Warhorse

There may be a whole herd of horses under the bonnet, but it’s the horse on the bonnet that gives Mark Horrell’s T5.1 its identity

- Anne Rogers

When I arrived in the carpark of a Welsh supermarket to meet up with Mark, it wasn’t too hard to spot his very eye-catching van. Known as ‘Warhorse’ due to the image on the bonnet, you soon see that it in fact depicts warfare scenes from various eras. Honestly, you could walk round it for ages, taking in all the details, but this van isn’t just striking on the outside. Oh no! Slide open the side door and you’ll observe that rather than the often-seen rock and roll bed layout, this van has a U-shaped seating arrangement. And then just take a look at the floor!

From the point that Mark bought his T5.1, it took two years for the transformation into the stunning show van to reach completion. Luckily Mark’s partner Shinae has been going to VW shows her whole life, as her dad is heavily involved in the show scene, so she may have been less surprised than some, by the scale of Mark’s latest project. (Although her dad’s passion is for Splitties, so maybe Mark’s project wasn’t as long as some classic bus restorations take!)

What did the van start as? Panel van

Colour? Black

LWB/SWB: SWB

BHP? Standard

Wheels type and size? Axe EX30 20”

Tyres? 245/35/20

Lowered? On air.

Why is it special to you? It’s exactly how I pictured it. Yeah – that’s exactly how I wanted it!