VW BEETLES & CAMPERVANS (WAS $39.99)

In this beautifully illustrated book, author Russell Hayes looks back at production, design changes, motor sport exploits, custom scenes and after markets and pop-culture connections and illustrates the book with period and studio imagery as well as related memorabilia. Who can forget Herbie or The Love Bug? A family favourite, the first image in this big beautiful book is of Ferry Porsche, son of Beetle creator Ferdinand, at the wheel of the V2 prototype, the single convertible, in 1935. Volkswagen came under British control in June 1945, a month after the town was named Wolfsburg – the sign in one image points to the English office and its factory management, and the buildings were still very much in use in 2020. After more than seven decades, 40 million VW vehicles have been sold. While a diminutive rear-engine Beetle was becoming the world’s most popular car thanks to its friendly design, wildly clever ad campaign, and sheer numbers produced, the VW Bus’s affordability and practical design were winning millions of fans. Here are examples of vans with sliding doors and rising roofs and stills from The Love Bug performing tricks like skimming water which took three weeks to film. Herbie was still going strong in 2004 when a themed hotel was opened in Orlando, Florida. And of course there is the hippy era when the Bus became synonymous with a generation. An unashamedly nostalgic look over 176 pages, 22 x 26cm, fully illus. in colour.