>
>I was just curious, where did the thought that Vanagons are inexpensive,
>or the spares to keep them functioning are cheap, and this is why
>perspective buyer's purchase them?
Well, it's not so much the parts as the labor. I drive a 1979 Dodge van at
work, and while the parts are indeed cheap and plentiful for that old
360cid V8 beast, it's a nightmare to work on. It needs less frequent repair
than a Vanagon, sure, but I'd never want to have to do the repairs myself.
You're right, people don't buy them in hopes of saving money (they better
not anyway!), but there are doubtless numerous people who can afford to
CONTINUE to own them only because they can do just about any repair it
might need themselves, and they have an experienced base of "enthusiasts"
to consult who can usually diagnose the trouble based on a three-sentence
description of the symptoms. I don't want to see good fanatics like that
excluded by a subscription-only system. That's all I'm saying.

John Bange
'90 Vanagon "Geldsauger"