
A classic Volkswagen Camper van is set to sell for a six-figure sum when it goes to auction in Santa Monica, California tomorrow.

The stylish yellow and white Type 2 '23-Window' VW went for about $2,500 when it was first built in 1963.

But now the van, which is strongly associated with the counterculture movement of the 1960s, is expected to attract huge demand from buyers - potentially netting the owner fifty times what it was originally bought for.

The seller, an American collector, will benefit from a surge in the hippy van market.

It goes to auction tomorrow at RM Sotheby's in Santa Monica.

Pictured: The stylish yellow and white Type 2 '23-Window' VW Camper van. When it was first manufactured in 1963, it cost about $2,500, but it is expected to attract six-figure offers when it goes to auction tomorrow in Santa Monica. The vehicle soon became known as a 'hippy van' after its strong association with the counterculture movement during the 1960s. The Type 2 was first built in 1949 as a light commercial vehicle

Pictured: The glorious interior of the van. The last factory in the world to produce the Type 2 VW van was in Brazil, but production ended on December 31, 2013. The van has many names, among them 'VW-Bus', 'Bulli' or 'Bully', 'Hippy van', 'Transporter', 'Kleinbus', 'Kombi' and 'Danfo'. The Type 2 was among the first 'forward control' vans, with the driver sat above the front wheels

Pictured: The driving and front passengers seats of the Type 2. Over the years the van was marketed to be used to carry cargo, for deliveries, to transport passengers, for camping and even to tour the Alps. But once the hippies of the 1960s got hold of the van, they made it their own, forever associating it with free love and peaceful road trips

Pictured: The classic Volkswagen Camper van, which goes on sale at RM Sotheby's in Santa Monica tomorrow. The '23-Window' model is expected to cash in on a booming market for hippie vans

Pictured: A view from the front. In the U.S. it is common to refer to the models by the number of windows they have. The basic van has 11 windows but others had 15. The 23-Window classic on sale had the same 15 windows but with eight additional skylights

Pictured: The speedometer on the Volkswagen Camper van, showing a maximum speed of 120mph

Pictured: The 1960s classic as seen from above, with roof rack attached

Pictured: The van's engine. It being sold by an American collector tomorrow

Pictured: The rear bench seats provide plenty of space for passengers