On all fours

Despite what other specialist VW titles said at the time, the third generation Transporter T3 – or T25, depending on your terminology preference – wasn’t the first 4WD example of the marque when its Syncro variant was launched at the Brussels Commercial Vehicle Show in January 1985. Not by a long shot. In terms of 1980s’ machines, the Passat Syncro had beaten the T3 to showrooms by a few months, being launched in October 1984. But well, well before that, VW had been flirting with 4WD since WW2. During that conflict, it had come up with Kübelwagens, Schwimmwagens and Kommandeurwagens with the ability to drive with all wheels. Then during the 1970s, it developed the Iltis for military service (although a civilian version was available in Germany), which in turn led onto the highly successful Audi Quattro. So, by the time the T3 Syncro came along, VW had been experimenting with true off-roading for quite a while.

Nevertheless, the T3 Syncro was a pretty significant vehicle for Volkswagen. It