Endless Summer VW Show 2017 (part 3 of 4)

This weeks blog review is part 3 of 4 about the 'Endless Summer' VW Show that was held on Sunday 13th August at The War Memorial Park in Basingstoke, Hampshire. The location of the show was only about 54 miles from my hometown, so as it wasn't too far and as the forecast was good I decided to jump in the bus and go and check out this great little show show. The show which was billed as " a great one day family VW event in Hampshire" and was organised by Allan Shepherd who has been part of the VW scene for over 15 years. Allan decided the show could raise money for 2 local charities: Naomi House & Jacks Place and this year they raised a huge £3491.33. Entry to this show was a modest £5.00 ($8 approx) and the money went to the named charities. The location was ideal with easy access and plenty of well kept grass in the memorial park to park all the VW's on. There were numerous clean portable toilets to use, and enough traders selling everything to suit everyone. The shows Marshal's were numerous and unlike some shows I have attended, actually knew what they were doing and when to do it, which made a nice change! and it also helped the shows to run smoothly. The blog continues as I wander around the show.

To see all my other blog entries, go to ‘My Blog Archive’ to the left of this page. Simply click on an arrow for a particular year, then click on an arrow for a particular month, this will then give you a drop down menu for all the blog entries for that month.

This stunning 1976 Senegal Red bay belongs to
a mate of mine called CJ. This immaculate late
bay is gorgeous. The lowered stance is thanks
to air ride suspension which is a new addition
due to the bus being so low before that it was
grinding down the adjuster nut on the front beam.
At least now CJ can raise the bus up for driving.

This perfectly straight bus has a fully detailed
stock 1600cc engine and a custom interior
featuring  new upholstery, LED lighting, a rock
and roll bed, TV, and new cabinets. Those lovely
Porsche 356 wheels are another new addition.
A very good choice as they are the same as I
have on my 1969 microbus.!

As well as split screen and bay window buses
there were plenty of T25's at this show. The sheer
diversity of all these T25's was amazing.

I do like the T25 and the performance that comes
with a more modern bus and this high riding green
bus caught my eye. I do like the idea of overland
treks to far flung places in an off road bus and this
panel van ticked all the right boxes.

The high (ish) stance, the bull bar and the roof
rack gave it an adventurer look about it.

On the other end of the looks scale was this all
white high top bus. The one colour paint gives
the bus a modern look. The interior was really
well equipped with everything you could need
for weekends away.

On a hot sunny afternoon you need something
like this metal flake blue buggy to arrive in real
style. I think this is a Manx body shell which is a
true classic, and those polished wheels with the
big and little tyres looked great.

The engine in a buggy is exposed so it's best to
dress up the engine, and this engine has been
dressed up nicely with lots of chrome and polished
parts. You can see just how big those rear tyres
are from this photo.

This early sixties Karmann Ghia had been hit
with the lowering stick so much that the sills sat
on the grass! This old KG must have had some
form of air ride suspension...

You can see just how low this old ghia really was
from this photo. The patina'd paint looked like
the original paint and in stark contrast the chrome
bumpers shone like new.

The interior also looked to be pretty much stock,
with the addition of an under dash bamboo shelf.

This stunning 1964 type 3 Notchback is an import
from Australia, it also, many years ago used to
run down the 1/4 mile strip at Santa Pod. That
was before this gorgeous car underwent a full
restoration.

The restoration included many new panels and
that lovely Atlas white (L91Z) and Black (L41)
paint. The new chrome and black Radar wheels
compliment the body perfectly.

The engine has been rebuilt and it's now a very
respectable fuel injected 1914cc unit with lots of
internal goodies including a CB 96mm crank. It
also runs a standard 4 speed swing axle gearbox.

This very RAT looking 1950's slammed Karmann
Ghia caught my eye. The rough and ready body-
work looked great as did that super narrow front
beam which tucks the front wheels right under the
wings even with those big domed hubcaps.

You can see just how low this old KG sat, and how
narrow that front beam was from this angle. The
bodywork was a mixture of knocks and scratches
and patina and looked fantastic.

This decal in the side window says it all...!

The interior looked to be stock apart from the
gear shifter. 

This bright red Mk1 GP beach buggy looked
great in the sunshine. The red body and those
chrome wheels looked fantastic in the bright
summer sunshine.

The wide rear tyres along with the engine guard
and that stinger style exhaust all indicate that this
cool buggy would be at home having fun in the
sand at the beach.

Unlike the other Karmann's (above) this lovely
restored 1960's model was to a show standard 
finish. The perfectly straight body panels had 
been finished in a flawless coat of black over
silver paint.

Like the previous Karmann's this gorgeous car
had also been seriously lowered and also looked
as though it had a narrowed front beam. Those
lovely chrome and black Fuchs style wheels were
the perfect choice and complimented the silver
bodywork perfectly.

This cool looking type 3 variant (or square back
as it was marketed in the U.S.) This black 1971
model belongs to 'Just Kampers' a VW parts
supplier here in the U.K. so this car is as you
would expect like new.

Just look how straight that body is (if you click on
the photo it will enlarge it). This really is a lovely
looking car.

From one extreme to another this 1967 RAT
look bug looked cool. The rusty body looked
good as did the hot rod style red painted steel
wheels with whitewall tyres. This old bug had a
lot of accessories including the wicked sun visor,
and the chrome head light peaks.

This brass emblem was on the fuel flap and
suited the overall look of the car.

Those deep dish rear wheels and that cool roof
rack both added to this RAT look bugs cool
appearance.

Another detail on the RAT look bug was this
neat chequered design on the inside on the
head lights.

Just a couple of random photos to show the
perfect location for the show and the perfect
weather.

This great one day show is getting bigger year
by year and well worth going if you get along.

Another Karmann Ghia (the 4th in this review..
that must be a record!). This fully restored 60's
Kg was immaculate and painted in that lovely
single colour of light blue with white painted
steel wheels.

You can see just how clean this old KG really
was from this photo. Even the underside of the
engine cover is painted to the same high finish.

The engine bay was as clean as the exterior
body work. The stock looking engine was also
finished to the same high standard.

So that was part 3 of 4 reviews all about the
Endless Summer VW show. Next weeks blog
review will be the final instalment where you
can see plenty more buses including a lovely
green and white panel van, beetle's, a rat
rod, a tandem and a Lamborghini (!!) so be
sure to come back next Saturday.