Dana,

I started pulling an A/C out of an 85 Vanagon to put into my 84.  I got
almost all of the interior parts out of the van and then I gave up.  It is
a huge job.  Getting the parts out of the old van is the easy part.
Making sure you put them into your van is a little trickier.  There are
about three different types of A/C systems out there that were installed
in Vanagons.  Because the Condensor is in the front by the radiator and
the compressor is in the rear by the engine the Vanagon holds a lot more
refrigerant than a typical car.  I could imagine paying about $300 just to
fill it up with R-12 if that's the way you were going.

I ended up throwing away my parts and just forgetting about it.  Now when
it's 100 degrees and I'm driving down the road I wish that I hadn't but
that's only a couple of months out of the year in Sacramento, CA.  So I'm
A/C-less in my Automatic van trying to travel as little as possible during
the summer.  :)

Hope this helps.

-Blake Heinlein
http://members.accessbee.com/heinlein/