Unka Joel,

But you just summahrized what Vanagon ownership and this list is all
about...we're a bunch of whiny sado-masochist folks who like to have our
wallets drained by a vehicle that we "love"....hell the last time that my
wallet was so aptly drained and I pissed and moaned so loud was when I was
"taken to the cleaners" by my first wife!!

Speaking from the shores of Buzzard's Bay.....you can't teach an old salty
dog new tricks...and you can't teach a Vanagon owner to go out and buy a
Dodge Caravan!!

Ric

At 01:01 PM 1/24/2004 -0600, you wrote:
> > if the vanagon i have (1984) is rebuilt carefully and
> > thoroughly, is there any need to worry about
> > reliability?  what i'd like to do is overhaul the
> > engine and take it out on the road for various and
> > sundry reasons.  i'm not looking for an "around town"
> > vehicle, and i wanna make sure that i'm not about to
> > start throwing money into a bottomless pit.
>
>regrettably, ANY 20-year old vehicle IS a bottomless money pit. :(
>
>if you look at it from a simple economic point of view. or even a
>reliability point of view.
>it's a sad fact that economics of the auto industry does not encourage or
>allow dealers and auto parts suppliers to stock parts for 20-year old
>vehicles. some specialty folks do so, but unless you happen to break down in
>their town, you're dealing with them by long distance. and since they
>usually know that they have the only bi-folding whidjet valve for your 1984
>VW Turbo Belchfire T25X, a lot of them aren't too sympathetic to the
>conditions of your pocketbook. :(
>
>notice that this is a condition found in all old cars, not just our vws.
>just imagine what the folks with the 1950-1960's british or italian cars go
>through. try finding a wheel for a 1960 MG-A 1600. especially if you have
>the wire wheels.
>
>even if you have rebuilt the engine and transmission and brakes and
>suspension and the whole blasted bus to brand new condition, that doesn't
>rule out some idiot backing out of a parking space and whacking you in the
>front right corner, just hard enough to smash lights and maybe bend some
>steering or suspension parts. now you're stuck ... can't drive it like that,
>but nobody in Bhumphuhq, Amabala has any parts with which to repair the
>damage. of course, that could still happen in a 1995 Chevy Astro, but it's a
>lot more likely that you'd be able to find parts for the chevy AND some good
>ol' bubba who could actually replace the parts for you. at a price,
>naturally.
>
>or it could be a pothole, or lapse of concentration that let you run off the
>shoulder of the road. lots of things can happen to disable a perfect car.
>
>what to do? buy a new car every time the warranty on the old one runs out.
>
>and that still can't guarantee that you won't be spending time in the Motel
>$5.25, waiting for the parts to arrive at Bubba's Auto Repair and Tanning
>Salon and Video Rental. the farther afield you drive, the more likely your
>stay in some small town, waiting on parts.
>
>but the more you learn about your bus, the more YOU can fix yourself. and
>the more you can double-check or advise Bubba when he tries to fix it. and
>the more you fix it yourself, the less likely it is to break down ... cept
>for the potholes and idiot drivers.  but it's sorta like adopting a dog: it
>can't take care of itself for food and water and health care, so guess who
>gets to do it? yup, YOU. same with the bus. YOU become the mechanic. unless
>you could convince some of the list vendors/mechanics to follow along behind
>you in their bus, loaded with tools and spare parts. ;)
>
>that's the downside. for the upside, how many miles are on the bus now? my
>91 automatic has 163,000 miles on the original engine and transmission and
>other parts. that's ten years worth of driving. not too bad, in my opinion.
>were i to fix it up and put a rebuilt engine into it, and a rebuilt
>transmission, should i not be able to expect another ten years of
>trouble-free service out of it? i think so ... assuming the rebuilds were
>done properly. and that's the key: a new engine/transmission comes out of
>the factory with a certain probability of reliability ... you EXPECT a new
>car to last at least 60,000 miles before you have to 'do something to it'. a
>rebuild? depends on who rebuilt it,and what parts they used to replace the
>worn ones. so the probability of reliability can vary widely, from garage to
>garage, and region to region.
>
>but done properly, yeah, a rebuild should give you at least as many miles as
>you got before the rebuild.
>
>but that also expects you to replace things that can't be rebuilt: rubber
>parts like hoses, bushings, and electrical things that go frzzt in the
>night: lights, relays, etc. things get old, things go bad, things break.
>it's a law of nature. old age sucks. but nothing stays young forever.
>
>so you pays your money and you takes your chances.
>
>good luck!
>unca joel