Hi.

If it were me, and I was thinking of doing a DIY  engine conversion
(wait a minute.... I am doing one! ) I would get out my wire wheel,
strip off what i could of rust/leftover seam material, and POR-15 or
other, rust treat it, then do the conversion. Great way to get my
"feet wet" before tackling a conversion. I wouldn't worry about the
dings for now.

I would nurse that engine along, do what rust work (preventitive
stuff) I could on my own, and start saving for the conversion parts.
Unless you're totally stripping the entire van down to clean bare
metal, all one can do is slow the rust down. IMHO.

Hopefully the timing between nursing, saving $ and learning what's
needed would happen before a major part goes on your engine.

Now back to cutting my input shaft.......  --- ;^)

Neil.

Your engine On 3/10/08, Richards, Andrew <Andrew.Richards@nike.com> wrote:
> My vanagon is nearing a crossroads in its life. With 160K on the
> original engine and transmission, I'm starting to think hard about its
> future. Its body is pretty darn straight, but seam rust is creeping
> along and a body shop just quoted me $1500 to fix all the rust
> (windshield too) and parking lot dents.
>
>
>
> What should come first? Body or mechanical issues? I've always
> understood it's best to attack rust ASAP because it'll only get more
> expensive to fix. On the other hand, dropping a large chunk of $$$ into
> body work on a van who's guts are getting on in years may be futile for
> a guy who's pockets aren't that deep. What would you do? I'm also
> considering a do-it-yourself Subaru conversion, which could save me 1-2K
> compared to a pro WBX rebuild.
>
>
>
> Thanks,
>
>
>
> Andrew
>
> '87 GL
>
> Portland, OR
>
--
Neil Nicholson. 1981 Air Cooled Westfalia - "Jaco"
http://web.mac.com/tubaneil
http://tubaneil.googlepages.com/