It’s a lot easier to say “Fridolin” than Kleinlieferwagen, which was the official name for Germany’s first purpose-built postal delivery vehicle. Designed by Volkswagen and unveiled in 1965, it supplanted the sea of yellow VW Bugs that the Deutsche Bundespost had been using – a flock that was in itself a more unified approach than the motley crew of electric buggies it employed in the 1920s. Besides, “Fridolin” suits the pug-nosed, awkward but adorable van that Russell Glantz found for us here on eBay. A single bid has been recorded, for a mere $1, reserve not met. Estimates suggest that only about 200 of these little critters have survived out of 7340 produced; perhaps rarity and a notable sale of a modified Fridolin (see below) have informed the selling dealer’s asking price of $80k.
The Fridolin was a welcome addition to the postman’s job. Sliding doors on each side and its low-slung chassis facilitated ingress and egress. The floorpan was mostly flat, thanks to the rear-mounted engine. Plenty of glass and an engine meant for slow city driving made it easier to avoid ball-chasing children darting into narrow streets.
Volkswagen tapped its already-existing models for parts to build the Fridolin. The factory-supplied engine and gearbox were borrowed from the Beetle: a 1200 cc air-cooled flat-four, good for about 34 hp, along with a four-speed manual transaxle. The chassis came from the Karmann Ghia, and the nose is Type 3. The rear body panels were altered from Transporter parts. According to the dealer’s website, this Fridolin now motors with a 1500 cc engine.
Not only does the van have two front seats, but it also provides an abbreviated bench in the rear for passengers or packages. Though the photos show a decent interior coupled with bright, shiny paint, this vehicle deserves a personal inspection given the asking price. I suspect a restoration has been performed, but unfortunately, the seller’s ad tells us almost nothing.
Aside from plying Germany’s roads, the Fridolin also found duty with the Swiss postal service in slightly altered form, and as caddies across airport runway aprons. Comparable sales are rare, but as noted above, this modified ’72 sold for over $74k about two years ago. I shouldn’t be surprised, given the prices for vintage Type 2 vans. What would you pay for this unusual VW?
This is really cool, and I hope the author holds no grudge agin me for the last VW post. Some said, best not to bring that up, but we can’t forget either. In fact, this may shock and amaze you, dads long gone now, and I think I’m finally going to buy a vintage Bug, there are so many coming up. Maybe even trade the Jeep for one,,,that’s right, Mr. Jeep bails for a VW. Why? Because I’ve always wanted one, and more importantly, in this age of mishigosh and auto parts extravaganza, I can’t think of a more simple car to thumb my nose at them.
This vehicle, in true postal form, is all over the place. May I remind you what delivered our mail over the years. It’s clearly a hodge podge of what was left over. The motor looks like a 1500, but the fan shroud looks like a 36 HP. The 1200 was a 36hp to ’61 and 40hp, ’61-’65, I believe the 1300 was 44hp, and the 1500 here, was almost 50hp. Still horribly anemic for a box on the highway, but for it’s intended use, it worked. I doubt a DJ did much better. Apparently as much interest as bug spray in Feb.,,,in Wis. but I never saw one, so worth it right there. Great post.
Wunderbar! But that’s arguably a LOT of Deutschmarks for prolly the best example on the planet.