Jim,

Last year while in Florida, I had some clutch problems and the fellow who
worked on my van also replaced my CV boots that only lasted about 6,000
miles (had been replaced by a shop that promised they would only use high
quality boots).

The mechanic at the Florida shop said he only used high quality VW/Audi
boots made for the front of a Golf (?) since he did not want to have to
redo any of his work.  I compared the quality of the ones he took off and
the quality of the ones he used and there was a substantial difference.
The ones he used were in a VW/Audi box but I neglected to write down the
part number.  He charged me $99.80 for 4 boots.   Perhaps your counter man
at the dealer can tell you which Golf boot is a replacement fit.  If
needed, I can call the mechanic and try to find out the part number of the
boots he used.

Harold
___
Harold Teer
1991 Westy
Harrisonburg, VA

On Fri, Jan 13, 2012 at 6:27 PM, James Felder <jim.felder@gmail.com> wrote:

> I was at the dealership the other day in a quest for an �ber-rare Jetta
> EcoDiesel part and while at the counter I thought I would ask the guy about
> Vanagon CV boots. I heard tell on this list how the OEM boots were heavy
> and pliable like boots of yore, and not like the paper-thin six months or
> six miles version I get at my VW shop. I have practiced what I call my
> Vanagon poker face for years and years and by now I am good at it. I can be
> told that a steering v-box will set me back $900 or that a diesel spider
> hose will cost $450 without revealing the stabbing pain, like an apache
> warrior. But when I saw the figure $199.30 for a set of four boots, my
> weakness was palpable and the parts guy could sense that I was run to
> ground. I grasped the counter to steady myself and looked over the counter
> straight ahead at the new Lamborghini pulling up outside. There was a pause
> in my speech. The parts guy filled the awkward silence so as not to leave
> me totally humiliated: "that comes with new  bolts and zip ties."
>
> New bolts and zip ties? Have they lost their minds, I thought? This is the
> kind of oh-just-have-the-whole-soda line of thinking that bankrupted the
> airline industry.
>
> I almost asked "how much better could they be to cost five times as much
> as I have been buying?" but I knew better. That would be giving him too
> much information. He would mentally use the fact that I have  been buying
> crap against me somehow.
>
> So I am asking you instead: can dealer boots be worth $200? Are they that
> much better?
>
> Jim
>