This 1962 Volkswagen Bus Hides a 523HP Porsche Engine

BOLD RIDE

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Posted by Nicole Wakelin

  

This 1962 Volkswagen Bus was once a rusted hunk of metal. Until Swiss coachbuilder Fred Bernhard got his hands on the thing and spent six years turning it into a whole new vehicle. Instead of the engine it was born with, this Volkswagen has an engine straight out of a Porsche 993.

An air-cooled 6-cylinder with 523 horsepower and 558 lb-ft of torque turned the bus into the Volkswagen Bus T1 Race Taxi. It has two turbochargers and is paired to a 6-speed manual gearbox. The bus also gets steering and brakes from the Porsche 993. It all rides on three-piece BBS racing wheels with 285/30/18 tires.

The body includes lots of carbon fiber so the overall weight is much lower than what you’d find in the usual VW bus. It comes in at only 3,307 pounds. This gives it a power to weight ration similar to what you’ll find in sports cars…but this thing is a bus.




Bernhard wanted to build something special, and saw it as a professional challenge to push the limits of what was possible. His creation will make its debut at the Wörthersee GTI Meeting this week.

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