Volkswagen display here for a limited time only

Have you visited Bill Richardson Transport World to check out our latest display yet?

Our Volkswagen exhibit has been a long time in the making.

Invercargill car museum Bill Richardson Transport World is the permanent home to more than 300 classic cars – and our executive director Joc O’Donnell is especially partial to the retro cool of the Volkswagen Kombi. Among the classic Volkswagen vehicles on display in the exhibit are some that permanently reside at Bill Richardson Transport World, while others have been loaned to the Invercargill car museum temporarily.

“I’ve been a fan of the Volkswagen Kombi since I was younger. When Scott [Joc’s now-husband] and I travelled through Europe, we toured around in a Kombi – the way lots of Kiwis did back then. I’ve got such great memories of our time in the Kombi and so I’ve got a real personal attachment to them,” she says.

“Creating an exhibition that put the Volkswagen Kombi front and centre has been on my to-do list for a long time, and that’s grown into what we’ve created for the museum today: a real celebration of everything Volkswagen.”

Visitors will see beloved Volkswagen Kombis and Beetles as well as more rare models, including a Formula Vee single-seater race car and a couple of Karmann Ghia convertibles.

For Joc, seeing people’s reactions to the Volkswagen display has made the hard work worth it.

“Like all our exhibits, the Volkswagen display has been a team effort. Our workshop team here at Bill Richardson Transport World is made up of some incredibly talented guys and they’ve done a fantastic job in getting some of the classic Volkswagens ready for display,” she says.

“The rest of the team has been instrumental in getting all of the information together, designing the display panels so that we engage with our guests, and working with the generous Volkswagen owners who have agreed to loan their vehicles to us. We know their Volkswagens are their pride and joy, so we feel incredibly grateful to be taking care of their vehicles for the duration of our display.”

Featuring an array of rare classic Volkswagen vehicles, the new display at the Invercargill car museum boasts typical Transport World flair too: visitors have loved our ‘junk yard’ and nostalgic Volkswagen picnic scenes. Intrigued yet? Make sure you come in and see them for yourself!