Tempo Matador : 1951

Just when you think craftsmanship is behind us, you quickly change your mind when to see this gorgeous vehicle and the loving hours it took to get it to look like it's original glory.

If this treat isn't good enough, at the time of this posting, you can actually buy it from Oldbug.

All of the images are from Oldbug, but visit the link above because there are many more to see, including the restoration process.

It is truly incredible. This truck is just so beautiful. Frankly, I can not imagine restoring this and then selling it. The satisfaction of the final product would out-weigh any financial return it could bring.

This is a very rare Volkswagen powered truck called a Tempo Matador, built in 1951 by a Hamburg Germany based company by the name of Vidal and Sohn.

These trucks were produced for a short period of time from 1949 through 1951 and used the well tested 25 horse Volkswagen powerplant and a ZF non-synchro 4 speed transmission.

But the placement of the drivetrain was in the front, rather than in the rear live the Volkswagen transporter making it a true front wheel drive vehicle.

They were built in a truck and a van format and only about 1300 were produced in total with roughly less than 10 known to exist today...making it a very rare machine.

One of the most interesting things about the history of the Tempo is that it was well on it's way to being a very successful delivery vehicle throughout Europe, but controversy got in the way. Since Volkswagen supplied the powerplants and they also had their own small truck in the works, eventually the leaders at Volkswagen realized that they were helping the competition. So in 1951 they pulled the plug on Tempo and refused to supply them with the engines so that they would have a clearer path to market with the new Volkswagen Transporter.

Tempo was forced to re-design their truck and then chose to go with a British Austin water cooled 4 cylinder for thier later models.

(source: Oldbug)

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1951 Tempo Matador brochure cover.

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