Instead, she wrote the musical anthem of the landmark counter-cultural festival.

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Rather than be let down by seemingly countless broken promises of airborne transportation, Joni Mitchell might have fared rather better by traveling the back roads of New York State in one of what for a time was known as the archetypal ‘hippie bus’.

The Volkswagen Type 2 Deluxe.

The VW Beetle, or Bug, outranked it many times over in terms of sales, but the ‘Kombi van’ – as it was also known – had such a distinctive shape, almost ripe for plastering with counter-cultural stickers, that it visually defined a chunk of its time.

The European Low Country of Holland – neighbor to Volkswagen’s home of Germany – has long had a reputation as a counter-cultural haven, so it should not come as a surprise that the notion of the VW bus emanated from there.

Indeed, the concept for the Type 2 is credited to Dutch Volkswagen importer Ben Pon. Pon visited VW’s Wolfsburg headquarters in 1946, intending to purchase Type 1s for import to the Netherlands. There he saw a Plattenwagen, an improvised parts-mover based on the Type 1 chassis, and realised something better was possible.

He first sketched the van in a doodle dated 23 April 1947, proposing a payload of 690 kg (1,520 lb) and placing the driver at the very front. Said sketch is now on display at the Rijksmuseum. Production would have to wait, however, as the Volkswagen factory was at capacity producing the Type 1.

When capacity freed up, a prototype known internally as the Type 29 was produced in a short three months. The stock Type 1 pan proved to be too weak, so the prototype used a ladder chassis with unit body construction. Coincidentally, the wheelbase was the same as the Type 1s. Engineers reused the reduction gear from the Type 82, enabling the 1.5 ton van to use a 25 hp (19 kW) flat four engine.

Although the aerodynamics of the first prototypes were poor (with an initial drag coefficient of Cd=0.75), engineers used the wind tunnel at the Technical University of Braunschweig to optimise the design. Simple changes such as splitting the windshield and roofline into a ‘vee’ helped the production Type 2 achieve Cd=0.44, exceeding the Type 1’s Cd=0.48.

Volkswagen’s new chief executive officer Heinz Nordhoff, appointed on 1 January 1948, approved the van for production on 19 May 1949, and the first production model, now designated Type 2, rolled off the assembly line to debut on 12 November 1949. Only two models were offered: the Kombi (with two side windows and middle and rear seats that were easily removable by one person) and the Commercial.

The Microbus was added in May 1950, joined by the Deluxe Microbus in June 1951. In all 9,541 Type 2s were produced in their first year of production.

Much later, further production was added in Brazil, the source of the 1974 Volkswagen 15-Window Brazilian-built Type 2 Deluxe Bus we presently have at Beverly Hills Car Club.

Our model is finished in a distinctive two-tone Bright Yellow and White color combination. This example features split front windshields, dual passenger-side cargo doors, rear-quarter vent louvers, chrome trim, and classic Volkswagen styling that has made the Type 2 one of the most recognizable vehicles of its era.

Power comes from a 1600cc air-cooled flat-four paired with a four-speed manual transaxle and single-barrel carburetor. The chassis is equipped with drum brakes, while the exterior retains the familiar Type 2 details, including white-finished bumpers, chrome trim, round headlights, and 15-inch steel wheels with Volkswagen-branded hubcaps.

The combination of simple mechanical components and air-cooled power reflects the straightforward engineering that helped make the VW Bus so enduring. Inside, the Deluxe Bus offers a practical multi-passenger seating layout with a split front bench seat, pop-out windows, sliding windows, and front quarter vents. VDO instrumentation adds period-correct functionality, while the included spare tire and jack add useful equipment.

The 15-window configuration is especially recognizable for its additional side and rear glass, giving the Deluxe Bus a brighter and more open cabin while preserving the iconic shape of the classic Type 2. As a Brazilian-built example, it also represents the long production history of the Volkswagen Bus in South America, where the Type 2 continued to evolve after production ended in Germany.

With its distinctive two-tone finish, classic Volkswagen details, air-cooled flat-four, and four-speed manual transmission, this Type 2 Deluxe Bus offers an authentic example of the enduring Volkswagen Bus formula and is mechanically sound.

And whenever you’re driving our gorgeous Volkswagen Type 2 Deluxe Bus, with Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young blasting out of the speakers, don’t forget: Wear Your Freak Flag High!

-Alex Manos, Owner