Hi John,

Thanks for sharing your experience. This is something I've been
thinking about a lot. With shorter trips in mind a camper might not be
necessary. They sure are cool, but well, we'll see.

Cheers,
Brad

On Mon, Jan 17, 2011 at 11:10 AM, John Rodgers <inua@charter.net> wrote:
> Hi Brad,
>
> Good move - (1) settling on a Vanagon as the basic vehicle, and (2) asking
> this list for advice.
>
> I have three straight Vanagons - no campers. I have two 88 GL's with manual
> tranny, and one '91 Carat with auto tranny. The two '88's are y work horses
> and the Carat is my touring vehicle. I settled on the first two as basically
> they provide me with a rolling set of auto-parts, all interchangeable
> between the two vehicles. The Carat sort of fell on me, but with it I am
> delighted. It is such a plush vehicle compared� to the other two. Curtains
> for privacy, plush seating, heavy sound deadening, all electric windows,
> etc, Plush jump seats, fold out table, drink holders all the way around. Air
> condition4ed. Very nice. Why these three vehicles? Well - the configuration
> of the vehicle. There is none on the market today that can match the
> Vanagon. And - I found I didn't really need a camper for most camping I do.
>
> I wish you every success on your hunt.
>
> John
>
> John Rodgers
> Clayartist and Moldmaker
> 88'GL VW Bus Driver
> Chelsea, AL
> Http://www.moldhaus.com
>
> On 1/17/2011 11:27 AM, Brad Pauly wrote:
>
> Hi Everyone,
>
> I think I'm finally ready to take the plunge. 10 years ago I was
> searching pretty seriously but never pulled the trigger. This time I
> think I'm ready. I was hoping to get some first time buyer advice.
> I've been looking for '86 and newer Westys. Originally I was set on a
> full camper, however, I think I'd be really happy with a weekender (at
> least at first).
>
> I'm not really a "car guy." I'm actually an engineer on paper so I can
> understand most of that stuff. I do like tinkering, but it's been with
> bicycles all my life which are decidedly less complex. I have two main
> questions.
>
> Should I avoid out-of-state vans? Not having experience working on
> cars it makes me a little nervous. If I could find a good local
> mechanic to make sure things are okay I'd feel much better though.
>
> What about older vans? Am I needlessly limiting myself with '86 and newer?
>
> Thanks for any advice or feedback!
>
> Cheers,
> Brad
>
>
>