Vanagon Syncro

The Vanagon Syncro is the camper everybody asks for by name. Bus-shaped, square-shouldered, four-wheel-drive, with a pop-top that sleeps two upstairs and a folding bench that sleeps two below.

Ours is a 1984 with 138,000 honest miles. Engine refreshed in 2023, gearbox in 2024. The Syncro four-wheel-drive system on these vans is properly mechanical — a diff lock and a low-range — which means it will go down a beach access road that would worry a modern compact crossover, and it will come back up again.

Inside: a working two-burner Webasto stove, a 30L water tank, a small sink, a 12V fridge that was upgraded last winter, and enough storage for a week of food. The bench folds flat in about ninety seconds. The pop-top opens with one strap.

It is not fast. Cruises happily at sixty miles per hour. Climbs hills slowly. Sounds wonderful at any speed. We give every renter a long walkthrough at the Yard — every switch, every quirk, every reason to love it.