I can vaguely remember my family going to the VW dealership and test driving a Type 2 bus as a kid. It didn’t find it’s way to our home, but it did find love in thousands of others and has a devoted following all around the globe. Mint-condition originals can fetch into six figures at auction!
Available from Tamiya at a much lower price is its newly tooled 1/24 Volkswagen Type 2 23-window bus featuring the company’s new Clic-Loc glueless assembly system. That’s right, it’s a snap kit clearly aimed at the beginning modeler. But don’t let that fool you, it’s still a great build and good-looking model kit.
The first thing you’ll notice upon opening the box is the quality of the moldings. They’re meant to be assembled without the need for paint and are beautifully done. Surfaces are glass smooth with solid colors — no swirls or imperfections of any kind. The lower body is molded in red (there is also a blue version); the upper body in a creamy white; the interior is in light gray; the chassis parts are black; and the transparent parts are absolutely crystal clear. Trim details and a few markings for the interior are supplied as stickers. Instructions come as a booklet with clearly illustrated steps. However, there are no paint details whatsoever. You can find plenty of resources online for detail and paint guidance if you’re looking for it. (I recommend eBay motors.)
The chassis construction is basic with only the main chassis plate and a few parts for the posable front suspension. You’ll find molded detail for the engine, and I added a little paint just to highlight what was there. The wheels have separate chrome hub caps, and while the tires display excellent tread, you won’t find sidewall detail.
The interior is pretty simple, too, with only four parts making up the main cabin. Most photos I found showed the side panels with a different colored center band, so I painted it with a darker gray and added some foil trim to the top to match the references. I also painted the floor black for some contrast. The dash assembly is molded in the cream color, and I’m not sure it goes with the light gray of the rest of the interior, but I left it as is. There are stickers for the speedometer, fuel gauge, clock, and ash tray.
Probably the most time-consuming part of the build was adding the window trim stickers to the clear parts. Trim for each window is in two pieces, and there is a light line scribed into the windows for locating the trim. The inside edge of the trim sticker goes to the line. I was concerned that the stickers would be difficult to position, but they worked very well. Make sure to have a good pair of tweezers and some patience. Be cautious of the window surface itself; they are easily scuffed. I used a wooden stick cut to a chisel point to burnish down the trim stickers, and even with that I managed to lightly scuff a window or two.
Adding the chrome trim pieces to the body was literally a snap. Tamiya did a great job of placing the sprue gates on the back side of the trim so there is no need for touch up after removing them from the sprue. The upper and lower body parts mated with a light — but positive — click. It may be easier to add the trim stickers to the body before mating it with the chassis. I left the side mirrors and windshield wipers off until the very end to avoid breakage.
While snap kits certainly aren’t a new concept, the Tamiya Clic-Loc 1/24 scale Volkswagen Type 2 (T1) plastic model kit is something new and different the company’s lineup. It’s obviously branching out into a new area of the market and looking to attract new modelers and lowering the bar to entry. Even us old guys that have been at it for a long time sometimes just need a quick, fun build to break a slump or lingering project. As far as pure modeling fun goes, this one knocks it out of the park!
