The Rootes/Chrysler Commer 3/4ton van; 60th anniversary

        Celebrating 60 years of the Rootes Commer 3/4 ton FC

For owners and enthusiasts of the Rootes Commer 3/4 ton light commercial, this year marks a special anniversary; 60 years since the launch. Light commercial chassis in 1960 Britain was limited to the Bedford CA, Austin-Morris 152/J2, Ford Thames, Standard Atlas, Morris J-type, and the Austin-Morris J4 (also launched in 1960). Let us not forget the iconic split-screen VW, popular not only in the UK, but around the world.The vehicle of choice, and certainly the most popular in the UK in 1960, was the Vauxhall-Bedford CA, which had been introduced in 1952, and would continue in production until 1969 (when the CF was released). As with most light commercials, the Commer was available a basic delivery van, pickup, minibus, gown van, milk float, with many other configurations made available by specialist coachbuilders, such as a camera vehicle for film and tv work, and tv detector van. My main focus of interest is of course campervans and motorhomes of the classic and vintage variety, so I'm going to concentrate primarily on these for this blog.

The first campervan to be released on the 'new' Commer was Rootes own conversion, the 'Maidstone', a panel van conversion featuring the Weathershields rising roof. This 4-berth campervan (sleeping for two adult and two children) had twin opening rear doors, plus a side access door, as seen in the pictures above.

Interior furnishing in the Maidstone was basic, but adequate, with metal-frame seating which converted into a double bed, roof bunk and also a bunk to stretch across the cab area on metal poles.The kitchen units, built from decent quality wood, housed a two-burner gas hog/grill, sink with manually-pumped cold water, lift-up Formica-topped worktops, sliding doors giving access to storage beneath, and well designed overhead wooden lockers, useful for storing smaller items. Further storage consisted of space beneath one seat in the rear, two larger cupboards in the rear corners, and a slimline locker which formed the bulkhead between cab and living space.

Photo above, courtesy of Steve Loveys

The Maidstone was also exported to North America as the 'Camper-Coach', having made its debut at the New York Motor Show 1961. It continued in production until 1965, and good condition examples remain highly sought after today on the classic campervan scene.

The model above, is another early 60s example from the UK, this time in the form of a 'Calthorpe Home-Cruiser', by Maurice Calthorpe. The most distinctive feature of the Calthorpe being the rather unusual domed roof, constructed from wood and aluminium sheet. There are only a couple of known survivors of these models in the UK on the Commer base, but several on the Bedford CA, BMC J4 and a couple on the Standard Atlas.

Other early Commer conversions included the 'Car-Camper', with its Westfalia-style pop-top, the Coachbuilt 'Hadrian' motorhome, the Dormobile 'Commer-Caravan' and the Commer 'Auto-Sleeper'. Between the Commers introduction in 1960, and its final incarnation as the 'Dodge-Spacevan' (ending production in 1982), the Commer became one of the Uk's most popular bases for campervan conversion, and thankfully literally hundreds have survived. The picture composition above should give some indication of the variety of models based on this Rootes classic throughout its production.

For a more in-depth look at various Commer campervans, I would suggest tracking down a copy of my 2007 hardback book, published by The Crowood Press in the UK; Classic Camper Vans-the inside story, by Martin Watts.