01 The VW T2 code system: L-code vs. plate code

Volkswagen used two parallel codes for paint on the T2 (also known as: Bay Window):

The L-code (such as L90D, L50K) is VW's internal paint code. You'll find it in the literature, at paint suppliers, and on the silver sticker fixed directly below the M-plate in the van. This is the code you need to give a paint shop.

The plate code (such as R1, J6, E1) appears on the M-plate itself. This is a shortened code VW stamped onto the production plate. On a single-colour van the plate code is repeated twice (e.g. J6J6). On a two-tone van, the lower colour appears first, the roof colour second (e.g. G9R1 = Senegal Red below, Pastel White on top).

02 The two-tone T2: how does the colour split work?

The T2 was frequently supplied in two colours. The split line differs by production period:

• 1968–1970: The colour split runs along the rain gutter around the roof.
• 1971–1979: The split sits roughly 10 cm below the window line, at the point where a body panel line runs.

Microbuses (type 22 and 24) were offered with a contrasting roof colour as standard. Pastel White (L90D / plate code R1) was by far the most-used roof colour, available in almost every model year. In the early years (1968–1970) Cloud White (L581) was the typical roof contrast colour.

03 Sonderlackierung: special paint codes

Vehicles built for special purposes received a Sonderlackierung, identifiable by plate codes starting with 5 or 9. Think of:

• Westfalia campers (type 23), e.g. 523551 = Neptune Blue
• Fire brigade: 52x300 = Fire Engine Red (RAL 3000)
• Deutsche Bundespost: 9135 = Mail Yellow
• Police vehicles: 52x904 = Police White, 52x614 = Police Green (RAL 6009)
• Military vehicles: 9610 = Green 319 (Bundeswehr)

Westfalia vans technically used standard colours but were nevertheless assigned special codes (e.g. 523926 for Pastel White). Why VW did this isn't fully documented.

04 Full overview: all T2 L-codes (1968–1979)

The complete table of all original VW T2 Bay Window paint colour codes, sorted by L-code.

05 Colour overview by model year

06 Interior colours: the II-codes

Behind the paint code on the M-plate are two positions for the interior colour (the II part of the PPPPII sequence). The most common codes:

07 The L-code sticker: where to find it

The L-code is on a silver sticker stuck directly below the M-plate. The sticker states the colour in German (e.g. "leuchtorange L 20 B") and the L-code. This is the code to give a paint-mixing shop.

08 Common mistakes in colour identification

Faded paint ≠ a different colour code. After 45+ years, many T2s look as if they're a non-catalogue colour, when it's simply original paint degraded by UV exposure. Always sand a sample in a hidden spot before determining a colour code by eye.

Same plate code, two L-codes. Code E6 stands for both L20A and L21H (Marino Yellow), depending on the chassis number. The split falls at chassis number 2x7 2079872. Details like this are lost if you only look up the plate code.

Westfalia codes aren't different colours. A Westfalia with code 523551 simply has Neptune Blue (L50K). The 523x codes are production-administrative in nature and refer to standard paint colours.

09 VW T2 Westfalia Campmobile: paint colours by model year

A T2 Westfalia Campmobile (type 23 in VW nomenclature) wasn't ordered through the standard T2 catalogue, but through a separate Westfalia order process. The paint colour was in principle always a standard VW colour — the same L-code as an ordinary van — but the plate code on the M-plate starts with 523 instead of the normal two-digit code. That makes identification tricky if you don't know the system.

Westfalia colour options were a limited selection from the standard T2 palette. Not every model-year colour was available as a Westfalia option.

10 T2 Westfalia interior: the camping fabrics

The interior of a T2 Westfalia Campmobile differed significantly from a standard van. Westfalia used its own fabric programme that varied by model-year group. The fabrics are recognisable by the checked plaid patterns in distinctive colour combinations, matched to the exterior colours of that period.