With relationships between Porsche and Volkswagen fructifying in many ways over the years, even decades, this one was inevitable. Its basis was the third generation of the sainted van, sold worldwide under various nameplates including Transporter, Caravelle, Microbus, and Vanagon. Introduced in 1979 as the latest T3 VW, it was a completely redesigned and improved vehicle available in multiple configurations. The T3 followed in its forebear’s footsteps, becoming a legend for its versatility and reliability.
All this was the result of a sketch of a boxy vehicle on April 23rd, 1947 by VW’s Dutch importer Ben Pon. He laid out the essence of what became the Type 2, a totally practical vehicle for the benefit of small businesses everywhere. Late in 1948 this happy concept became reality with technical drawings, leading to a first prototype in 1949 and production from March 1950.
Among the many customers for this intelligent motor vehicle were Wilhelm Hild and Huschke von Hanstein, respectively chief engineer and manager of Porsche’s burgeoning motorsports campaign. Uprating their rolling stock, in 1955 they decided to create a vehicle that could not only carry spares and equipment but also tow a trailer-borne Spyder at an easy 70 mph on the Autobahn. They built a service van, a VW Kombi powered by a nearly-Super Porsche 1500 engine and fitted with stiff shock absorbers and Dunlop racing tires.
This was the origin of what became known as the “Renndienst” or “racing service” van, gradually refined and uprated. Others in the company adopted this formula. Up to the early 1980s, production-Porsche prototypes being tested in the wastes of Algeria were accompanied by a 914-engined VW Transporter to carry spares and mechanics. When this needed replacement in 1981 a standard VW was chosen but this was so sluggish that it fell far behind the prototypes, delaying each day’s work. At one of the overnight oasis stops in Algeria, Helmuth Bott decided on a solution: they would install a 911 engine.
Fritz Bezner started work on the VW-Porsche in the autumn of 1981, using the deluxe Caravelle Carat version of the T3 Transporter. A 3.0-liter flat-six engine from a 911 SC that had already done some 14,000 miles was offered up to the back of the van, complete with a five-speed transaxle, limited-slip differential, stronger half-shafts, and shift linkage. The rear floor had to be raised 6.0 inches to provide the necessary space.
Room was found for the dry-sump oil reservoir and a larger 26.4-gallon fuel tank, the latter behind the front suspension to distribute more weight forward. To ensure a good supply of fuel a supplementary catch tank with its own pump was provided. Vents in the rear of the body cooled the more crowded engine bay. An oil cooler was hidden behind a grille at the front of the Transporter, above a chin spoiler. A bespoke wiring loom was designed and fitted.
With stopping as high in priority as going, the front brakes had discs from the 944S with internal ventilation. Stiffer springs supported the added weight at the rear and the Bilstein dampers were uprated. Fourteen-inch aluminum Fuchs wheels with 6.0-inch-wide rims carried 205/70 tires that coped with its increased speed, officially 111 mph but actually capable of more with its 204-hp engine using the longer ring-and-pinion set fitted. Acceleration from rest to 60 mph was a respectable 9.6 seconds, lightly laden, of course. Dry weight was 3,650 pounds with 1,550 pounds load available. Its driver checked his engine revs and oil temperature on a supplementary panel grafted to the right of the VW binnacle. In all 770 man-hours went into its construction.
“On public roads,” related the dry language of a Weissach report, “this strongly powered bus excited strong interest.” It must have excited dismay among drivers on the status-conscious Autobahn, where cars and their drivers observe a strict pecking order according to their top speed. No Transporter was expected to go faster than 85 mph. “Golf GTi drivers are the most shocked,” said engineer Fritz Bezner. The nine-seat capacity was of practical value to Porsche as well, Bezner said: “We used to need three or four Porsches to get our people to a meeting. Now they can get there almost as fast in the bus.”
The high-adrenaline van attracted the attention of Peter Schutz, Porsche’s chief from 1981, who used it for a holiday and put 6,000 miles on this appealing hybrid. Wolfgang Porsche also sampled it. The result was that two more were made, bringing their numbers up to Porsche’s magic three. At least one of these was powered by a 3.2-liter engine, which upped power to 231 hp at 5,900 rpm and top speed to 115 mph. It was red-lined at 6,250 rpm.
During 1982 customers outside Porsche started asking whether they might be able to buy such super-buses. “If enough people show interest,” said Wolfgang Porsche, “I could imagine a series of Porsche buses.” He suggested a price in the region of $36,000 (roughly $120,500 in today’s money after adjusting for inflation) although Fritz Bezner thought $29,000 (about $97,000 today) might be possible. Accordingly Porsche’s industrial-power department started checking on possible demand. They detected enough to warrant the launch of a proper project to produce such vehicles. In a recessionary period it was welcome additional activity for Helmuth Bott’s engineers.
At the end of 1983 work was underway on a production version of the bus, named B-32, under project 2656. While development was done at Weissach, production was to take place at a Porsche workshop facility at Welcherath, little more than a mile southeast of the Nürburgring race track. The dealer network was notified of availability at the heady price of DM150,000, equivalent to £40,000 or $75,000 ($251,000 today).
Plans called for an initial series of nine B-32s with 231-hp 3.2-liter engines using VW’s upgraded Transporter in its nine-seater deluxe Caravelle Carat configuration. They were offered in two Carat metallic colors: Dove Gray and Tungsten Gray. The first five orders were two from Porsche itself, one from a German dealer and two from American dealers, one of whom wanted 928 seats and steering wheel plus the 911’s Fuchs forged wheels. There was an understanding that sales to the USA would be through Peter Schutz.
Considerable effort was needed to prepare the B-32 for American homologation. The first U.S.-market cars were not expected to be ready until the latter part of 1984. Others were set to be built into early spring. By that time, however, Weissach’s engineering capacity was being taken up by other work, not least the new turbo V6 Formula One engine for TAG. The B-32 bus had always been a make-work project so when that work was no longer needed its mission was redundant. Production at Welcherath was halted after only seven B-32s were made and project 2656 terminated. A few others appeared as prototypes.
In the late 1980s an effort was made to produce a Porsche version of the Sharan, a seven-seater to be marketed from 1995 by both VW and Ford. A considerable tear-up was envisaged to accommodate the planned Porsche flat-six with its transaxle. To be named the Varrera, it would be lavishly specified and equipped. While the Sharan carried on as a VW offering, its Porsche counterpart failed to take flight. Its Ford counterpart, the Galaxy, later fell by the wayside.
The number of Porsche B-32s still in circulation is thought to be five or less, possibly enhanced by a few prototypes. One is said to have been retained by Peter Schutz and, as such, to have covered just over 81,000 miles and been offered for sale recently at some $395,000.
Such a figure could be associated with a car conceived by Porsche’s designers in 2018, directly inspired by the Renndienst concept. Revealed in 2020, it was executed in full exterior and interior detail, save for its chassis and electric drive. It is a creation of Porsche’s Use Experience Design, UX for short. It expresses a desire for convenience, flexibility, and timeliness—condensed into a brand experience. Together with chief designer Michael Mauer and Markus Auerbach, head of interior design, Ivo van Hulten experimented with what will meet these needs in a few years’ time.
Among their studies is the vision Renndienst. In its name the van, which can carry up to six people, offers a reminiscence of the VW racing service van that once served the factory team as a service vehicle. On the outside it is futuristic and edgeless while on the inside it is a modular travel cabin. “We thought about how we could still give a distinctly Porsche flair to a passenger compartment that is so far removed from the classic sports-car interior,” said Mauer. “And how autonomous driving could be designed.
“We don’t assume that our customers want to give up using a steering wheel,” added Michael Mauer. “But in order to be able to think freely about the future, boundaries must be crossed when carrying out these exercises.” This, he says, is how the centered driver position of the Renndienst came about. “When I want to drive, I have more cockpit feeling than in any other car. And when I don’t, the driver’s seat can be rotated 180 degrees. With one swivel, it turns to face the other passengers. We worked on materializing these basic ideas for about a year.”
The Renndienst side windows are designed asymmetrically. “One side is closed; passengers can retreat there,” explains interior design chief Markus Auerbach. “The other side enjoys a large window bank for an unobstructed view. When we close the doors, the interior feels like a protective capsule.” A feeling of security and comfort dominates the modular interior. The passengers in the first row sit offset to the right and left in ergonomically shaped bucket seats. They enjoy an unobstructed view of the road ahead and their dashboard screens. Rear-seat headrests are installed in a floating position, which allows a clear view through the rear window.
Auerbach adds: “A digital journey can open a gateway to a universe for us, but it can never replace the physical experience. A car is a space that moves whether I’m driving it myself or not. The seats in this van have been designed for movement; they hold and support the body.” He points from the sports seat in the second row to the back bench seat, which resembles a lounge. “The bench seat allows a different sitting angle due to its curved sides—we can turn towards each other. It is a particularly communicative area that invites relaxation, offering alternative seating positions for talking, working, and relaxing.
“Seen from the outside,” Auerbach continued, “a Porsche is a sculpture, a work of art. The interior adds another dimension. Cars with an unsatisfactory interior do not survive for long, because no emotional connection can be built with them. For the interior designer, it is clear that in the future there will still be switches and buttons. The balance between analog and digital control panels is shifting. Nevertheless, haptic buttons in the vehicle cockpit are perfect because you don’t have to take your eyes off the road. However if one day, as the driver, I have much less to do, that may change too. But we cannot solve everything through optics, because otherwise we lack dimensions.”
In the next step Ivo van Hulten wants the Renndienst to gain a soul. He remembers the American TV series Knight Rider, which he enjoyed watching as a child. “K.I.T.T., the talking car, fascinated me. The strong team of the protagonist and his vehicle really captured my imagination. I connected with the car because it had a soul.” Referring to the UX study, he asks the question: “What kind of daily interactions do we plan? In thirty years, will we call our car and then it will come around and pick us up?”
With the Renndienst’s grand vision of the day after tomorrow, the design team is moving backwards in time to get its specific answer for tomorrow. Their goal of investing in this remarkable vehicle with a soul is laudable. The first direction to be taken is self-evident: make it run!
