Glad to be back on the List. Hope nothing to dramatic
> has happened in my absence.

John, let me bring you up to date a little here. While you were out:

1. The whole tire issue got resolved. Didn't save the posts, doesn't
matter all that much to me.
2. The whole wheel issue got resolved. Finally, everybody agreed on a
minimum load recommendation, width and diameter.
3. People started posting craigslist and ebay sales of
reasonably-priced vanagons in good repair, and the ads have definitely
taken a turn for the better now that both CL and eBay only allow
honest, knowledgeable item descriptions.
4. It was finally determined that no matter how much you sawed, hacked
or customized your westy interior, it would ultimately not matter to
buyers in the future, and furthermore it was decided that such
upgrades will eventually increase the value of our vehicles.
5. The original waterboxer engine was determined to be the best for the Vanagon.
6. Somebody has begun making oil drain plugs for diesel vanagons
again. Very high quality, less than a dollar.
7. Somebody came up with a little clear piece of plastic, about the
size of a piece of paper, that mounts above the rear window and gives
the Vanagon a coefficient of friction just a hair worse than a Lotus
Elite.
8. No more seam rust, at all. Don't recall the details. Search the archives.
9. Scott doesn't care if you post where you are located, or what kind
of Vanagon you are asking about.

That's all I can think of. As I said, you didn't miss much. I was
going to wait until April 1 to hit send but couldn't figure out how to
schedule that in gmail.

Best,

Jim