Point of interest
Volkswagen Type 3 Variant
An estate car with a low engine beneath the floor.
Content language
Variant denoted a practical estate car in the Volkswagen family. The Type 3 Variant from Pępowo’s collection was among the vehicles the museum exhibited in Puck in 2016. The model’s history goes back to the early 1960s, when Volkswagen was expanding its range beyond the Beetle.
The Type 3 family was presented in 1961. The Variant arrived in the winter of 1962. Its extended rear body created luggage space, with a shape different from that of Volkswagen’s older, rounded passenger car.
The engine remained at the rear, but was designed as a low unit beneath the floor. A fan mounted at the crankshaft helped reduce the overall height. The space above the machinery could therefore be used for carrying luggage.
The Variant offered up to 1,200 litres of load space. Versions were available with payloads of 375 or 460 kilograms. In some years, the estate was the most-produced member of the Type 3 family. Its low underfloor engine retained the rear powertrain layout while allowing the car to carry more luggage.
For children
Variant is Volkswagen’s name for an estate car, with more luggage space at the back. The museum’s Type 3 Variant took part in a display of the collection in Puck in 2016. The estate version itself appeared much earlier, in 1962.
This car has an interesting feature: the engine is at the rear, but is low enough to fit beneath the floor. There is room for luggage above it. A different arrangement of the engine’s fan helped make this possible. The designers did not have to move the engine to the front to create a practical car for carrying more belongings.
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