<There are waaay too many posts about "how do you make a diagnostic
reader work on...." "What is the reason I get fault code_____?" "How do you
defeat the_____"  Where do you run the _____, on the EJ-xx motor, if you
happen to have the other_____?" stuff like that.  Or stories of in and out a
bunch of times with the motor, or of cross country trips by flatbed,  back
to the shop to diagnose an odd-ball electrical glitch...Not very inviting to
me, once I read a month of posts more carefully..>

Don, I think you're missing something here. The Subaru/Vanagon list is pretty well moderated to stay on topic, so 98% of posts are going to be technically related. There are very few "fluff" posts like "Took my Subaru Vanagon camping last weekend", or "Can't get my fridge to light". And a lot of the problem posts seem to come from recent converts trying to sort out issues. Take the non-technical posts off Vanagon or type2 and you would get the same impression of bone stock buses-nothing but trouble with these vehicles. That said, I will admit there is a lot of confusion about the Subaru conversion (which I am about to attempt myself) especially over the cooling system. I have no qualms about the mechanical end of the conversion. The only thing that gives me sleepless nights is thinking about the wiring harness (which I have pulled from my donor car and is sitting in  my basement in a huge, scary heap), but I've all but decided to farm that part out. I've heard way more positives th
an negatives about the conversion. In a year on Subaru/Vanagon I think I've seen only one "I wish I hadn't done this" post. FWIW, before I decided to go Subaru, I asked the question of the Tiico group about their satisfaction with the Tiico conversion-the responses were dismal. One positve and about a dozen "don't do it". So, if you stay on the Subaru Vanagon list, sometime around around Christmas/New Years you'll probably be seeing posts from me asking "How do you..."              Jeff