A little van with big hearts.
Skoda 1203 may be unfamiliar to those living in the west. The small utilitarian van was first produced in 1968. It was then mass-produced for almost 30 years. It was still produced in small quantities until 2017, making it a true icon for families and businesses alike.
It shouldn’t surprise that there are people at Skoda that love the old van. One of these is Daniel Hajek. He is a user interface designer at the automaker. Recently, he was able to participate in the Skoda’s icons Get a Makeover series. Hajek is connected to the 1203 because his family owned one and it was the first vehicle that he drove at the age of 15.
Hajek said, “Yes, I discussed it with my colleagues. They said that if they have experience with 1203 they could try to reimagine the vehicle for the new millenium.” “But, I think that a vehicle such as this would be great to the SKODA brand.” We think Hajek is right about this assessment, given the recent revival of comfortable camper vans, especially in Europe. How would the modern 1203 do in the real world?
This design goes beyond the traditional van with its oversized proportions and rounded edges. Although this interpretation of the van as a pop up camper has many styling cues that are reminiscent of the original, Hajek wanted to make the new 1203 stand out. The classic van inspired the rounded headlights, protruding edges of the roofline and radiator grille, while the inward-sloping roofing is a tribute the original 1203.
He said, “I wanted it to be obvious from my study that it is the same vehicle but I didn’t want it too retro.” “I created a modern vehicle that pays tribute to the legend.”
Curiously, 1203’s dash layout lacks touchscreen infotainment and is minimalistic. This is surprising given Hajek’s role as a user interface designer. However, for the modern van, Hajek envisions connectivity with a person’s tablet or mobile device rather than a vehicle-based system. We prefer this simple approach to the new 1203.
Skoda will build it? Although technically this is an official Skoda rendering, it is pure fiction. It is possible to set the internet ablaze by passion.