from Transporter Werks of Dunn 

By Crissy Neville 

Got Fahrvergnügen? In other words, driving enjoyment? According to one of the largest and most successful automakers in the world, the German-owned Volkswagen Group, “it’s  what makes a car a Volkswagen.” While known for its iconic  cars and clever slogans — the Beetle, Think Small and much  more — the manufacturer is equally famous for its large people  movers from decades past. And thanks to the Dunn opening  of the 25-year-old original-to-Raleigh company, Transporter  Werks, at 102 W. Divine Street, the blast-from-the-past vintage  vehicles now have a presence in Harnett County.  

Owner and CEO Sean Fraser purchased the building, better  known as the former home of Sunrise Antiques and circa 1920  Coca Cola Bottling Plant, back in the fall of 2019. He moved  operations to Dunn, he said, to gain space and pull away from  an area in Raleigh the company “was being squeezed out of”  due to construction and sprawl. A year later, he and his five  employees are settling in to their new location.  

“We are very happy to be here,” said Fraser, speaking of the  

transition to Dunn. “The building is large and perfect for the  shop, and the location is great, too. I like being close to Highway 40 and I-95 — we’re easily accessible here. I commute  from Apex, which is about 40 minutes on the back roads. I  have a nice country drive down Old Stage Road.”  

True to form, the immense 12,500 square-foot property, formerly filled with antique wares, vintage finds and the standard bearer of all sodas, still today contains classics — those from  the wheeling world. Previously an admitted “car guy” with a  background in drag and autocross racing as well as air-cooled  mechanics, Fraser has for a decade driven a 1991 VW Vanagon  camper — yep, a van.  

“I was a car guy for a long time,” he explained. “But always a  Volkswagen guy.” His loyalty to the maker dates back to 1986  when he bought his first VW — a 1969 auto-stick. Enthusiasm  and finances led to self-taught motor skills, noting he had been  working on his own cars since learning “to hold a wrench.”  The life-long passion led to the launch of Transporter Werks  

in 1995, waylaying his original plans of becoming a teacher. 

“I started at Wake Tech, studying to become a biology teacher  while supporting myself by working on VWs in my garage on  the side. Previously I had worked in landscaping, cooking and  catering. I found that I like working for myself and, most of  all, with my hands,” he reflected. “The car work is what stuck.” 

Despite choosing mechanics, Fraser still found a way to teach.  His students are his employees, often young and just starting  out, who benefit from the on-the-job training he offers and the  technical knowledge he imparts. His garage is a giant class 

room producing trained technicians versed in engine conversions, mechanical restoration, welding, custom fabrication,  body, paint and rust repair, full-body interior restores or up grades and more for VW, Subaru and TDI (WV Diesel). While  Fraser previously minored successfully in vehicle repair and  restore work with WV brands — from Porsche and the Beetle  to the air-cooled bus — he has declared his major in recent  years. He and his staff at Transporter Works are a rare breed of  Volkswagen Vanagon restoration specialists, placing his enterprise at the top of the class. Two of Fraser’s current employees  live in Dunn, and with plans to expand his business post-COV ID, more employment opportunities will come. 

Some of the crew, hard at work building one awesome rig. 

  

This is just a small sample of some of the  custom fabrication and design we do. Taylor and Kevin have designed everything on this table. It’s great to have such a talented and creative team.

“I really would like to hire local and maybe do an internship  or collaboration with the local schools,” he shared. “Compared to my high school years when we had wood and auto shop and drafting, youth now do not get enough hands-on experience in trades.”  Yet, he is pleased with his current technicians’ skill-level, noting the electrical expertise of 24-year-old Taylor Fishpaw, the fabrication finesse of automotive veteran Kevin Spina, and the graphic design and imagery of professional photographer Anthony Brosilow. Fraser himself likes to get his hands dirty, preferring the mechanical engine builds and conversion work. Fraser’s wife, Cheryl, rounds out the staff roster as the bookkeeper and, in his words, “moral supporter.”  “People have a hard time finding people who can work on the  Vanagons,” explained Fraser. There are not many people who do what we do at the same level, and there are not that many good shops. A few dabble and try, but for good Vangaon work, you could go to a shop in Maine, Colorado, Washington State or to a few in California. No one else in this state or anywhere nearby, though.” Besides specialty, Fraser also found his use of the sciences,  too. From understanding the world around him to figuring out  

how things work, Fraser said the scientific method is part of  his everyday world. “There is a lot of math and chemistry, as  well as the fundamentals of how machines work in my day to-day.” he explained. “Like in understanding how an internal  combustion engine works, for example; vehicles are complicated machines. Science plays into my everyday world. I take  in information, make conclusions, problem solve and troubleshoot. It makes me a better mechanic. Some technicians may  get certain certifications, but I do not find them necessary. For  me, learning has always been concrete. We can’t plug these antique vehicles into a computer and find out what it needs — we  figure it out ourselves.”  

Why only work on Vanagons with VW models abound? Volk swagen is the founding and namesake member of the Volkswagen Group, a large international corporation in charge of  multiple car and truck brands, including Audi, SEAT, Porsche,  Lamborghini, Bentley, Bugatti, Scania, MAN and Skoda, not to  mention the long line-up of VW passenger cars, SUVs, trucks  and modern vans. With global headquarters in Wolfsburg, Germany, Volkswagen has covered the globe with its automobiles.  

The answer: Fraser found his niche. Cubbyhole. Forte. Calling. 

“Back when I was working on many other VW models and  older air-cooled cars, it was overwhelming. Air-cooled is old school and takes my skill and experience here in the shop.  Complete restorations can take a full year and even longer. VW  did not start with water-cooled vans until 1983; that’s the delineation mark between the older vans and the newer technology.  We may work on air-cooled cars for some repeat customers,  

but that’s about it. We specialize in the water-cooled Vanagons  made from 1983-1991 and have a waiting list for our services.  Customers come to us from all over the country, especially  with the VW Vanagon Syncro vans, which are complicated  4-wheel drive vehicles and amazing off-road. People have a  hard time finding shops with the knowledge and know-how to  work on them.” 

There have been six generations of the Volkswagen Transporter, following the start of production in 1950. In the 70 years  since then, more than 13 million examples have been built —  many still on the road today only due to specialty shops like  Fraser’s. While the slower and older models are not really not  highway-ready, Transporter Werks brings them up to speed by  modernizing, refreshing the running gear and using more modern engines, often choosing to restore old parts for the vans  rather than buy newer lower-quality ones.  

Of course, not all older Vanagons get updated; some air-cooled  aficionados prefer to keep their VW for Sunday drives, car  shows and “car and coffee” outings. It’s all about what the  owners want.  

The Transporter is the namesake of Fraser’s company, but as  a vehicle is sold under several nameplates worldwide — the  Transporter or Caravelle in Europe, Microbus in South Africa  and Vanagon in North and South America.  

Given the factory designation Type 2s, with varying generations, the buses and vans were released in spiraling years, following and deriving from VW’s first model, the Type 1 Beetle.  

Just as you may call the Beetle “Herbie” a “bug,” “punch buggy’’ or another alias, Volkswagen’s Type 2s also had plenty of  nicknames, depending on the model. Whether you prefer the  1950-1967 “bus” or “hippie van” the best, a “bay window”  or “bread loaf” model made from 1968-79 or the 1979-1983  Vanagon of which the Westfalia camper is casually called  “Westy,” it’s all the same family.  

Think back to the Type 2 vans made famous in the movies like  “Back to the Future,” “Little Miss Sunshine,” “Lost” and the  2006 animated “Cars,” the later for whom one reviewer said  that “making the hippie-esque Filmore a VW Type 2 van was  perfect.” Mater may steal the scene most often, but Filmore is  fun to watch when he shows up. Huh. Move over, Mater.  

They also debuted in the music industry, too, famous for making the cover of albums by Bob Dylan and The Beach Boys,  being the transportation of choice by Grateful Dead groupies  and earning a place in music history by appearing at Woodstock in droves.  

Fraser’s favorite, the Vanagon, is also named The Volkswagen Type 2 (T3) to signify this third generation of the original  vehicle, of which Transporter Werks specializes in the water cooled line up made from 1983 to 1991. With full camper interiors and 4-wheel drive capacity, people bought the Vanagons  for the functionality in traveling and off-roading fun.  

Ditto that for today’s van sales with the added ingredient of  nostalgia. “People like retro,” said Fraser. “The vans bring  back memories. If you were a kid in the 1960s, you remember  

the buses. They were everywhere then and still in the 1970s  and 80s. They were pretty cheap to fix, too. You could take an  engine out of a VW bug and put it in your van and keep on  going.” 

And what of Fraser’s own fixer-upper? His 1991 Vanagon, he  said, “is called a multivan, technically. With fold-out beds, a  pop-top and a tent top on the roof, the back seat turns into a  bed as well, and the table and rear seats are removable. It is  very utilitarian. I can take the seats out and have a lot of space  inside. It can haul anything I want, and with 4-wheel drive, I  can take it wherever I want, too. It has locking differentials in  the front and rear so all four wheels lock and do not spin and  can take you wherever.” 

And take it he does. Virginia Beach natives but North Carolinians since the early 90s, Fraser and his wife take the van  off-road tripping and camping with their two Gordon setters  and friends as much as possible, many of whom are customers, too.  

“The customers become friends for life; we are a community  for sure. I stay in touch with the customers and their builds,  and they stay in touch with me. I have 25 years of such relationships.” 

Community exists for all VW Vanagon owners, it seems.  Through online meetups, Facebook groups and enthusiast net working, these like-minded motorists, to whom Transporter  Werks can help clients connect, find each other, camp and  travel together and become close companions. The Full Moon  

Transporter Werks is working on the rebuild of this beautiful 1984 4-wheel drive Syncro for a customer in Tennessee. Taking a year and a half to complete, Fraser and his staff are most proud of this project.

Bus Club, for example, is based out of the Carolinas and is  described by one online follower as “a good group of people  that host campouts and such with potluck dinners and breakfast that will fill the biggest of bellies.” The recommendation  comes from https://www.thesamba.com/vw/, the site named  after The Samba, a term used for the 23-window Deluxe Bus  in Europe.  

Of these meetups, Fraser said, “Vans and buses come from  all different years. There could be 10 cars; there could be 100  or even more. They take over a whole campground. They do  social media, newsletters, meet up and more.”  

The bus buzz extends to Harnett County, too. In the back of the  shop, Fraser is currently working on a rare specimen. “Here’s  a 1960 23-window bus,” he pointed out. “It did have three  rows of seats, but we will not put the middle seat back in it.  This is a very serious reconstruction that is as intimate as you  can get. From California, the vehicle was pretty bad to start  with. But the customer has known me forever and brought it  to me because he knows we will do it right. He is very excited,  and if I finished it tomorrow, he would get it and be driving it  around. This kind of work takes a lot of time.”  

His favorite VW project to date is a no-expense-spared Vana 

gon custom-build his team is about to finish. One technician  at Transporter Werks has worked on the van every day, Fraser  calculated, for over a year. “It is the highest level of restoration in the country, and we are going to miss it terribly. Everything on the van was restored or fabricated by hand here in the  shop or outsourced locally. I try to use local people like the  NAPA — which is literally across the street — and Advanced  Auto Parts, for example, and local products if I possibly can.” 

Elaborating on Dunn’s service-oriented downtown, Fraser  said that was one of the top things attracting him to the area.  “In Raleigh,” he explained, “we were downtown, but it was a  20-minute drive or longer to get some screws, bolts or stuff we  regularly needed. Here supplies and even custom suppliers are  almost within walking distance or at most a two-mile radius. I  find that very attractive.”  

Location, along with quality craftsmanship, task commitment,  professionalism and passion, sets Transporter Werks apart.  “We get very attached to the builds,” he confessed. “It is hard  to see the vehicles go.” Reminiscent of a parent sending a  child off to college, Fraser finds the hard work and heart for  these Volkswagens to pay off in the end. Connect with them  in downtown Dunn, on Facebook or Instagram and by visiting  their website, http://transporterwerks.com/.