This is a very rare Volkswagen-powered truck called a Tempo Matador. It was built by a Hamburg, Germany-based company by the name of Vidal and Sohn. These trucks were produced for a short period of time from 1949 through 1951 and used the well-tested 25-horsepower Volkswagen powerplant and a ZF non-synchro 4-speed transmission. The placement of the drivetrain was in the front rather than in the rear, like the VW transporter, making it a true front-wheel drive vehicle.
They were built in a truck and van format, and only about 1300 were produced in total, with fewer than ten known to exist today.
One of the most interesting things about the history of the Tempo is that it was well on its way to being a very successful delivery vehicle throughout Europe, but controversy got in the way. Since VW supplied the powerplants and they also had their own small truck in the works, the leaders at VW realized that they were helping the competition. So, in 1951 they pulled the plug on Tempo and refused to supply them with the engines so that they would have a clearer path to market the new Volkswagen Transporter.
