VW will end production of the classic Kombi van next year, putting an end to 63 years of non-stop production. The nine-seater first went on sale first in 1950. Some 6 million of this boxy, breadbox looking vehicle were built with air-cooled engines and supplied worldwide. Brazil is the only country that produces the Kombi, or VW T2 as it is known in the country. It will have to stop production because of new safety legislation that will be implemented in Brazil, the biggest country in South America.
The good news is that the Kombi will still be produced in its classic form and design with a new name “Totalflex” and some interior changes to accommodate a new 1.4L water cooled engine that will meet new Brazilian emissions laws to reduce pollution in effect in 2006.
Each new VW Totalflex produced will need to comply with the new Brazilian market legislation that will take effect on Jan. 1, 2014. They will need to have ABS and be equipped with both passenger and driver airbags. VW’s product development chief for Brazil, Egon Feichter, said that to meet the new rules, it will have to become a totally new type of Kombi. The new engine will be a derivative of the 1.6L inline 4 used in the VW Fox and Polo models.
