Viking Camp from Åndalsnes

After the credit policy was liberalized in the 80s, many were able to realize their dreams of luxury. It was then that motorhomes really came to Norway. Some started with imports, while others started production.

I came across this great camper van here the other day. It had Møre plates and was registered as a Volkswagen Transporter, which indicates that it was converted after its first registration in Norway.

But where?

The name "Viking" gives a small clue. I had to do a deep dive into previous issues of Caravan – the members' magazine of the Norwegian caravan club. In 1987, the magazine did a report from the Caravan Fair at Sjølyst. At that time, they presented Viking-Camp in the following way (quote):

From Transporter to camping car

The car in our picture is a 1988 model Transporter registered as a camping car with 4 seats. If we imagine that the starting point was a Transporter with Caravelle side windows, the roof must be cut up and replaced with a fixed fiberglass top - and any partition to the cargo compartment removed. On the left side (business side) a hatch has been made for gas and water tanks, as well as an intake for electricity. That's what we can see from the outside. There are many people who have made roof solutions for the Volkswagen T3. Most are more practical than beautiful. Viking-Camp suits the car well. It has a simple shape that nicely completes the existing lines (shutlines).

Handmade

The picture of the camper was recently taken at the Oslo Concert Hall. After 32 years, it is great that the car's origins are marked. I am not sure what text or decor the cars were originally delivered with. "Viking", "Viking-Camp" or "Viking-Camping". It probably varied over time. Each car was handmade.

The car builder

I have managed to track down some information about the camper van production at Øranprodukter. In older editions of Døves Tidsskrift – an organ of the Norwegian Association of the Deaf – you can read about Torbjørn Tokle who has had many irons in the fire – not only at the Association of the Deaf – but also at Øranprodukter where he converted vans into camper vans – mostly alone. A few years earlier he had converted a Fiat van into a camper van on his own. He and two friends from Norway drove it all over Africa. He further tells Døves Tidsskrift that he worked with several car brands at Øranprodukter. It was mainly the Caravelle and the Mazda E2000.

At most, there were approximately 50 employees in the rehabilitation company which was owned by the county council. The conversion of vans was only part of the business. It took place during roughly the same years that Tokle worked there - from 1984 to 1990. In 1999, the entire company went bankrupt.

More still on the way

There are many indications that the camper vans that were converted by Øran products maintained good quality. In a later interview with Døves Tidsskrift, Tokle says that several of the cars are still driving around. It shows professional pride from the man who probably built the beautiful car in the picture.

Sources:
Døves Tidsskrift 1986-38 (pdf)
Døves Tidsskrift 2000-4 (pdf)

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