As with everything, there is change, Dream & Drive is developing.
We started our path in 2012/13 with the concept of hiring our fleet of 6 beautiful Westfalias, all going in different directions.
Over the past 6 years, we have grown. Starting in our cave on Java Eiland we have now moved to Amsterdam Noord, a heavenly location right on the water.
As much as I loved the ‘hiring holiday adventure story’, the technical demands were growing & something new was developing.
This year (2020) we have ventured away from our hire business & are concentrating on the technical sides of the T3, in particular the notorious (but fabulous) WBX Engines & of course, right behind them, the whole orchestra of gearboxes that speeds us along.
Regarding Engines, I love the WBX (water boxer engine). It’s totally unique & really rather special.
I hope this doesn’t offend any of the Diesel lovers out there, but truly, diesels are not my field.
The WBX to me is like a Brazilian love affair, difficult but equally rewarding.
We are also building the only WBX 2.5 engine (in numbers). This is a concept that has come out of the USA & is an amazing upgrade to the original 2.1WBX. There’s quite a story behind this venture which hopefully I will write about later on the website.
Right behind the engine of course are the Gearboxes. Whether mastered by a WBX or a diesel, the gearboxes are an entity to themselves & we fix, restore and rebuild them all. This is work we also thoroughly enjoy, in particular the Syncro group of gearboxes (apparently I do thrive on complication).
All of our work, be it on engines or gearboxes, is carried out with the same love & detail. We are now venturing into the restoration of bodywork as well.
And personally about me (Mark), well, it might be a tad difficult for some to understand how an Englishman, who started life with Aston Martin/Jaguar ended up in Amsterdam repairing & developing engines/gearboxes for the T3. But fact is fact, this is what has happened.
I took a break from 1995 to 2011 to follow my other passion (Zen & Reiki), but finally returned to the workshop to carry on with my engineering work.
Life is funny.
Finally on this introduction, Dream & Drive is about love, about details & about a shared interest.
T3s in principal stays the same, but the customers (that’s you) are all unique. This is where for me, my two worlds come together as one. Zen & The Art of the T3.
I hope you enjoy our latest update of this website, also made with the same love and sentiment as before. You are invited.
Mark Pluygers,
Amsterdam.
