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NEWS
Vintage glow at Sandown
Small but eye-catching display of vintage vans brightens up this year’s LeisurefestThere was a touch of nostalgia at this year’s Melbourne Leisurefest, with a small but eye-catching display of vintage vans proudly displayed by their passionate owners, taking centre stage at the Sandown Racecourse venue.
One of those passionate owners was Doug Barrett, who owns three vintage vans and brought along two for display at Leisurefest: a 1940s Sportsman teardrop camper towed by a 1965 Toyota Crown, and a rare 1965 Expandavan towed by a 1958 FC Holden.
According to Barrett, the Sportsman campers were built around the time of WWII in the Melbourne suburb of Mentone, and his example was originally painted bright yellow and used as a promotional billboard outside a car dealership. He says the cosy campers were also popular at the time as rental vehicles for honeymooning couples.
Barrett found his Sportsman camper at a caravan dealership about 15 years ago, and spent two years restoring it back to plywood perfection.
Barrett’s Victorian-built Expandavan is also largely made from timber, but he says later versions were built using aluminium and fibreglass. While few of the 10ft 6in Expandavans were made, his example is believed to be particularly rare, as one of five with an additional rear fold-out section, to go with the two side fold-outs.
He discovered it in someone’s backyard about nine years ago, and says he’s only had to repaint the exterior, with the cottage-like interior completely original. Despite its seeming complexity, he reckons it takes just four minutes to set up, and uses it regularly for holidays.
Also making a colourful statement was a South African-built 1967 Jurgens caravan with matching green 1962 EJ Holden station wagon. Owner Jeff Thomas restored the compact, two-berth van over a period of 12 months, after it had sat in a paddock in Orbost, Victoria for many years.
The work included restoring the original bench tops and table top, with the South African map added for effect, while the original fridge was replaced and the van rewired to run off a 12V battery.
The chassis was also repaired including removing rust, and the axle, brakes, A-frame and toolbox are all new. Thomas approached the Australian arm of Jurgens early in the restoration for assistance, and later took the finished van to Jurgens Australia head office, where he was presented with an official shirt with his name on it.
Also included in the classic mix at Sandown was a retro coffee van serving cappuccinos to the punters, parked next to a pastel pink 1960s Sunliner van that's the calling card of Vintage Caravan Magazine publisher Lisa Mora.
Also flying the retro flag was the 1988 Evernew van rebuilt by Victorian students, and raffled at the show for charity.
The vintage display at Sandown continues a trend for industry shows to promote the vintage van movement, following recent
prominent displays in South Australia and growing public interest in classic caravans.
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Written byChris Fincham
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Please see our Editorial Guidelines & Code of Ethics (including for more information about sponsored content and paid events). The information published on this website is of a general nature only and doesn’t consider your particular circumstances or needs.
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