I bought my 85 Vanagon in 89.� Impeccable records.� Can do little work other than easy stuff in my garage (tune-ups, oil changes, CV Joints, Shocks, interior embellishments, battery, house battery, alternator brushes, headlights, tires & wheels, belts, bulbs).� Meanwhile, clutch, 2 year fluid flushes, alignment, water pump, muffler & cat, brakes, power steering assembly---all those by local shops.� I think I've been lucky, but I drive my baby like she's a princess.� I allocate $1000 a year.� Has turned out about right....maybe just a wee bit high...let's say $875.� But still original 1.9 engine and manual tranny....just turned 202,000.....nary a drop of anything on the smooth garage floor.� Expecting big expenses soon.� Yeah, accounting for that, probably $1000-1200 is more like it for an annual budget long haul.

Rich
San Diego

--- On Mon, 10/22/12, turbowesty <turbowesty@GMAIL.COM> wrote:

From: turbowesty <turbowesty@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Annual maintenance budget
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Date: Monday, October 22, 2012, 7:58 PM

A few recent threads have me thinking about about something I pondered before buying mine, and since. 

I set an annual budget for keeping my camper on the road of $2000. That's for dealing with the expected unexpected as well as oil changes. It assumes something will break but that the ongoing investment keeps me ahead of the expensive part of the curve. 

And I assume that every 5 to 7 years some extra (major) expense will happen of up to $5000. This could be body work, some engine rebuild, or other expense. 

So how does that compare with your thinking and experience?

Regards, Peter Kraiker
1982 L Vanagon 1.9 TD 5spd (Babe)
NextChapter.KraikerPhoto.com
Toronto, ON, CA