<P> Most ice cream vans tend to sell both pre-manufactured ice pops in wrappers, and soft serve ice cream from a machine, served in a cone, and often with a chocolate flake (in Britain) or a sugary syrup flavoured with, for example, strawberry . Soft serve ice cream is served topped with sprinkles for a slight extra charge . While franchises or chains are rare within the ice cream truck community (most trucks are independently owned / run), some do exist . </P> <P> In some locations, ice cream van operators have diversified to fill gaps in the market for soft drinks, using their capacity for refrigerated storage to sell chilled cans and bottles . </P> <P> Early ice cream vans carried simple ice cream, during a time when most families did not own a freezer . As freezers became more commonplace, ice cream vans moved towards selling novelty ice cream items, such as bars and popsicles . Early vans used relatively primitive techniques: their refrigeration was ensured by large blocks of dry ice so the engine was always turned off when the van was stopped for sales . The chimes were operated by a hand driven crank or a take - off from the engine, so they were not heard as often . Modern chimes are always electrically operated and amplified . </P> <P> In Southeast Asian countries including Thailand and Cambodia, ice cream is often sold from modified motorcycles with freezer sidecars . Tunes played range from the theme from Titanic to "The Virginia Company" from Disney's Pocahontas . </P>

When was the first ice cream truck made