Modified Mango Split Screen Volkswagen Bus

‘Mungo’ The 1958 Mango Split came in to us for a a bit of custom modification and repair work that called on our ingenious fabrications skills and general ‘get out of the box and jump on it’ thinking.

The basic plan was fabricate and install a pair of front tubs to accommodate the lows of this static ride bus, the only snag was they had to be hidden…., the owner did not want the tubs to be visible when viewed with the cab doors open, further enhancing the whole look of the wheels being tucked up into the arches.

The initial plan was to bind the existing springs within the stock seat bases to enable them to sit over the tubs thus allowing them to be hidden, this unfortunately did not go to plan, the springs are ridiculously strong and there was noooo way they were going to play ball.

This left no option but to build some bespoke custom base frames from scratch. Each frame was hand formed using several different sections of steel rod and then welded together to create the final structure.

Although they look the same at first glance both seat bases from factory are different sizes so the dimensions from the driver’s seat could not just be replicated into the passenger seat.

Once the main frames were competed we then made up an inner lower ‘floating’ frame to give the trimmer something to hog ring the covers onto when they got upholstered.

That just left the fabrication and installation of a couple of stock style location eyes to enable the seats to be secured and used as VW intended.

The other job to do on this visit was to cut out and replace the grilled section of the dash which a previous owner had cut to allow a modern DIN stereo cage to be fitted.

Mungo’s owner had already sourced a body cut section from another van so it was a simple case of measure twice, cut once, weld, grind and prime.

All repairs and mods aside for the seat bases, were delivered back to the customer in primer as he had arranged for the paintwork to be finished elsewhere.

Cover photo image courtesy of @jz_wells, all other images @KustomRevival and @wangdoodlenoodle

Check out the images below…

What JZ Wells had to say...

“I know this turned out to be an “interesting” job in the end for Kustom Revival Automotive’s Anthony Winter!! But hats off what brilliant fabrication work down to making new custom seat bases to look original and hide the tub’s. Bravo sir ?”

“Great write up Ant thanks for including my bus, I absolutely love your work no one ever guesses it’s been tubbed they just scratch their heads as I drive of static?, as for the dash it’s so neat even I forgot you had done that until I just read this!!!”