VW Camper Magazine December 2015 Back Issue

HI-TOP PANEL VAN THE NEXT BIG THING
Why these once unloved oddities are suddenly all the rage. If, twenty years ago, you had said Hi-Tops would become cool, no one, really no one, would have taken you seriously. People would have exchanged glances, shaken their heads and probably called the nut house, nothing more. Two decades later, though, it’s quite a different story, and these rarities have a devoted following all of their own. But while all Type 2s have been caught up in the popularity contest, hardly anyone dares take on the full restoration of one of the tallest Buses of all, because a lot more work and expense lies waiting for the owner, at least compared with a regular Split Screen Bus. More rust, more sheet metal and more paint! Nils Bustorf (yes, that’s his real name) was undeterred by these facts. “I’m a trained commercial vehicle mechanic and have always had a soft spot for anything that spent its life as a workhorse. Single Cabs, Crew Cabs or
Panel Vans. I guess I don’t like cleaning windows,” says the 40-year-old German with a grin. “The Bus first crossed my path by accident eight years ago. Frank Rapier, a good friend of mine, called me and asked if I would be interested in a ’67 Hi-Top. I went to check it out, just out of interest really, and ended up buying it.“