Thanks to the colossal, world-gripping network of wires, pipes and pneumatic tubes that we call the “internet,” the ancient and exquisite art of the automobile brochure is rapidly fading into oblivion. That’s why it’s so important that especially noteworthy examples are preserved, like this 1960 brochure for the Volkswagen Type 2 bus, which VW liked to call a ‘station wagon.’
So, let’s look at this clever little beast: it’s novel because there’s a larger backing to the brochure with the full bus, and then the cargo area of the bus is the multi-page area of the brochure, which is constructed in such a way as to reveal various interior uses of the bus. Here, look:
Hot damn, a whole mobile office! Why some guy at a desk would want or need this is baffling, but who gives a rat’s rectum when you have such a fantastic file cabinet and your secretary is a dead ringer for Christina Hendricks’ character, Joan, on Mad Men. Was this brochure some sort of style template?
It keeps going, this time with lots of plant life:
Is that a sculpture of a deer in there? Also, when unloading, leave that big white box on the bottom in the van—it has the engine in it.
Finally, we see the bus being used as a people hauler:
Based on the way the people are dressed, I’m guessing this is meant to show the Type 2's ability to haul around micro-United Nations delegations to places that needed, um, diplomacy.
The back cover is fun, too, showing the back of the mobile office, mobile-officing down the road, with their office-chauffeur:
If you want to kill you entire weekend, start looking at all the amazing old car brochures on this site. If you’re lucky, you’ll finally stop geeking out before Monday morning.