The bespoke Halftrack VW Bus has undergone a thorough restoration at the mercy of the Volkswagen Commercial Vehicle division in a final product that remains true to its original.
Despite the folks at Volkswagen Commercial getting their hands on this creation again, it didn’t start its life out this way. The Volkswagen Type 2 T1 bus which is shown here, exited the Hanover plant over sixty years ago to a purchaser in Austria with all four wheels affixed. This wasn’t the case for very long until Kurt Kretzner, a mechanic from Vienna, modified it into what is more or less seen here; an all-terrain halftrack VW Bus capable of just about any terrain.
The project took Kretzner four years to design, refine and build and it became known as the Half-Track Fox – possibly because of its matte orange hue. Four axles sit beneath the bodywork, with the two at the front coupled to 14-inch tyres which give the vehicle its steering ability. The dual axle behind powers the vehicle with a chain driven mechanism turning 13-inch tyres connected to tracks.
Each tyre was equipped with a brake and a limited-slip differential was used to help distribute power most effectively. Despite only having 25 kW from its 1,2-litre motor and a top speed of 35 km/h, the model was intended to be a perfect companion for those living in treacherous terrain with Kretzner stating it is “An ideal helper for everyone: mountain hut keepers, hunters, foresters, doctors, maintenance engineers for ski-lifts, TV and radio masts, pipelines and the like,”
Despite this versatility and utility, it did not become a commercial hit or optional modification from Volkswagen. There is only one known model left although rumours state that Kretzner had built a second after he stated he “couldn’t find the vehicle I was dreaming of. So, I decided to build it myself.”
The halftrack VW bus was acquired by Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles in 2018 and a restoration process began thereafter repainting the exterior in the same colour from before. Designers were granted a bit more freedom for the interior which employs beech and pine woods to corroborate its forested inception.