Historic Florence is a Wee Gem

Transport World executive director Joc O’Donnell is a big Kombi fan.

She bought the Kombi, now dubbed Florence, off Trade Me and transported her from Hastings to Invercargill.

O’Donnell’s team has been working since 2019 to restore the 1959 Volkswagen Kombi that served the Southland community throughout the 1960s as an ambulance before it was decommissioned in 1970.

In time Florence will join Transport World’s exhibition of vehicles.

In Philip Coyle’s book 50 Years of Volkswagens in New Zealand he writes about Clarks Service Station, Invercargill, being one of the first VW dealerships in New Zealand.

Coyle says, “by the early 1960s Clarks had sold six ambulances to the local Invercargill Hospital Board”.

One of the Kombis was built in Germany but the remainder of these, including Florence, was assembled in New Zealand with German parts.

Florence was assembled in Auckland.

The Kombi ambulances appeared in The Southland Times in 1959 and 1957 and The Press in Christchurch in 1958.

The Times published an image of a Kombi with the following caption “The new ambulance for Bluff has arrived in Invercargill and will soon be ready for use at the port.” While the 1957 clipping says, “The Southland Hospital Board’s new Volkswagen ambulance. It has room for two stretchers, and one sitting case in the back and two beside the driver. It is the first time that the board has used an ambulance as light as the German-made vehicle.”

The Kombis went on tour to Christchurch and The Press in its report in 1958 says, “a beautifully equipped ambulance built on the standard Volkswagen Kombi Chassis has been purchased by the Southland Hospital Board. The ambulance was on show in Christchurch this week and created much interest. Completely equipped in Germany the ambulance has double banks, cupboards, air conditioning and chromium plated metal work. An invalid chair is also a standard fitting.”