I own both a 1987 Wolfsburg Vanagon and a 1990 Dodge
Ram Conversion van. I bought the Vanagon in New York
in 1999 and drove it cross-country to Phoenix, AZ
where I now live. It has proven a very versatile
vehicle, I have hauled furniture and bicycles inside
it many times. It was the primary 'moving' van when I
switched apartments. I love the driving position, the
great turning circle and the roominess. My kids love
the dining table; we ear our packed lunch in it every
time we go to a park. It does have a certain
semtimental value. The problems? (1) The a/c does not
work and in Arizona that is a real problem as in the
summer the temperature is over a hundred degrees for
many months. It is a Freon system and was newly
charged (cost $450 at VW dealer) by the former owner
just before I purchased it. It cooled ok for about a
year or so but now not at all. Right now I can barely
use the van at all in the summer. (2) The standard
2.1L engine which was completely rebuilt (new heads)
just before I bought it now (10,000 miles later) drips
fluid. (3) I'm also nervous about the cooling system.
I have fixed one major and one small leak so far. (4)
One power-window has ceased to function and is now
permanently open. (5) The van has two major bodywork
scrapes, to the rear of the sliding door and on the
front drivers side corner.

As for the Dodge Van, it's a rock solid van with a
huge V8 engine (390ci). Amazingly it gets about the
same gas mileage as the Vanagon. It has a plush
interior with two front seats, two middle seats and a
rear bench which converts to a bed (at least will when
I can figure it out). The two middle seats are
removable but its not as versatile as the Vanagon
jump-seat arrangement. The double side doors open
outward on hinges, not as good as the Vanagon sliding
door. The a/c was converted to R134 (cost ($850) no
longer works but I'm hoping it just needs a recharge.
The body and interior is excellent. Compared to the
Vanagon it's a lumbering truck-like beast but you do
get used to it and for long freeway journeys it's
great. My kids love it. The turning circle sucks
though, its difficult to make a u-turn anywhere.

My quandary is that in my present fiancial state I can
only justify keeping one van. I also can't justify
major repairs or refurbishments on a vehicle I will
not use much. Its primary use will be as a weekend
vehicle and for summer trips to surrounding states. If
I keep the Vanagon, the a/c must be converted to R134
and repaired but I don't want to end up with a
money-pit that will cost a lot of money to maintain (I
only do very limited easy-fix type repairs myself.)

Any and all advice appreciated. Sorry this was so
long.

David

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