VW's Bulli Concept. Image: Volkswagen
Say what you want about the old VW Microbus, but they built character. Dangerously slow, prone to snap oversteer in all but dry conditions and about as unsafe as you could get without using the driver as a bumper, VW sold the same basic design from 1950 to 1979. The formula was simple: the engine (and most of the weight) went in the rear, the steering wheel, driver and passenger went up front and everything else went in the middle. They were good on gas, mainly because the air-cooled four only made up to 70 horsepower. They were lightweight, and as far as I remember power steering wasn’t even an option (which made tight corners an aerobic exercise). Utterly terrifying to drive in snow, they were equally bad in crosswinds, which generally required about ninety degrees of steering input to keep the van pointed in a straight line. Despite this, I actually miss them.
Image: Volkswagen
For starters, they were as mechanically complex as a box of hammers, and just about as reliable. A tube of JB Weld, some duct tape and a few hand tools could keep the microbus running when even “reliable” Hondas and Toyotas had gone to the great junkyard in the sky. They rarely failed to start, and if they did, a compression start (courtesy of a nearby hill or a friend’s bumper) was all you needed. I especially miss the cramped and claustrophobic Camper variant, because the appeal of a cheap place to live on the road never gets old.
That’s why I’m so put off with what VW is showing in Geneva. Called the Bulli, it’s supposed to be a modern interpretation of the storied microbus, but all I see is epic fail. To begin with, it’s way too small: that may be a selling point in the EU, but that’s not going to fly here in the land of supersized big gulps. In fact, I’m not even sure a large drink would fit inside the Bulli, let alone in a cup holder. It looks as if someone re-skinned a Golf to make it less aerodynamic, then inserted seats designed by Torquemada during the Spanish inquisition. They don’t look comfortable enough for a cross-town trip, let alone a cross country trip.
Image: Volkswagen
Which leads me to my next rant: The Bulli shown in Geneva is battery powered. How, exactly, is one supposed to follow Ratdog or Phish cross country, when the range of your eco-friendly VW bus is about 100 miles per day? Sure, VW tells us that a range of underpowered and fuel sipping engines could be used as well, but I’d have built the prototype as a TDI, myself. Given the fuel economy of most TDIs, you could follow an entire Ratdog tour for the profits made on sales of a half-dozen tie-dyed t-shirts.
Maybe I’m needlessly romanticizing the Microbus, but the Microbus was a friend of mine and the Bulli is no Microbus. I now have my own handful-to-drive-in-a-crosswind vehicle, the Toyota FJ Cruiser. It’ll get me to places a Microbus never could, and it’s about as comfortable to sleep in. It gets reasonable fuel economy, as long as you leave it parked or draft a semi-trailer at every opportunity, and so far it’s been bulletproof reliable. Perhaps Toyota’s FJ Cruiser should be nominated as the Microbus of a new generation, because the Bulli just doesn’t do it.
Source: Volkswagen
A box on wheels. With gas prices rising so quickly you would think people would want something more aerodynamic.