Vehicle to be offered for Auction sale June 2nd – 4th, 2017 at Russo and Steele’s 5th Annual Newport Beach, California Auction. Please contact us for more information. Soon after the end of World War II in Europe, enthusiasm quickly built among Allied occupation authorities and the local German people for the return of the former KdF-Wagen plant in Wolfsburg to production. Its only civilian product, the Dr. Ferdinand-Porsche-designed People’s Car was quickly renamed the Volkswagen Type 1 as the launch product of Volkswagenwerk AG. The extremely sound basic design of the Type 1 was a natural starting point for the development of supplementary models and as early as 1946, British Major Ivan Hirst had sketched a lift-truck derivative, initially intended for use within the Wolfsburg facility. Ben Pon, who introduced his native Holland to the curious little Volkswagen, made the first generally acknowledged rough sketches predicting the boxy Type 2 Transporter as early as 1947. Beginning with eight Transporters displayed by late 1949, the first-generation Transporter was built and sold in ever-growing numbers through 1967. By 1954, sales brochures listed no fewer than six Transporter models. Suited to a virtually endless list of roles, the Type 2 became a runaway success bested only by the Beetle. While imports to the USA started slowly, the Type 2, like the Beetle, became very popular and it soon carried an avant-garde and decidedly chic aura that naturally made it the symbolic motor vehicle of the rising flower power movement of the 1960s. While the Type 2 began as a utilitarian vehicle, the funky 23-Window Deluxe is the most coveted by collectors and enthusiasts alike today. This stunning 1962 Volkswagen 23-Window Microbus clearly benefits from a complete restoration performed less than two years ago. This iconic Microbus is ready to roll and has been based in Arizona for most of its lifetime and consequently has no rust issues. Virtually everything on the vehicle is new and it is reported by the Consignor to run and drive like a dream. Festive and fun, this 1962 Volkswagen 23-Window Deluxe Microbus will certainly provide a welcome escape from the daily grind and a refreshing break from the multitudes of other far more common classic vehicles available today.