Not long after I got my 90 Westy I became pissed at the engine -
unreliable, low power and inefficient.  I reviewed all the conversion
options and settled on the Subaru conversion.  It was an easier conversion
than I thought - the only difficult task was the harness
fabrication.  There is alot of support for the Subaru conversion and
several vendors that build conversion bits and peices just for the
conversion.  There is no need anymore to fabricate stuff as you can
purchase it all from the various vendors.  In the end you have a fabulous
engine that is about the same price as a WBX rebuild (if you do the
conversion labor yourself).

I now have two Vanagon/Westys with these conversions.  They're just like a
regular vehicle now - lots of reserve power, very reliable and smooth, good
mileage.

I have become such a fan of this conversion that a buddy of mine (Tom
Shiels) have setup a web site to promote it.  Here's the web site:
www.subaruvanagon.com .

There are now about 200 of these conversions in North America and growing
quickly.  A vibrant web site with tons of information is at:
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/subaruvanagon/>http<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/subaruvanagon/>://groups.yahoo.com/<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/subaruvanagon/>group/subaruvanagon<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/subaruvanagon/>/

- Laurence

At 09:28 AM 2/11/05, Stephen Edwards wrote:
>Thanks to everyone who has replied to my previous messages... now I
>have a NOTHER new one.
>
>The fine red 91 GL I just put on the road gets 15.5 mpg on the
>highway - and that was at 65-70 mph in central Illinois where there
>are no hills, not on I-55 anyway. This is the worst gas mileage I've
>had since I sold my 69 Chevy Malibu in 1981.
>
>It (the vanagon) has a new airfilter and belts, and the electrics
>checked out OK per my trusty neighborhood shop. It does have a
>horrible generic muffler which I could replace to improve back
>pressure, and I could replace the oxy sensor too.  But before I get
>into fixing this... it has 155K on it, the body is still
>exceptionally nice, maybe this is the time to go with an engine
>conversion. (I already know I have to replace the trans so there's a
>case for doing it all at the same time).
>
>Of the possible engine conversions out there, which -in the opinion
>of list members - is the most reliable and economical for the buck?
>
>Needless to say in Illinois I am not likely to find anyone who has
>ever handled these conversions before.
>
>Steve, Chicago, VW van owner since 1981.

  Laurence Smith
  Alan A. Smith Inc.
  17 Lynndale Dr.
  Dundas, Ontario, Canada L9H 3L4
  T: +1 905 628 4682
  F: +1 905 628 1364
  E: laurence@alanasmith.com
  W: www.miduss.com
-----------------------------------------------------------------------