On Wed, 8 Jan 2003, TJ Hannink wrote:

> > I ask because I want to make our van something I don't have to worry about
> > on long trips and I figure once I have the rebuild - I might as well put all
> > new components on it as opposed to waiting for the next 13 year-old
> > component to fail in the middle of no-where.
>
> Any critial rubber or plastic part that's older than 10-15 years is living on
> borrowed time and needs to be replaced. I don't worry at all about long trips,
> I use my van for business travel and I can get called to go almost anywhere in
> the southeast on short notice.

I agree, but I think replacing parts like the ECU and alternator is
unnecessary unless they're showing signs of problems.  My feeling is that
replacing parts like that preventatively is as likely to cause problems as
it is to prevent them.  Wiring harnesses get disturbed, bolts get
loosened, hoses get pushed out of the way...and every so often that causes
an unexpected failure a few miles down the road.  The ECU that's in there
has been working fine for years, why disturb it now?  It has no moving
parts and it doesn't wear out unless something breaks from vibration or is
damaged by a wiring problem.  Alternators sometimes fail but have been
known to last the life of a car, too -- and an OEM alternator is much
better than a rebuild you got from the parts store.

             _ _
  __ _ _   _| | |  | David M. Brodbeck (N8SRE)              Ypsilanti, MI
 / _` | | | | | |  +-----------------------------------------------------
| (_| | |_| | | | @ cyberspace.org
 \__, |\__,_|_|_| "To the optimist, the glass is half full.  To the
 |___/             pessimist, the glass is half empty.  To the engineer,
                   the glass is twice as big as it needs to be."