This van's a diamond

Volkswagen's Transporter van officially went into production 60 years ago this month and since then it has become one of its best-selling commercial models globally, the number one imported van in the UK as well as one of the most iconic and popular vans in the world.

With more than 10 million produced, the Transporter has evolved through five generations of functional and practical bodystyles, loved by business and private users alike for transporting goods or people for work or leisure. This heritage is the focus of the current Evolution of Van advertising campaign for the new Transporter which was launched in the UK in January.

The first T1 'split-screen' model was powered by a four-cylinder, air-cooled, 1.1-litre petrol engine mounted at the back of the vehicle. It produced 25PS and had a top speed of about 60mph. By comparison, the new Transporter enjoys the refinement of Volkswagen's latest 2.0-litre, common rail, turbocharged diesel engine, available with power outputs ranging from 84PS to 180PS and a top speed of up to 119mph, plus the latest stability control systems and braking technology that would have sounded like something from a science fiction novel 60 years ago.

Similarly, comparing the latest VW California with a T1 campervan shows that both make efficient use of the space available to create a vehicle equally suitable for daily trips to work or the shops, as for weekend escapes or continental capers.

The first Transporter was imported into the UK in 1955, and the latest version of the van as well as today's people-carrying and campervan versions, the Caravelle and California, arrived in the UK this January, 55 years later.

Full details of the new Transporter, Caravelle and California and the latest finance offers are available by calling 0800 717131 or visiting www.volkswagen.vans.co.uk