One of the fun things about Monterey Car Week – and yes, I’m still working through content from that – is that so many of the interesting cars aren’t even in the show itself, but are just prowling around town, and you encounter them on the sides of streets and in parking lots. That was the case with the car I want to show you today, which I spotted around town a few times, and then in a parking lot. This one is an exciting find because it’s a version of one of the most famous sleepers in The Driver’s Republic of Automotivistan. From the outside, it looks like a Volkswagen T3, which we knew as the Vanagon here in America, but underneath it’s all Porsche.
I bet most of you, or at least many of you, know about this car, at least in a general sense. The car I saw is based on one of the rarest Porsches ever made, and Porsche’s only minivan that technically anyone could buy. Well, anyone with a crapload of money and a certain healthy perversion when it comes to cars, at least.
The car I’m talking about is the Porsche B32, which was, essentially, a Volkswagen T3 Transporter with the 3.2-liter air-cooled flat-six from a Porsche 911 Carrera, along with a Porsche AWD system, Porsche suspension, brakes, the whole works. It even had a Porsche VIN so this thing was technically sold as a Porsche, even though it seems only around seven were actually made and sold.
These were first built in the 1980s as a way to have VW bus support vehicles for racing that weren’t so damn slow. The usual story is that these were built to support Porsche 959s in the Paris-Dakar rally, though I’ve also heard that there would have been other, more specialized trucks for that. Still, this does seem to have been the genesis for these wonderfully odd machines.
Because so few were actually built back in the day, and because humans are wonderfully irrational beings, there are now some companies making spiritual re-creations of these bonkers vans, and that’s what I saw in that parking lot. This one seems to be a Claer CT3:
The Claer CT3 essentially uses the same formula as those old B32s, but now a Porsche 996 3.6-liter flat-six making over 500 horsepower, mated to a Porsche six-speed manual, and with Porsche brakes, suspension, everything. It’s not technically a Porsche B32, but it’s essentially the same thing, just updated and I suppose less “official.” But who cares?
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These seem to be incredibly well-made and thought out, looking like something that came from the factory as opposed to a tuner shop.
The only hints that you’re looking at something other than a very well-sorted Vanagon are these little vents at the rear, and, I suppose, this badge on the front upper grille:
I wonder what this thing is like to drive at speed? The sounds and feels and probably smells of a 993, but you’re sitting at the height of what would roughly be the 993’s roof, the front wheel is under your butt, and there’s no hood in front of you. I bet it’s pretty surreal. And fantastic.
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Plus, it allows you to share that 911 experience with, what, six or so friends? These are amazing. Rare and expensive, sure, but there’s something cooler about a Porsche minivan than another 911, I think.
I don’t think there are many Claer CT3s running around out there, so this was a pretty exciting thing to see in the wild.
It’s got a
. . . fix the cigarette lighter!
I’ve driven a Vanagon with a Porsche six in it. Buddy of mine built one years ago with an early ’80s 911 motor, after he totaled his insured for liability-only 911 (oops). Just as frightening as you would expect, even with only 180hp or so at best, given it was otherwise pretty much bone stock right down to the skinny tires and tall suspension.
The brakes of the Vanagon were insufficient for the stock Vanagon. Can’t imagine what they’d be like with that big mill under the deck.
Meh, the brakes were fine. I’ve driven a few Vanagons, never found the the brakes anything to complain about. Not like we were tracking the thing. Even with a 180hp, a Vanagon is has a rather worse power-to-weight ratio than a 4 cyl Camry. But it definitely could have stood to be lowered and stiffened up a bit.
You probably don’t drive backcountry mountain and canyon roads much. I used to take my Vanagon fully loaded to places like the bottom of Hell’s canyon (Pittsburgh Landing, ID) with a full load of six people and camping gear. Not a fun road to experience brake fade on. I lost the rear bumper using it to “scrape off” speed by intentionally clipping dirt embankments.
Another particularly fun road is from Hat Point, OR, to Imnaha, OR. About 5,500′ vert with grades over 20% in places–and a one-lane dirt road with no guard rails, just thousand-foot drop-offs.
The front brakes are undersized, but the rear brakes are purely jokes. Tiny little drums…. It doesn’t help that the 2100CC engine is not much for compression braking a fully loaded Vanagon at all.
I went to school in the Western Maine mountains. Which aren’t the Rockies, but they aren’t flat either. One of the motorpool vehicles was a Vanagon, and it was the preferred steed of the bicycle\skiing club. It was perfectly fine when not driving like an idiot (and I sometimes drove it like an idiot). Don’t drive like an idiot. If the grade is that steep, slow the hell down before you go down the hill. As I learned later when driving coaches – go down the hill at the same speed you went up it.
Did I mention that the 2100CC engine on a 6,000lb GVW vehicle does essentially, shit for braking? You have to ride the brakes to keep from over-revving and blowing the engine.
Taking lots of breaks is the answer–or buying better brakes.
The last road I mentioned above now has turn-outs labeled “Brake Rest Stop” at every steep grade. I use every one.
You could move. <shrug>
Because flat country is fun? It’s called “fly-over” for a reason.
Then deal with where you live and STFU about it. <shrug>
FFS! I just wanted to point out that the Vanagon has crap brakes–something I thought was pretty universally known, hence the number of after-market brakes made for it.
But, no, instead, I just need to move to Iowa to solve the problem. Or kill myself for having, like, views based in reality.
We will have to agree to disagree on this. I think they are entirely adequate to the task, at least when properly maintained and driven correctly. It’s not like they don’t have some rather serious mountains in Europe. Of course, they tend to be rather better drivers than Americans.
I’ve got a Vanagon Westfalia with a Subaru engine (a high compression, high torque EJ25 Frankenmotor), Subaru six-speed transmission and a set of big Wilwood brakes up front. It’ll cruise at 90 comfortably. I don’t know the actual power number because I’ve never dynoed it, but the low compression stock version of the engine is 165hp. It’s not a fast car, but it’s not far off a 20 year old Outback and does okay in traffic.
I’d love to launch this one hard at least once to feel how much vertical lift you get out of the driver’s seat when the vehicle squats. And that would probably be enough.
You are my hero. I have a stock 86 Westy with at least 1 cyl with low compression. 3 teenage kids and living on a broken down farm so no time for any improvements at this point. I sent my son this article and he replied “ that will never happen”. ha!
It’s all about money or time. It took me years to get that transmission together, and I think the engine was a two year build. Sounds like your teenage kids need a project 🙂
Keep an eye out for my soon to launch Kickstarter: ID Buzz with a Taycan drivetrain, and most importantly, Taycan instrument cluster and controls. Target price: $750K, negotiable based on options, premium paint and suitable organ donation (from the buyer).
This thing is so cool! I love the little details. Like the headlight washer jets.
I imagine Porsche isn’t really happy to have one of their badges on the front of something they didn’t build. But I have seen Porsche badges on far lesser vehicles.
This actually looks better than a real B32. Maybe it’s the paint color.
The headlamp washers were mandatory for all cars in the nordic areas of europe.
I think this looks better than the B32s as its a later model with the rectangular lights.
Oh to daily something like this, or even weekend it. Just to drive something like this and get next to any fool at a stoplight.
I owned a 91 vanagon. I can’t imagine it going over 75mph lol.
At about 90 MPH the front end of my ’80 Vanagon started to lift, so I backed it off. No, it wasn’t under all it’s own power. I knew of a relatively steep road with a long flat run out area, so went for it.
I see a machine destined to deleggify a person. Possibly delifeify as well. Nothing but sheet metal and a radiator between your legs and a Porsche powered high speed collision.
Side note, I followed a YouTuber a while back who was putting flat four boxer Subaru engines exported from Japan into these. Busaru I think is what he called it.
My sister owned a diesel Westy… briefly. She took me on a short trip to our hometown’s grocery store in it. I’ve never felt so unsafe in a vehicle. The low (verrrry low) double-digit horsepower of that aging oil-burner made ordinary train-track crossings suddenly exciting, and the general tinny quality and scant thickness of the doors reminded me of our grandpa’s Piper Cub: You could probably punch your way out of it, and you might have to.
This puts Glamping in a whole new context.
Imagine the size of the boat you could pull with one of these babies?
The motor is willing, but the sheet metal is (spongy and bruised) frail and thin.
And then I wondered if a modern minivan like a Pacifica is actually faster than one of these?
Obviously a modern van is NOWHERE nearly as cool, but still the question arose. It may not even be a good question, but the answers at least eased my lust for one of these a little bit. If you want performance out of a minivan, pretty much any new model is going to blow the doors off one of these unicorns on virtually every stat (except indeed coolness).
I hate truck nuts with a passion… but for some reason, I feel like they’d be right at home hanging behind a Porsche minivan.
I tend to imagine Porsches as the mechanical equivalent to those mercenary eunuchs from Game of Thrones.
I’ve never seen Game of Thrones, so I know not about which you speak. The show has never aired on my home planet.
Pretty dang wild that those Vanagons, however few they may be, were legitimately *factory* and not just custom aftermarket conversions.
Remembering how in the 90s and very early 00s it was rather a trend, especially in Europe, to install actual Porsche engines (not the engines that people liked to claim were Porsche, mind you, i.e., the Type 4 engine) in splitscreen and baywindow buses but this was before the explosion in values for anything Porsche-related.
Since then it doesn’t seem to be such a thing any more to install Porsche engines in T2s & T3s, especially since people have gained more experience with Subaru conversions where one can get similar power for less money (though some people do put stock in bragging rights…)
There are vintage (!!) videos on YouTube of Porsche-engined Vanagons on the Nürburgring and there was a video that went viral on pre-Musk Twitter from some automotive influencer being soundly beaten in his supercar by a Porsche-engined Vanagon in a traffic-light race (but I ain’t going back into that cesspool to find the video; besides, who knows what’s left of any archived stuff over there…)
Whaddya know, this was posted just later today: https://www.theautopian.com/a-crashed-four-cylinder-912-is-now-35000-worth-of-air-cooled-porsche/
Yeah, the aforementioned explosion in Porsche values is now in H-bomb territory…
When I win the PowerBall lottery…
In my youth I knew a guy who inherited a very profitable business and used the proceeds to start a racing team. They raced Porsche 935s, and he put one of the spare engines into a VW van of the era (late 80s, early 90s – can’t quite remember). It was bonkers and absolutely terrifying to ride in. Eventually he put the original engine back in as the Porsche engine would twist the frame under hard acceleration, but not before he made a lot of guys in muscle cars feel inadequate.
I win the Powerball I’ll be a ghost. Off the radar, living life where and how I want to. No servants, no mansion.
And no way for relatives to find you…
It’s fun watching videos of these harassing sports cars on the Nurburgring.
Wow. I never knew those existed. German sites say between 10 and 18 were made. A few years ago an orginal one was offered for 365,000 Euros – no idea if it sold.
They should’ve called this the Vanagone.
It was RIGHT. THERE.
Imagine being on the highway, knowing what to expect from a Vanagon, and having this thing pass you at Autobahn speed.
I can recall being in an ’84 Vanagon with 7-8 people, a full cooler and a bunch of camping gear yet that van had no problem getting over highway 17 from San Jose to Santa Cruz at what I can only presume were extra legal speeds. It was a Wolfsburg edition so it might have had a *little* more power than a regular van but certainly not Porsche power.
I used to make the same trip in the mid 80’s, but in a ’72 VW bus. We had a problem getting over the summit. Man, was that thing slow.
A buddy of mine lived in SC with family in SJ so he made that trip a lot too. He had a ’79 bus with one of those massive fiberglass camper tops making it even slower despite a slightly more powerful engine.
Our problem is we left Fremont and had to get across the valley before we started the climb. Mid August heat, slow moving, and the fumes in that terrarium was just brutal. Man, do I miss the 80’s.
The lack of A/C certainly made summers more memorable.
115 MPH Top speed.
Yeah, I’m going to have to add this to my completly irrational list of “I really don’t need anything like this, but I really want to have one”, alongside a Karmann Ghia with Porsche running gear.
Holy crap that’s cool – Make mine a Westfalia!
I would imagine at triple digit speeds, there would be a real danger of the rooftop tent coming open. If it didn’t just rip right off, it could very well flip the whole thing backwards!
Ha! You’d need to put hood pins in the top!
Active aero!
I wonder what the record time to lap the Nordschleife without the plates falling out of the cupboards is.