on 7/4/03 12:02 PM, jesse and monica at jjmojo@SUSCOM.NET wrote:

> on selling there Vanagon baby in the near
> future...please contact me...I am willing to travel about 150 to 200
> miles to pick it up if I have to. Others on the list...any advice would
> be great.

I've bought 3 Vanagons...and I bought them all in California (I would have
bought a South Carolina had it not already been sold.) The main reason is I
wanted to start my ownership with a rust free (or nearly rust free) van.
California has a lot of these. Else where (especially Pennsylvania and the
rest of the salt belt) your chances of getting a good rust free one are much
slimmer.

On a side note, buying the Vanagons in California also gave me a chance to
drive across the country (which in itself is a worth while endeavor if you
have the time.)

So with all that said, you will also want to get the Bentley manual for a
Vanagon (once you have gotten one.) The previous owner may also have already
had one, so since they aren't cheap, you might want to wait to get one until
you've made your purchase...as it might get included with your van (one of
mine did.)

Others can give you the care and feeding story on the engines (though that
is certainly covered extensively in the archives.)

Also, should you be oriented towards using it in the snow, I'd suggest you
look for a Syncro (4wd) version. Less common (and also more expensive) than
the 2wd versions, they are much better in the snow and a lot more fun off
road. Again, you'll find better selection for Syncros out west. But some do
crop up elsewhere from time to time.