>
> Are the GoWesty (and other American vendors) SA mud flaps the same as
> these http://www.southafrica-parts.de/na/?

Yep. Basically, any SA part is just what VWSA sells at the parts counter.
Groschi at Southafrica-Parts.de just goes down to SA three or four times a
year and hits a bunch of the VWSA parts counters with a laundry list in
hand. At this point, any parts carried by US vendors are getting here
essentially the same way. When VWSA was still producing the T3 it seems like
it was easier to get parts. The parts factories were cranking 'em out by the
hundreds anyway, and profitability was good, so the availability was good.
Now, with the T3 production ended, availability is spotty. VWSA would prefer
to not have to shell out any more money to have more T3 parts made. South
Africa has the same "must supply replacement parts for 10 years after
manufacture" rule we do, but of course there's no mention of how TIMELY the
parts supply has to be. They'd like the supply of "on the shelf" stuff to
last, and they really drag their feet when they run out and more parts need
to be manufactured.  For example, the saddles for the front brakes were on
back order for 6 months, basically preventing anyone from assembling a full
SA Big Brake Kit.

Are there better after-market mud flaps than these?

Actually, I found a set of VW Golf mud flaps that I think look infinitely
better than anything else I've seen, including those made FOR the
Vanagon/T3-- and they have the requisite VW emblem to boot. They look
something like these: <http://tinyurl.com/oph7y>, but are longer. The
outside curve fits the curve of the Vanagon fender perfectly, and the
underside where it doesn't isn't really visible. I had to rivet them down to
the fender edge and fabricate a little metal bracket to add stability to the
free-floating inside portion, but I think they look nearly factory. I'll try
to remember to take a picture tonight and post a link to it.*
*

--
John Bange
'90 Vanagon - "Geldsauger"