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The story of Mimi, our VW vintage ice cream van, as far as we know it.
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This particular VW 'Splittie' vintage ice cream van built in 1964 is one of an estimated five left in the world today and as far as we know she's the only one existing in the UK right now.
Volkswagen produced many variants of the kombi, camper, bus or splittie and they hold an enduring and special place in our hearts today.
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Our VW vintage ice cream van is a rare breed; in the 1960's VW produced a limited number of these high-top vans for vendors to sell products from - the hatch is an original factory conversion.
There are other VW ice cream vans out there but none as original and historic as this! |
We don't know much about her life but we do know she was an ice cream van in Germany in the 60's. At some point, she became a camper before being sourced by 'Fast' Freddie who bought her to the UK- luckily for us - she nearly ended up in a Museum.
The Van Restoration
After we bought her, the long process of restoration began. The van was delivered to 'Rocket' Ron at VW Endangered Species.
If you want a man to restore/rebuild and care about your VW camper - this is the man for the job - we cannot recommend him enough.
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Mimi took seven months of hard work to restore to show condition. Then she was re-sprayed in an original VW colour 'Sea Green'. She now looks as good as the day she left the factory.
We have to thank Ronny for his on-going devotion to the project and for becoming a great friend in the process.
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Finishing Touches to the Van
Mimi's logo, was designed by our good friend Sam at Sam Charrington Design and then painted by hand in the traditional manner by Mandy and Neil from Prosign.
But that wasn't it. She then had to have a bespoke built ice cream interior fitted and Will at Evo Composites took the tricky task on and he put as much love and respect into this historic vehicle as everyone else involved.
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Our Ice Cream
