK17 8RW www.derbyshiredubs.co.uk 07-10 The Only Meet Is Essex…

NEW JK MARKETPLACE New for 2020, inside the show the Just Kampers Marketplace gives you the chance to showcase the car or Bus (air-cooled VWs only please) you have for sale, with thousands of potential buyers on site ready to view. If you are looking for a new project or show car for the season this will be a great place to start. Space is limited so head to www.volksworldshows.com to register. Oh, and get this – the driver gets a weekend entry ticket with their ‘For Sale’ pass. RETAIL VILLAGE Our retail village really is a haven for VW lovers. It’s guaranteed to be jam-packed with everything you could possibly need for your VW, including secondhand parts, rare accessories, clothing, gifts and plenty more. The biggest names in the…

“set packages that can then be fine tuned with a bewildering array of options” Over the past couple of years I’ve noticed a trend in VWt. I know air ride is nothing new, but it was always a mainstay of show cars until relatively recently. You know, the sort of thing that would be fitted to an air-cooled car, or maybe an American pick-up. Not really something you’d see on a modern vehicle that sits outside the house and is driven all year round. Maybe it’s the advent of some really high-end kits, or improved production methods, but it now seems that air ride is a very real option for a daily driven vehicle. In particular a daily driven VW Transporter. This is also the opinion of the guys at…

You have a 2005 T5 Panel Van for sale. Your asking price is a paltry £1,000. Everybody is interested. But the MoT is out and all of a sudden the interest halves. It needs a new turbo and every single panel, except for maybe the roof, is either dented or scratched… Now, nobody is interested. Except, you have a family connection with Trans-Porters in Folkestone, Kent. Your cousin, Luke Porter, picks up the ’phone with a twinkle in his eye and the Van is sold. Give it 10 months and you’ll be kicking yourself. If you’ve been around VW Transporters for a while, and you have a bit of a thing for the ones with little to no space between the ’arch and the tyre, then you will probably have…

“I really wanted it lowered and that’s when things got a bit out of hand” As a species, we Sapiens have an in-built desire to always look for reason and explanation in everything around us. From how do they get the caramel inside a Rolo, to why are we here at all? Some questions we will eventually find answers to, others we will never know, yet we mostly accept that everything happens for a reason, right? It could be a promotion that inexplicably passes you by, or that night you decided to go out instead of playing video games and ended up meeting the love of your life. Or maybe, just maybe, the one time your wife absentmindedly says she thinks you should all go camping as a family and…

What you’ll need Tools: Skewers Chopping board / knife BBQ Ingredients: Sweet baby peppers Shallots (or red / white onion) Aubergine Courgette Cherry tomatoes Halloumi Chorizo Herbs to taste Bacon Sweet rub (butterscotch) Pineapple Persimmon Banana Honey 1 Sweet baby peppers char up a treat, but regular peppers are equally as tasty 2 I love the sweet flavour of a shallot but red onions are a good alternative, or white onions if you’re after more bite 3 You can’t beat a cherry tom, but don’t overlook big old beef tomatoes if you’re going for a chunky, ‘rustic’ feel 4 Aubergine and courgette work great on the BBQ, and can be thinly sliced to wrap around cheese. Yes, cheese 5 Here’s the Halloumi, which I prefer to cut into chunks as…