Greg,
I think since Mark is writing to this list about the vanagon I already think
he has made up his  mind. I think he is just looking for some reassurance
that were all still here....

Bill

On Thu, Nov 19, 2009 at 5:30 PM, Greg Potts <greg@pottsfamily.ca> wrote:

> Hi Mark,
>
> I remember the trials you had with Peregrine, and I am only gonna say this
> once. "Go with the Vanagon."
>
> I bought a 1987 wolfsburg weekender last April and have put about 65,000
> miles on it since then, driving it daily for service calls and camping in it
> on weekends when my Baywindow Westfakia isn't appropriate. It's been far
> from trouble-free, but overall I am way ahead of what I would have invested
> if I'd bought a domestic or Asian import.
>
> Yes, the Japanese make a durable engine, I won't argue that. But the rest
> of the vehicle is so vanilla that it becomes just an appliance to get from
> point A to point B. There's precious little distinctness in them; nothing to
> separate them from the herd that does things the same as everyone else.
>
> On occaisions when I have had issues with my 'gon, the list has TOTALLY
> been there to help me out. You're not gonna get that with ANY other kind of
> vehicle out there, excepting maybe a baywindow.
>
> My brother just bought a 1995 Honda Oddyssey for his wife. It's nowhere
> near as useful as a vanagon. You can't sleep in it, you can't haul plywood
> with it. You can't even find it in a parking lot, because there are WAY too
> many vehicles shaped exactly the same or darn close to it.
>
> <curmudgeon mode>
> About a year ago I chewed out a newbie on the Full Moon Bus Club for asking
> the group if they should sell their bus. I got miffed whem it out they had
> already posted it on thesamba. But really, did they expect ANYONE on the
> FMBC to tel them they would be better off without it?
>
> Which is where I am headed now... If you expect a balanced opinion from the
> Vanagon list, you have another think coming!!! There are many truly great
> people on this list, but precious few of them are "balanced", if you know
> what I mean. And don't get me wrong, I am totally OK with that. I thrive on
> it. I suspect you do too, or else you wouldn't be here asking questions.
>
> </curmudgeon mode>
>
> Research your purchase VERY carefully, and take the plunge. The right
> vanagon is out there somewhere.
>
> You're not going to get advice like this from a Hondayotazukibaru forum, if
> they even have such a thing, and they won't invite you out on weekends to
> such amazing events like High Country Bus Festival, EveryBus, BusFusion, or
> the True Canadian Winter Bus Campout.
>
> Now skeddaddle, before the curmudgeon comes back and tells you that it's
> your wallet, you make the call.
>
> Happy Trails,
>
> Greg
>
>
>
>
> Quoting Mark Hineline <hineline@HELIX.UCSD.EDU>:
>
> In a month or so I'm going to sell my 2001 VW GTI (1.8 liter) so that
>> I can buy one of two vehicles. The heart wants a hardtop Vanagon (it
>> actually wants a Syncro Westfalia, but the heart isn't writing the
>> check). The head says no, get a mid- to late-80s van produced by a
>> Japanese automaker. First syllable rhymes with "boy." Second and third
>> syllables rhyme with "quota."
>>
>> The head argues: good heat and air conditioning. An engine that will
>> last hundreds of thousands of miles. More power in proportion to mass.
>> Same relationship between the driver and the sheet metal in front of
>> the vehicle. Radiator and engine are in the same county. Fabulous
>> turning radius. No real need for the added interior volume.
>>
>> Heart says: yeah, but you'll still want a Vanagon.
>>
>> Anyone have any arguments that the head will listen to?
>>
>> Mark Hineline
>>
>