Vauxhall Velox "Dormobile" camper, by Martin Walter.
Vauxhall Veloxes, Wyverns and Crestas have long appeared on OCC, with this page: link in particular featuring a good selection of period photographs of standard, factory, saloon cars. It took seventeen years of the site running though for the following period snapshots to turn up, of a variant I'd never encountered before (not having been around in the 1950s myself) - the Vauxhall Velox Dormobile camper, produced by Martin Walter Ltd of Folkestone, a company well-known for its conversions of standard cars and vans, in particular campers. This isn't the first time though that a Martin Walter-modified Vauxhall has appeared on the site, for a few years back I received a photo from Henry Pirie, taken in 1972, of a hearse built by the company, using a Vauxhall Viva (HC series) of all things as the basis. That particular colour photo may be found on the Viva Dormobile page. But I digress, so back to the late 1950s and this unusual converted Vauxhall ...
|
|
The following two photos date to an earlier time, the 1950s, and I must thank Daniel for sending them both over. He found them by chance in a batch of old photos, and agreed to them being shared on OCC (he also sent over two fascinating photos of a Ford Model AA camper that quite likely belonged to the same gent, and another based on a Vauxhall 23/60).
|
|
While the photos are of relatively low quality, the vehicle is such a rarity that they deserve inclusion here. An article in "The Motor" from 1957 discusses this practical conversion of a Velox saloon. Interestingly, if you owned a 1952-onwards Velox, Wyvern or Cresta, you could have the conversion undertaken on your own car by Martin Walter. Principally, the conversion consisted of the upper rear body being replaced by an estate car replacement, with a large single lift-up rear tailgate. This enabled a rear bed to be accommodated within the rear of the Vauxhall. A bespoke frame tent construction could then be joined to the rear of the car, as is shown below, combining the interior of the car with that of the tent.
|
|
Just as an estate, the conversion made a great deal of sense, and with the added bonus of being usable as a camper, the benefits continued to pile up. I wonder how many were built, and if any survive?
|
|
Both photographs were taken in 1958, the first at John O' Groats and the second somewhere north of the border, around Stirling.
|
| (Please click the thumbnails to view the full-size images.) |
|
|
|
|
|
Thanks again for sending these over!
|
|
Return to Page 20 in the motoring photographs archive, or visit the main index here.
|
