Roofless DAF 31 HAVAS Arrives at the Museum
One of the most recent additions to the DAF Museum is a 1965 DAF passenger car, type 31 HAVAS*.
About 15 years ago, a tobacco wholesaler from Amsterdam purchased the car from a private owner who had converted his DAF Daffodil 31 into this attractive Mermaid convertible. As the wholesaling business prospered, the owner was able to acquire a holiday home in Portugal. With its pleasant climate, sunshine, sea, and beaches, the decision was quickly made to use the Mermaid there as a daily means of transportation.
The car served faithfully in Portugal for more than ten years.
In 2024, the vehicle returned to the Netherlands. However, using it as a daily driver in Amsterdam no longer seemed to be a practical choice. As a true car enthusiast, the owner felt that the little car deserved a worthy new home.
You can probably guess where it ended up: the DAF Museum seemed the perfect destination. Since this month, visitors can admire the rest of the story on the Museum’s upper floor.
* HAVAS stands for Hans van As, a garage owner from Hilversum.
HAVAS became well known for converting DAF passenger cars into convertibles. The first conversions were based on the DAF 33, followed later, in cooperation with DAF, by the 44, 55, and 66 models. Approximately 21 examples were sold in the Netherlands, although cars were also marketed in Belgium, Germany, and France. Conversion kits were even shipped to France, allowing customers to carry out the conversion work themselves.
Over the years, the price of a conversion varied considerably, depending on the standard specification of the vehicle and the demand for HAVAS conversions. There were also plans for a new soft-top design and for a convertible version of the Volvo 343, developed by Van As. However, these projects never materialized after Volvo withdrew the homologation approval for HAVAS conversions.
Hans van As subsequently passed the HAVAS moulds and tooling to a scrap dealer, who most likely destroyed them. Following Volvo's acquisition of DAF, the conversion licence was revoked, and HAVAS ceased operating as a vehicle manufacturer.