Congratulations John!
Your miraculous tale reminded me of a similar Westy buying
event in my life.
Back in '74, I decided to buy what would be my second Westy
for the purpose of traveling from the West Coast to Guatemala,
where I planned to live for a year.

After nothing panned out in the newspaper ads in the LA area,
I found a gorgeous baby blue & white splitty with low miles
& a dealer guarantee for $2500.  After the test drive I told the
salesman I would take it.  "Sorry," he told me, "I didn't realize it, but
apparantly someone left a deposit on it last nite & will be in today to pay
the ballance & drive her away."
I was crushed.
It was *just* the Westy I wanted & I had
already fallen in love.

I went back to my motel room, dejected & wondering how
I would begin the search again.  During the night I dreamed
that the sale fell thru.  Despite being mocked by my boyfriend,
I called the dealership when it opened & found it was true!

I rushed back & handed over the money, tossed a couple of
sleeping bags, a camp stove, & my camera gear in the back
& headed off for a year in Guatemala.
That lovely Westy splitty was home to me & my young son for
a year & carried us safely there & back.
Now *that's* magic!
Happy trails,
Phaedra
'85 Wolfsburg Westy