> Second.  I think that the scope of this group goes beyond
technical q&a.  We
> are a community, and we discuss not only how to fix a water
pump, but the
> funny stories that go along with our blessed (cursed) vehicles.
On Fridays,
> we even talk about politics and passing gas (or was that
redundant?).

folks, like Ric said: this list was NOT started as a technical
question and answer list. it was a therapy help-group. :) and in
most ways, it always has been. yes, there are technical issues
that pop up and are flogged to death (same as other topics). but
basically, it's a daily group therapy session ... helping all of
us realize that we are NOT crazy to love these buses and to
persist in buying/owning/keeping them, even though pure logic and
the winds of marketing blow flatulence at us. yes, it costs money
that might be better spent on other things. yes, they are old
and, design-wise, a bit out of date. no, there isn't anything new
out there that works nearly as well or is halfway as comfortable.
yes, we've been abandoned by the dealers and the company who made
the buses, but with a little from our friends and the vendors on
the list, we can make it and keep our buses running for many
years to come. anybody who thinks it's gonna be easy needs to
rethink and probably jump ship and go buy a chevrolet.

we're in the same boat as the british car lovers (tr2's, tr3's,
tr4's, etc., mg's, jaguars, and so forth) and the italian and
french car lovers: NO factory support in the u.s. at all. so we
scrounge parts and trade procedures on how to fix things. this is
Old-Style Auto Repair. :) with a little bit of some digital
electronics thrown in, just to confuse things.

so when one of the group members starts off on a story about how
his grandmother beat him unmercifully with a frying pan and that
is probably why he hates wheel covers, let's all be respectful
and wait until he's finished talking ... and THEN we can hoot and
holler about how stupid he is. :)

besides ... all technical makes buses a very dull subject. ;)

unca joel