> How desirable are the 5 speeds?  Any headroom gained at highway speeds, or
> is the gain primarily at the low end?  As far as I can tell these were
> primarily 1991, right?

5-speeds are on several model years, I know they go back at least to 89, but
someone out there will tell you all the years.  The extra gear is a granny
gear, with the same ratio as the reverse gear.  So you really still have 4
useable gears in city driving.

> Finally, any pointers on links to watch for Vanagon syncros/westies for sale
> would be appreciated.  I think I've fleshed out most of them (ebay, auto
> trader, links to J&R, etc.), but any thoughts appreciated!

A good source is the westfalia.org e-page want ads.  Go to westfalia.org,
then click on Classifieds.

bmc  :)