Scott, you picked an extreme example to make your point. Most of us
have not spent that kind of money on a conversion. We got into factory
westies and vanagons pretty cheap. I just went through a waterboxer
engine last summer and after I did was hit with waves of electrical
problems to overcome (not related to the rebuild).  I would not care
to rebuild another one.

I can go through a diesel in just over a weekend after I get it back
from the machine shop. And then I don't have to touch it for years.

I never got the kind of reliability from my gasser in later years. I
was in my parts place for something all the time. The diesel, I just
drive it. It's been a good, cheap car for me that I've had a lot of
fun with and done a lot of camping in. Still doing it.

Jim

On Wed, Feb 11, 2009 at 3:40 PM, Scott Daniel - Turbovans
<scottdaniel@turbovans.com> wrote:
> why would anyone want a diesel ( btdt ) .....
> except for the better fuel milage, they are costlier over the long run to
> purchase, own, operate, and repair, or at least 'quite often' they are.
>
> typical example.......
> nice used geman -made AAZ went into a vanagon.......the techician/owner took
> it to hawaii where he does rental westy's.
> it was a darn tight and good AAZ too, only about 40,000 miles on it. Ran
> perfect.
> He spent.......you know........about 5 grand on that conversion, perhaps a
> bit more. Twice what the westy he put it in cost.
>
> got about a good year and a half out of it.
> The engine 'overheated' or somehow failed with a rental customer driving it.
> I asked him about it just last night even ...........the head is completey
> trashed.
> he put a waterboxer back in.
>
> diesel engines can do harm to themselvses in ways that gasoline engines
> can't ........like a bad injector causing damage in a combustion chamber.
> They depend on the condition of the engine itself to create
> combustion........if that gets a little weak.........and you don't get
> complete combustion.
> they are an interferece design and have a critical timing belt.....
> and a few other things .......
>
> I'll build 'em , or sell 'em .........but I'm tellin' ya ..........'a good
> portion of the time' they are not cheaper to purchase, operate, repair, and
> own, even if they do get 30  to 40 % better fuel economy on more expensive
> fuel.
> They do have great low end torque though,
> and you can run plant-based fuels, yes.....no argument there.
> and sometimes they have a nasty habbit of smoking, smelling, and rattling
> and vibarating.
> put it this way ...........
> they do not make good 'old' engines. They make good expensive new engines.
>
> the subaru diesel may have some 'not vanagon' friendly
> characteristics.........like CAN BUS electronics,
> and a too low turbo location for syncro's and off road use.........but
> turbo's can be moved too. They're only 2 liters also.
>
> but it's all fun, and I think mainly the real  'thrill' of diesel is 'being
> different' than the masses.  I 'did vanagon diesel about 8 years btw )
> And I won't argue with good low end torque.......you got me there for sure !
> ...particularily in TDI's.
>
> your crazy freind.
>
> ( and I won't even mention a guy I know with a 2004 tdi jetta.......
> had an injection pump rebuid that cost about $ 2,000 ........a part that a
> fuel injected gasoline doesn't even have...........then it cost about
> another $ 900 to get another shop to really dial in the timing belt and
> timing exactly right.  Ain't no ecomomy there Martha ! )
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Allan Streib" <streib@CS.INDIANA.EDU>
> To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
> Sent: Wednesday, February 11, 2009 12:25 PM
> Subject: Re: The real story about the invention of the WBX?
>
>
>> On Wed, 11 Feb 2009 14:02:55 -0600, "John Rodgers" <inua@CHARTER.NET>
>> said:
>>
>>> Japanese have transmuted it into a very fine piece of modern machinery -
>>> the Suburu flat four.- and now the flat six and most recently a flat
>>> diesel all of which evidently can fit nicely into a Vanagon.
>>
>> I soooo wish we could get that Subaru boxer diesel here.....
>>
>> Allan
>