I would say that your decision has to do with your habits and locales
as much as anything.

Gas absorbtion fridges will not cool as efficiently in extremely hot
temperatures (aka above 90F). Note that if the fridge is INSIDE, that
is the temperature you have to consider, not the ambient outside
temperature. If you go with a 3 way, then you'll also have to deal
with venting. Westfalia and other camper models in the Vanagon line
installed vents, which, of course, aren't in the standard Vanagon model.

Propane fired fridges can last for a couple of weeks on 2.8 gallons
of propane (i.e. the standard external Westfalia propane tank.)
Compressor model fridges can last 4-5 days on an auxillary battery
(without recharging the battery.)

This then plays into the decision making as to what to go with. If
your camping needs are for a weekend or long weekend, or will involve
driving every few days, then the compressor models Norcold sells are
very attractive. On the other paw, if you are going to be in the
northern wilds and not driving for a couple of weeks, then a propane
powered fridge becomes something to consider.

On Feb 23, 2007, at 10:58 AM, Allan Levenberg wrote:

> 1)  I'm leaning to gas absorption models.  From the little I've
> seen on the list, my two best manufacturer choices are Dometic and
> Norcold.  Where does the weight of opinion come down on that choice?
> 2)  I'm leaning toward the 3-way including propane rather than AC/
> DC 2-way.  Again, what is the weight of opinion on that question?
> 3)  Is gas absorption the way to go or is there preference for
> compressor models?