Earliest Danbury bay?

[Bin jamming]

After reading the history bit (quoted below) of the forum i found it interesting to see the Danbury bay listed as not in production until 69, however i owned a 68 Danbury bay.
So does this mean i had the earliest Danbury bay?
I'll check up on the build month and post it up, if anyone else has a 68 Danbury, post up the date of it and lets see.

*quote*
Danbury Motor Caravans

1964- Danbury start converting campers based just outside of Chelmsford in Essex and called it 'The Multicar'

1969- The Bay window meant a redesign which wasn't ready until 1969 and was called 'The Danbury'.

Conversions were based on microbuses or kombi's. Optional extras included a bunk over the front seats and a pop top which became available from 1971, usually easy to spot by the thin red and white horizontal stripes.
There were 4 two tone colour options available on the microbuses and 3 single colours on the kombi's.
The 2 buddy seats slide on rails so you can have forward facing seats for traveling and inside one you will find a high pressure gas cooker/grill. There is also a top box at the rear and a hanging rail/wardrobe opposite the spare wheel. Another option was to have the spare mounted on the front. Also inside is a drawer and sink unit which is movable and plenty of storage under the rear bench.
The bed is made using the table and extra pieces of wood between the buddy seats and rear bench meaning another space for children to sleep over the engine. The rear luggage area was also insulated and carpeted to reduce internal noise.

1977- The Danbury Deluxe was released.

2002- Beetles UK started converting Brazilian Bays into Campers but are not the original Danbury Company, having just bought the name.

Danbury was VW approved in the late 60's but in 1972 Devon got an exclusive contract and it wasn't until 1977 that VW would approve other conversions including Danbury again.
The Original Danbury company closed down at some point in the late 80's.
*quote*

 

[Bin jamming]

PS here it is in this thread http://forum.earlybay.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=9

 

[Bin jamming]

Yep first registered 11/ 12/ 1968 8)

 

[dp]

Yep first registered 11/ 12/ 1968 8)

69 model year - perhaps that's the answer.

Of course until proven otherwise, you've got the earliest 8)

 

[halfpint_fighter]

I reckon Danbury did not sell any 68's until 69 because they were designing and fitting them up. They did however have a 1968 brochure.

'The Danbury, Motor caravan on the new 1968 Volkswagen'
with a catchy tag line of 'Takes the biscuit'

 

[Bin jamming]

Ah, that is interesting, so i might be double famous :mrgreen:

 

[Danbury Doug]

I'm trying to remember the earliest reg plates I've seen Danburys with. 'G' I think.

A little fact, the very early 'early bay' Danburys had their Danbury badges on the engine lid istelf, on the lip above the number plate which houses the number plate light (as per the splitty Danburys), before being moved to the panel between the rear hatch and the engine lid. So if you have an early Danbury with the little badge on the engine lid itself, leave that badge there!

Doug

 

[Snakey]

May be a dumb question..but how do you know if you have a
genuine Danbury?
My bus was built in Feb '68 and it came with a Danbury interior.
But the badge is on the panel above the engine lid!

I'm guessing it rolled out as a microbus and somebody must
have retrofitted the interior at a much later date..

 

[Bin jamming]

Usually if you have the badge and the interior you expect it to be an original fit.
The Danbury interior in mine was in pretty good condition as was the rest of the bus being a low mileage example that had sat in a garage for over 10 years doing nothing.

I even had the complete tin first aid box with all of the bandages and ointments inside.
The fold down foot rests on the two buddy seats didn't even have any dirt in the groves of the rubber :shock:

Unfortunately the previous owner had fitted some rubbish covers to the seats, which is why i had to re do them.

Here's some pics of it

 

[Bin jamming]

You can see the first aid box in the last picture bottom right 8)

 

[Danbury Doug]

Bin Jamming, very nice and original indeed. 8)

Do you still have that bus? I remember seeing pics of it before, when it was up for sale I seem to remember.

I've just noticed you are from sunny Southampton! I'm just across the other side in the Waterside area.
There used to be another original early Danbury tin-top like yours, which I used to drool over, in the Rushington area.

Here is the interior of mine......

Snakey, like Bin Jamming says, you'd usually expect it to be an original fit when you see a bus with its original interior and badge. I've seen buses with 'retro-fitted' Danbury interiors, which usually amounts to just the seat units and possibly the top locker, but they've always lacked things like the Danbury badge, and other original items.

Doug

 

[Danbury Doug]

Bin Jamming, very nice and original indeed. 8)

Do you still have that bus? I remember seeing pics of it before, when it was up for sale I seem to remember.

Doug

Ah, just noticed your website, and realized that is where I saw the bus for sale!

 

[neil]

i got the first aid tin too. i did have two as i found one on ebay but it has vanished out of my garage.

 

[Bin jamming]

Doug very nice, very nice indeed, it looks as though the most common thing to go missing from Danbury's is the interior light diffuser, mine was brittle and fell off snapping into bits.

Oh and yes i used to frequent the rushington area quite a lot back in 2004 ish could it have been my bus you saw? sadly i don't own it any more.

Did you know about the local meet, based around the southampton area? we've got a thread going on VZI called "Southern Dub People II" would be good to see your bus in the flesh 8)

Neil, that's a real shame about the second first aid box going missing, it's things like that, that really add to the originality of a bus, you sure it's not lurking somewhere under something

 

[Danbury Doug]

Cheers BJ!

Yes, intact interior light covers are very rare indeed! Mine is still in the van... in pieces under the back seat. :roll:
The one in my folks' Danbury, which they had new, I seem to remember broke when the bus was only a few years old.

I reckon it must have been your bus I saw, as it was about that period I used to see one about. 8)

I'll check out the 'Southern Dub People' thread. It'd be good to meet up.

 

[Bin jammin]

Great stuff, it would be good to meet up, and the more people we get to come along the better chance we have of keeping the momentum going for a regular cruise/meet locally.

Not to mention we can get all anorakish over the Danbury's :lol:

Funny enough i'm restoring a 71 Danbury at the mo, the one which a lady on here was searching for, and i have another 71 Danbury to restore straight after that.
I also had my first camper experiences in a 72 Danbury way back when.

Then i got the 68 Danbury, so it's been a bit of a theme with me really :lol:

 

[Danbury Doug]

Your life does indeed seem to have had quite a Danbury theme!

Did you see my thread in the Gallery last month, covering my bus and my Danbury history? If not, here is the link to it.....

http://forum.earlybay.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=6463

 

[Bin jammin]

Just checked it out, nice bus and story, it's great piecing together the history, i guess there are quite a few of us that had childhood Bus experience's that has brought us back to them later in life.

Also the smell of an old dub never goes away does it, i remember when i was about 8 years old (1978) our babysitter had a jeans beetle that she used to take us out in and it brings back memories every time i get a waft of an old dub interior.