The Skoda car brand is 125 years old in 2021 – and in celebration of its 125th anniversary, the firm has let its designers loose to re-imagine some of the company’s most famous old models. Among them is the 1203 van, which has been turned into a ‘21st century’ campervan.
The new Skoda 1203 Camper concept is the brainchild of ‘interface designer’ Daniel Hajek, and we reckon he’s done a great job.
>> Sign-up for the Parkers Vans and Pickups newsletter
What’s a Skoda 1203?
The original Skoda 1203 van was launched in 1968 and continued in production for 30 years without any major structural changes – though in addition to Skoda versions it was also sold as a TAZ.
Skoda describes it as ‘the backbone’ of Czech industry in the 1970s and it played an important role in the development of small businesses after the end of the Cold War.
It’s a massively important vehicle in Skoda’s history, in other words, but not something many people in the UK will be at all familiar with. This doesn’t mean the new camper concept isn’t worth a closer look though…
What are the details of the Skoda 1203 Camper concept?
Looking at the rendering with the old and new model side-by-side, you can see where designer Hajek has taken his inspiration, but it’s also clearly been thoroughly updated.
In fact, it has a similar-looking stance and proportions to the Volkswagen ID Buzz concept – which is set to launch as the VW ID.7 production vehicle in 2022 – so although as far as we know, Skoda doesn’t currently have any plans to go back into the van or people carrier business, it isn’t as massively far-fetched as it might be.
There aren’t very many details about the interior, and the only sketch we have is of the dashboard. But thanks to the combination of a pop-up roof, lots of typically Skoda practical touches and the inevitable all-electric drivetrain – something else it shares with the ID Buzz / ID.7 – it would apparently be very spacious.
Will there be a real Skoda campervan?
Skoda would have to commit to building a van of any type first, really, and as we said, so far there’s no sign of that happening.
However, we can say that sales of campervans and motorhomes are booming at the moment, as a side-effect of the COVID-19 pandemic. So maybe a real Skoda camper is not totally out of the question in the future – the Volkswagen California had better keep a close eye out.
Also read:
>> Secret Porsche Renndienst van revealed – and it’s electric
>> Motorhome buying advice – which body type is right for me?
