Two Palominos on ebay this week - this rather rusty but mostly original specimen with the very rare air conditioning option, and this red, refurbished example.
(Yes, I am still alive, and so is my van!)
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for owners and admirers of the Volkswagen Palomino camper van - the vw van with the boat on its roof.
13 comments:
Put the interior of the white one into the shiny red one, and I might be tempted back to the Palomino fold! :)
Hi Ian. Great to see the Palomino Club is still going!
Wow! Two Palominos for sale?!
To bad I don't have the money to buy both of them :-)
My Palomino is now in top shape after a lot of hard work.
If you want, Ian, I could sent you some pics to post on the site.
Pippa's Claude also looks great now....to bad it's not Pippa's anymore. To sell a Palomino....what a mistake to make!
Let's keep the Palomino club alive!
I've found another Palomino owner on facebook....maybey he want's to join?
Greets from Tom (the Belgian Palomino owner)
I loved the red one that much.....
Have you bought it???
Come on then - tell us more, including who you are! :)
I did indeed. I am new to the VW camper scene and I liked the fact that it was very unusual with the roof compared to the other campers. I am looking forward to going to the club scene and meeting folks.
Welcome new palomino-owner!
I am the only palomino owner in Belgium and I want to wach you all the best with your new camper van!
It looks great!
Greetz,
Tom
You can find me on facebook to(Tom Delellio)
Yes, welcome to the club! :)
If you'd like a couple of club window stickers for your new Palomino, then drop me an email to c1aude@hotmail.co.uk with your address, and I'll pop them in the post for you!
The bodywork/paint job looks great on your van from the photos - is it as good in real life?
Hi everyone, hope you all had a great Xmas and New Year
Had a fantastic result on Ebay the other day, won myself an original Type 2 Palomino brochure from March 1979! Double sided, in perfect condition complete with specs and prices/pictures.
Will scan through a copy to anyone interested, email me on alpamra@aol.com.
Alex
Wow, fantastic, Alex! ( and Happy New Year to everyone too! )
I have been after one of those for years, and I had given up hope of there being one in existence! If I'd seen it, there might have been a bidding war, because I wouldn't have known it was you!
I'd really love a copy of that, so I'll drop you an email straight away!
Hope your Palomino's doing well after all that horrible weather lately!
Pippa
Hi all
The only thing i've never even attempted to use in my van is the Gas Fridge, it looks complete and in good condition, but to be honest, i'm not 100% confident with attempting to use it!
Do any of you other Palomino owners out there use the fridges?
If so, any lighting tips/instructions on how to use etc? Any info would be greatly appreciated!
Alex
We will not try ours either but we think ours is original so don't wish to take the chance with it.
Hi there.
I just came across the Palomino club whilst browsing. I used to work in the factory where these buses were built and thought you might be interested in some background. The first Palominos were built by Bariban Motorhomes of Newton Abbot in Devon in 1979-80. We also built the Mercedes Autobahn and the VW Autostrada. The Palomino was a real eye-catcher when it was launched as no other VW bay at that time had such a grand high-top or luxurious interior.
The first of the original Bariban Palominos, based on the 2-litre Type 2’s, were produced in 1979. They were designed by Tony Dilnott . I remember being shown the prototype when I went for my interview in 1978 and production started soon after. The Palomino name came from the managing director who had an interest in all things equine. We only converted new bodies, produced in RH and a few LH drive and the only colour Bariban produced was white. The fibreglass roof was made to match that colour. The originals had ‘stylish’ stick on decal strips (go-faster stripes), but they were a bit guady and I doubt if many survived. The production run was quite short because VW stopped producing Type 2s in 1979. However, the design was adapted for the new VW T25. The prototype for this model, whose roof was a cut-down of the earlier version, ran into problems when VW refused to guarantee the body of the van if it rolled, because for our design we had to cut out the large central roof bar. These had to be left in place in all future models, covered by carpet and used to support the upper bunks. If you own an original T25 palomino without a roof spar, then it could well be the prototype.
Before production of the T25 really got off the ground, Bariban went bust. Some months later, all the models, roof moulds and stock were bought at auction by a shady (dodgy) but likeable ‘geezer‘ from London who re-opened the works in May 1980 on a much reduced scale and called it Heritage Motorhomes. I was one of the first to be re-employed there and I remember preparing three vans, one of each model, as demonstrators which were photographed for the glossy brochures. I still have mine in the attic somewhere (I think). We ticked over for another 14 months producing a few T25s and a few Type 2s, usually for customers who brought their own second hand vans but rarely on new bodies. Gradually, bills became unpaid and the bespoke suppliers who made the roofs, water tanks, metalwork, bunks etc stopped supplying us and the Newton Abbot factory closed in July 1981. The moulds for both types of Palomino roofs were moved to London where I believe roof conversions continued. I’d be interested to know what happened after that. I’m not sure if full conversions of interiors to the original spec also continued, but many of the components were fabricated in Newton Abbot so they would have had to replicate them somehow. Also, the furniture, faced with Afromosia veneer was hand-built and fitted by us at Newton Abbot so the new builders would have had to re-learn that too. For some reason the later Heritage conversions don’t have the black steel luggage racks on the front as on the the originals. The angle in the roof was especially designed to accommodate the rack and they look odd without it – perhaps they broke off or have been removed. If you own an all white Palomino on a 1979 (T or V) plate, then it’s likely to be one of the original Bariban production run. If the original body is any other colour, then it’s a Heritage conversion. I notice one or two examples in your gallery have no roof slit windows and these are definite roof only conversions, done after the Newton Abbot factory closed. The original roofs were seated onto the body with flanged rubber.
I hope this is of interest. Let me know if there’s anything else you need to know and I’ll try and remember. Its good to see a few the old buses that worked on are still on the road and appreciated by you guys.
Phil Newman (still of newton Abbot)
Thanks Phil - That's really fascinating. I've copied your comment as a complete post.
The rubber gas pipes leading to the fridge, cooker, etc, will decay over time, so if you're planning on using them, make sure you get them checked regularly!
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