In a message dated 12/17/03 11:48:35 PM Eastern Standard Time, 
robertmstewart@MAC.COM writes:

> The Police tell me they are towing the van several blocks away, from their
> it�s my responsibility to get it taken away to salvage yard. So my
> girlfriend and I walk following the van as it is slowly dragged while in
> park, down 5th Ave past Saks fifth avenue�s famous Christmas window. I am
> walking in the street following the van and then loose it. I go home and my
> girlfriend calls the police to find it�s location several times, we
> eventually find it, and I start calling salvage companies to pickup the
> vehicle to take to junk yard. I finally get one of them to come and pick up
> the van for $75 dollars. I go and meet the truck and they tell me they can�t
> take it it�s to badly damaged. So today a day later, I finally found someone
> to take it, the operator says to me... �Yeah I know this van, I have picked
> up 3 of them this year... You have bad fuel line that leaked right?� I
> say... �I think so but I don�t know.�. He then tells me that it�s little
> known fact that the fuel lines go on these vans and most early VW�s. I take
> some photo�s of the toasted vehicle and say goodbye to my beloved 89 Carat
> 

jeez....robert.. i wondered why you asked those questions about engine fires 
yesterday..   a tad late i guess..  that really sucks..  i know you were 
looking for a van for a while, and were a frequent poster to the list... ..do you 
have car insurance?  it sounds like you were just going to abandon it at a 
junkyard..   there are still good parts on there, depending on how much it 
burned..  the carat alloys might still be good, whatever else i dont know..   
Im not suprised by the response, at the scene..  typical NYC response.. just 
sit around and watch it burn..  im sure every one of those shop owners had big 
commercial fire extenguishers in their shops - NYC fire code requires them - 
but none offered you their extenguishers...  typical NYC.    so how long did 
it take to burn up totally?  less than 10 min?  ive always wondered how long it 
would take for a whole vanagon to incinerate from start to finish...tho i 
never wanted to find out for myself (obviously)   i Carry a commercial fire 
extinguisher under the back seat, one of those big jobs, and another one by the 
sliding door a-la-westy style.  in addition to changing all my fuel lines (think 
of it folks, my van will be 20 years old this coming year - 20 year old fuel 
lines are NOT a good thing..) i also have a METAL engine lid...from a aircooled 
vanagon..   if you had this, it would have bought you more time...and your 
van might have been saved..     fire burns up, and the first thing that it 
lights up is that foamy sh*t on the underside of the stock plastic engine lid, 
melting it, turning your plastic engine lid into a gooey flaming mess that caves 
into your engine so the fire can shoot up inside your van, melting the A/C 
ducting, and working its way up your headliner, engulfing your van..  would you 
buy a car that had a plastic firewall between you and the engine?  the only 
reason vw changed over to the plastic lids, is because they were lighter..   not 
safer.   if anyone is interested, i have a few metal vanagon engine lids...they 
fit all vanagons, 80-91. 
  
anyway the rule of thumb on the vanagon list for every newbie is to change 
your fuel lines..    which, im sad to say, you probably heard a thread or two 
about while you were here on the list..   but  the old "i told ya so" is the 
last thing you want to hear now..   sorry again about your loss...and  if you 
need tips on fighing the Ins. Co, post it ot the list.. many of have been thru 
the same thing..

chris