There are two of those couplers, one above the right angle gear box. If you think the lower one looks bad, the top one may scare you.

Dennis

----- Original Message -----
From: Jeff Stewart
Date: Monday, February 5, 2007 10:53 am
Subject: Misc. Vanagon Ramblings & Steering Coupler
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM

> Too cold this weekend here in Virginia to work on either of my
> buses, so I took them both out for a cruise. First was my '75
> Westy, which hadn't been started in over 8 weeks. Dead battery,
> of course, but with a jump it fired up. Took it on a 20 minute
> cruise, it ran a bit rough the whole time, but at least I
> knocked the rust off the front rotors. Then I took the '84
> Vanagon out to run some errands, took my 13 yr old daughter with
> me, she had not ridden in the Vanagon since I got it running.
> She hates Vanagons, says they "aren't real VW's"- I tell her the
> splitty folks say the same about the Bay window buses. Two
> blocks from the house, her first comment, "It sure is quiet".
> Half a mile from the house she says "the heat is nice". After
> about a mile on the highway @ 65 mph she says it "rides nice". I
> haven't fully convinced her yet, but I'm working on it. Anyway,
> return home and decide to do at least one thing on my list-pull
> off the piece of electrical tape over the oxy sensor light
> and reset it. Slide under the front and reach up, find the
> button and push it. Then I notice a rubber steering coupler,
> looks just like the ones the Bays use, and it ain't looking too
> good. I didn't know Vanagons had these. I checked Bus Depots
> website, didn't find them listed for Vanagons, just for later
> bays. Bentley shows it though, appears to be the exact same
> part. I hope so, because I have a brand new one I never used on
> the '75 (didn't need it), so if it's the same, it's going on the
> Vanagon. Searched the archives looking for an answer, just found
> a lot about swapping out power steering. Jeff
>
>
> Jeff Stewart
> fonman4277@earthlink.net
> http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/vwcampersmidatlantic/
> http://home.earthlink.net/~fonman4277/vanagon%5b1%5d?200712
>