In a message dated 6/7/01 7:41:16 AM, k1cajun@PIPELINE.COM writes:

<< What I wonder is if anyone has good experiences with the process.
 Has anyone ever bought one sight-unseen and shipped it ?   >>

Dave,

As one ardent observer of human nature (a convicted conman who spent 18
months at a federal country club but never gave up any of $3 mil in cash)
once told me, EVERYBODY lies.  In my experience of buying Vanagons, I have to
agree with him.  I have viewed 5 vans which were advertised on the web.  I
bought 2 of them.  One purchase was, in comparison, honestly represented and
the seller was a pleasure with whom to deal.  The rest sucked.

Once, a retired German engineer dragged my sorry ass 400 miles from home on
his lying word.  In his thick Bavarian accent, he represented a sunroof
Syncro as being PERFECT.  It was exactly what I wanted and we even negotiated
the deal over the phone.  I assumed that, in their profession, engineers have
little call to lie and who could be better to honestly assess the condition
of a Vanagon than a GERMAN engineer.  As I got within a hundred feet of the
van, I was gripped by the disgusting realization that I had forgot to factor
into my equation that the man was be a lying bastard.

Another time, I encountered, probably, the most despicable creature with whom
I have ever dealt.  He runs a business called Wexford Computers in Wexford,
PA and he is as jive as they come.  It took 6 weeks of fits and spurts all
caused by his perverse brand of bullshit before I took delivery of the van.
I could write volumes about that.  If I had not been so hot to get a rustfree
Syncro, I certainly would have walked away from the deal.  By the way, Chris,
if you are lurking, you left some of your important paperwork in the
glovebox.

As far as having the condition of a vehicle checked by an independent agent,
unless he is intimately familiar with Vanagons, it is a waste of money.  I
had one checked by a mobile inspection service and I did not learn anything
more about the true condition of the van than I could see with my own eyes.

So, my opinion is that you would be foolish to even think of buying a Vanagon
sight unseen unless you like the minor thrill of the gamble.

Rich