"I've found that the easiest way to afford one of these is to also own a
Toyota Corolla or summat."

Cheers to that.  My '93 Corolla is cheap to own, sips gas, and is a
lifesaver when the Vanagon's down...

Joe T.

>From: David Beierl <dbeierl@ATTGLOBAL.NET>
>Reply-To: David Beierl <dbeierl@ATTGLOBAL.NET>
>To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
>Subject: Re: Just how far in over my head am I? (long)
>Date: Fri, 7 Jul 2006 08:48:28 -0400
>
>At 12:57 AM 7/7/2006 -0700, Curt Newsome wrote:
>
>>This is my 3rd VW van, the most recent being a '78
>>that I sold about 14 years ago.
>
>Ok, just to be sure you understand that this -- the T3 generation of
>the Type 2 -- is a totally different vehicle of a different
>generation than the '78 T2.  It's larger, heavier, handles better --
>IF and only if you use the correctly rated tires, which can be a bit
>of a challenge but there's information here to help you.  It goes
>faster, has much better occupant protection in a crash.  It's lousy
>in the snow.  Like the Microbus, it's almost uniquely versatile among
>vehicles sold in USA, and like the Microbus, the Westfalia conversion
>is almost uniquely usable for general purposes when you're not
>camping.  Unfortunately the Westy conversion also wrecks the
>aerodynamics so it's a lot noisier than the passenger versions, and
>if you want to carry sheets of plywood inside you'll have to make a
>rack to raise one edge a foot or so.  And some people, myself
>included, find that it uniquely fits the way they are.  I would enjoy
>a T2 or a T4/Eurovan but the T3 fits me like an old shoe.
>
>involved in keeping a 21 year old vehicle (with LOTS
>>of deferred maintenance) afloat has been sobering.
>
>Ayuh.
>
>
>>So what's the bottom line - will I ever be able to
>>truly relax and have miles of trouble and worry free
>>driving, or is something always gong to need fixing?
>
>That depends to some extent on what you're used to.  I've found that
>the easiest way to afford one of these is to also own a Toyota
>Corolla or summat.  I consider it an expensive vehicle to keep in
>both dedication and money; and if it doesn't have special value for
>you I'd say get rid of it.  But if it *does* have special value,
>that's a different story and you'll have to evaluate for yourself the
>costs and returns.
>
>I'm the third owner of my '84 Westy with about 240,000 miles.  The
>first owner bought it in Michigan and had it delivered in Germany,
>and then took it to Edzell Scotland where my sister bought it for a
>camping trip in France that never happened.  She hated it.  The Navy
>delivered it to Bayonne NJ when she was transferred back stateside,
>and I picked it up on the docks there with 87,000 miles on it in '92
>I believe.  The transmission 3-4 syncro  had suffered the classic
>failure at 85k or so and was replaced with factory rebuild at
>fabulous expense by Norrie's of Forfar, the "local" VW dealer who had
>no idea what was actually wrong with the transmission.  Oh yes, the
>clutch was total toast after driving the poor beast 40 miles up hill
>and down while jammed in third gear to get it to
>Norrie's.   Headlight switch panel dimmer had failed and I repaired
>it in Scotland.  Starter solenoid was failing giving the classic
>hot-cranking failure.  Rebuilt starter (overkill but I didn't know
>better then) cured it soon after it came here.  One front spring was
>broken at the bottom.  The notorious Autostop propane fill valve had
>failed and been converted to manual operation before my sister got
>it.  Exhaust was near replacement time.  Various high-current wiring
>showed melting of insulation at the terminal crimps.  Head gaskets --
>i.e. the gaskets sealing the cylinder water jackets to the head
>undersurfaces -- were leaking coolant.  The AFM was becoming flaky
>but was eked along by various measures until a couple years
>ago.  Scotland is very cool and very damp and generally there was a
>remarkable amount of rust on whatever could.  Suspension components,
>bolts etc etc etc. and the beginnings of various seam rust.  Brake
>backing plates and dust shields were approaching lacy
>condition.  LIcense-plate lights rusted solid. There was also a
>botched repair of the pillar ahead of the sliding door and part of
>the door track which had rusted out completely under the bondo.  Rust
>was starting to force apart the corners of the fuel tank halves
>outside the rolled weld.  Exhaust support struts and engine
>pushrod-tube shields were in tough shape.  Coolant piping on the
>engine very rusty.  The underbody (which VW coated with wax-based
>undercoating) was pristine.
>
>The new transmission started whining after only 20-30k miles and had
>ring and pinion replaced by local dealer here in RI.  Been good
>since.  Shifts much better with synthetic in it.  Front stabilizer
>bar link broke driving over a bumpy field -- bad stress relief where
>the link mounting stud joins the link.   Exhausts have a rough life
>here in New England and this is not a forgiving design.  I had the
>engine rebuilt at about 180k when it was showing signs of imminent
>camshaft bearing failure.   Engine control has been a chronic
>irritation.  Front suspension bushings have started to fail since
>200k.  There was an undiagnosed clutch problem where clutches would
>start chattering in less than 10k miles, cured on fourth try at
>engine rebuild time.  Been good since.  Wallowing handling not cured
>by installing Bilstein shocks -- but cured by correct tires.  Rear
>suspension trailing arms finally succumbed to rust that began in
>Scotland.  Front brakes have had a problem with rust buildup on the
>disks -- I suspect non-OEM pads may be the problem.  The pop-up
>H-frame sawed almost through one of its tubes at the hinge and the
>resulting change in lead caused the corresponding pad to begin to
>work up through the roof.  reworked it with a piece of solid bronze
>epoxied into the shortened cross-tube.  Haven't fixed the pad yet,
>just reinforced it with a steel strip.  Various electrical nuisances,
>none drastic.  Starter solenoid is getting tired again.
>
>Body rust has gotten completely ahead of me, and it may cost me the
>van.  But it needn't have.
>
>All that being said, I've driven this beast for about 150,000 miles
>in fourteen years.  Much of the time there was some repair or other
>pending, and I'm way more knowledgeable about practically every part
>of it than I would wish to be; but it has only let me down completely
>once, this past winter when the B+ lead from the alternator to the
>starter corroded off its terminal and literally fell off,
>coincidentally as I shut down in a parking lot.  I jury rigged it and
>drove it home half an hour later.  It's a sturdy willing beast and
>still gives a powerful feeling of solidity and capability.  It has
>always been perfectly willing to run down the (reasonably flat) road
>at 80 or better all day without any detectable change from minute to
>hour to day to week to month to year.  It's carried anything I asked
>it without the slightest complaint.  Value for money?  You decide.
>
>cheers,
>
>--
>David Beierl - Providence RI USA -- http://pws.prserv.net/synergy/Vanagon/
>'84 Westy "Dutiful Passage," '85 GL "Poor Relation"

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