Or, you could have gone to BBTD and held Ron hostage for all his
NLA/imperfect parts. >:D

~is it friday yet? :P
Sudhir

On 10/25/06, The Bus Depot <vanagon@busdepot.com> wrote:
> > IF GoWesty has them, then they would be the ONLY ones
> >  in the biz that do. Van Cafe (also on the West Coast)
> > *say* they won't have them until after the first of the year
> > and Bus Depot may still be out of them as well.
>
> I expect my next shipment of grill kits in about six weeks. I believe it
> will still include chrome emblems for now (not the black ones now commonly
> provided), and expect to be able to maintain my current (lower) pricing.
>
> > (VW South Africa) seem to let backorders pile up,
> >  then run off various parts in infuriatingly small runs
> >  at 6-12 month intervals to satisfy the "legitimate"
> > domestic demand, and then let the backorders
> > pile up again.... Groschi was facing the prospect
> > of having to BRIBE a factory worker just to get the
> > brake caliper saddles for the brake kit.
>
> That isn't too far off the mark, and it's why I don't sell high-ticket South
> African mechanical parts like engine conversions, brake kits, etc.  There's
> no way to predict future availability of replacement parts - it could be
> months, years, or never. As John pointed out, VW/South Africa is only
> concerned with supplying the domestic market (and isn't always exceptional
> at that); they couldn't care less if anything is left over for gray-market
> export. If your engine or brakes are out of commission due to a worn or
> defective component, and the part you need is unavailable (or backordered
> for a year), you have a big problem!  I'd rather give up that profit and
> simply not offer the product, than risk leaving a customer of mine in that
> predicament. So when it comes to South Aftica, product, I tend to stick with
> "safe" things like grills, mud flaps, etc.
>
> - Ron Salmon
>   The Bus Depot, Inc.
>   www.busdepot.com
>   (215)  234-VWVW
>
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