The Volkswagen T1 Microbus, or Kombi, or Transporter is the ubiquitous peace-mobile, synonymous with reefer smoke and torpid hippies. However, that slightly indolent image of the T1 has been shown the door with this insanely cool and rapid T1 Race Taxi, put together by Swiss coach-builder Fred Bernhard.
Displayed at the ongoing Wörthersee GTI Meeting in Austria, the T1 Race Taxi took Fred six long years to build. Power comes from an air-cooled, six-cylinder engine, plucked from Porsche 993 and muscled up with two turbochargers. Mated to a Porsche 996 GT3 sourced six-speed manual transmission, the new heart outputs 523 hp of power and 757 Nm of maximum twist – enough to blow any unsuspecting hippie into the weeds (!)
A carbon fibre rich construction ensures hefty weight savings, with the custom VW T1 tipping the scales at a sports car rivalling 1,500 kg, which renders it an impressive power to weight ratio of 3.8 kg/kW. Steering and brakes are also said to be sourced from a 993 Porsche, while the Race Taxi rolls on three-piece BBS racing wheels wrapped around by 285/30/18 rubber. And doesn’t she look absolutely gorgeous? Drool on:
