Gone but not for otten
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So good, anyone could get results from it
Although best known for its heavy trucks, back in the 1960s Daf had a stab at the UK LCV market, with its 33 van and pickup.
Like its cars of the era, the 33 pickup we tested had an unusual driveline — a 746cc horizontal twin-cylinder air-cooled engine and continuously variable transmission system (known as Variomatic).
We loved this set-up, and said it was so easy to drive that anyone with the ability to turn a steering wheel could get amazing results from it. Fuel economy (51.7mpg when running at a steady 30mph unladen) and acceleration were impressive, and the lack of a liquid cooling system resulted in "an extremely low maintenance requirement". The business end, with its "neat canvas tilt", was a big hit with us too, as was its 7cwt payload potential. But we stressed how important it was to spread the
load evenly to avoid pronounced oversteer. We even liked the van's spartan interior and comfy seats, although we didn't take too kindly to the "front wheel arches that protrude into the foot compartments, causing the driver in particular to adopt a rather uncomfortable attitude behind the wheel". We thought the 6V electric system was "unusual by today's standards" and said it struggled to turn the engine over on a cold morning.
Concluding, we wrote: "The Daf 33 really needs to be sampled to obtain a true impression. For the layman driver, I would suggest that there has never been anything so simple and foolproof, and these are features that will also commend it to many professional operators."
According to howmanyleft.com, there are still four of these on the UK's roads, albeit in van form.