Vw Camper Westfalia 1984 Rebuilt Engine Volkswagen Vanagon Van on 2040-cars

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Yes, a family of 5 can live in a 1981 VW Westfalia van

Automakers and marketers trying to reach environmentally conscious consumers who desire the simple life basically have two strategies: promote electric vehicles that can be charged through green energy or sell a 30-year-old Volkswagen van on Craigslist. Nicolas Boullosa and Kirsten Dirksen opted for Plan B and turned a 1981 Volkswagen Westfalia camper into a "micro-living" experiment. The co-founders of the simple living website faircompanies packed up their van and three young children for a road trip through the Pacific Northwest. They even turned the adventure into a documentary called Summer of (Family) Love, which you can view below. It's two hours long, so maybe add this to your weekend viewing list. They limited themselves to one backpack per person into a camper that they purchased off Craigslist and named "Westy." They stuck to their original intention of cooking all their own meals off a propane stove, creating a new little home every night in a different location, mostly spaces outside RV parks. They met up with other enthusiasts of the "tiny house" community who live like nomads. They were able to interview a few of then and, "With each stop we picked up some new piece of wisdom about life's essentials," Dirksen wrote in the faircompanies blog. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. News Source: Faircompanies via Treehugger Green Volkswagen Green Culture Transportation Alternatives vw van westfalia

Former Porsche CEO Wiedeking indicted over VW takeover bid

Do you recall the failed efforts by Porsche to take over Volkswagen? According to a Bloomberg report, former Porsche CEO Wendelin Wiedeking (above) and ex-CFO Holger Haerter have finally been charged with market manipulation over the exercising of options as part of the German sportscar manufacturer's ill-fated attempt to take over the much larger VW. That failed bid eventually resulted in the reverse coming true - VW swallowing Porsche.
The charges leveled by Stuttgart prosecutors come after a three-year investigation centered around allegations that Porsche execs made a concerted effort to increase the company's share in VW to 75 percent in preparation for a hostile takeover. Porsche had previously told its investors on at least five occasions that it had no intention to buy VW.
Portions of the investigation have subsided, according to prosecutors, citing an inability to prove certain improprieties with a "necessary degree of certainty." The number of charges is down to 5 from a previous 14 counts regarding "information-based market manipulation."

EU formally questions French government assistance of Peugeot's finance arm

Recently, the finance arm of PSA/Peugeot-Citroën was in such debt trouble that it was pricing itself out of the car loan market. The rates it was paying to service its debt, which was rated one step above junk, were so high that it was forced to charge car-buying customers higher rates than they could find elsewhere. This was adding to Peugeot's already impressive woes by sending revenue out the door to competitors.
Two months ago a deal was worked out with the French government whereby the state would provide 7 billion euro ($9 billion USD) in bonds to guarantee the finance arm's loans. The French government could nominate someone to join the Peugeot board, Peugeot would guarantee more French jobs, and on top of that deal, other banks would provide non-guaranteed loans. The government would take no equity stake in the car company.
Although not yet finalized, the arrangement is meant to create some breathing room for Peugeot Finance to lower its interest rates for customers, and a government-nominated board member, Louis Gallois, was recently named to Peugeot's supervisory board. The arrangement was also openly questioned by at least three competitors: Ford, Renault - which is 15-percent owned by the French government after it received state aid - and the German state of Lower Saxony, itself a 15-percent shareholder in Volkswagen.