I think you have a bad valve body or bad oil pump.If oil pump, your trans
needs a rebuild.Not enough pressure in the valve body to move the little
pistons that shift the gears.Gotta check line pressure to tell, I think.If
not the seal or oil pump, it is probasbly the valve body.The good news is
that this part can be replaced in about 1 hour,with the trans still
installed.Contemporary VW's have a transmission that will fit the vanagon
too, or just use the valve body from the Jetta or
Golf .Shift points may be a tad different,but the vanagon w/ auto trans is
always floored anyway -right?.Check the archives for "auto
transmission",or "auto trans".If you search closly, you can find the
details on which years fit.The valve body is a cinch to put in.If you can
change the filter , you can do the valve body,if needed.At best, this will
only buy you a couple of years ,as the friction material is probably about
gone anyway.Roger