Westdubs VWT7/Transit Custom – T7 Elevating Roof
Westdubs are a leading manufacturer of elevating roof systems (‘pop-tops’) for camper van conversions. They supply the trade as well as installing themselves, with Volkswagen vans proving to be a very popular base vehicle. Volkswagen launched the T7 van, after much anticipation, in 2025. This new van shares much of its ‘body in white’ with the 2025 Ford Transit Custom. With the advent of these new vehicles, Westdubs decided that a new approach to their product development was required and called on the industrial design services of Form Foundry.
Previously, Westdubs worked directly with their GRP supplier to develop the rigid roof components, essentially recycling generic designs. This project was the first time they had worked directly with an industrial designer. We therefore worked very closely with Westdubs throughout the project to ensure they were informed at all stages from concept to production.
We initially looked at simplifying the overall design to not only improve aesthetics but also the sealing against the vehicle. Alongside this we investigated ways of improving mouldability and shape retention. Stylistically, we wanted the design to conform more closely to the T7 body rather than being generic. Starting with initial concept sketches and looking primarily at styling, we gradually fed more practicality into the project. We fine-tuned the design to retain the large corner radii whilst clearing the scissor hinge assembly.
We developed the scheme in 3D CAD taking care to create clean ‘Class A’ surfaces where possible. The GRP moulders used our data to make the patterns for the tooling for the RTM moulding process.
The new designs for the T7 and Transit have proved to be extremely popular. As a result, we have now created new designs and detailed production CAD for the majority of the the Westdubs range including the VW T4, T5/T6 SWB & LWB and the LWB version of the T7.
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