I'm often unwilling to accept "the general consensus"..but I'm smart enough
to read up on stuff before I buy.  There was so much information on the
failures and problematic reliability of the WBX as it comes in a Vanagon
that it just ruled-out that motor for me.  I'm not saying an inline VW
motor is perfect... and never having dealt with the wbx motor myself I
can't say from experience anything.  But "Everyone" can't be totally lying
about leaky heads expensive and frequently-needed major work and the need
for very specific experienced mechanical workers to keep them going.

I chose to avoid that.

Saw a cool silver Syn�ro today...had "4-Play" on it and some non stock
pipes...east of San Diego in the hot desert....
On Feb 23, 2014 4:13 PM, "Karl Wolz" <wolzphoto@q.com> wrote:

> Stick with the waterboxer, but get it, and keep it, running right.
>
> Karl Wolz
> Sent from my electronic umbilicus
>
> > On Feb 22, 2014, at 4:50 PM, Don Hanson <dhanson928@GMAIL.COM> wrote:
> >
> > My Vanagon is pretty easy to keep going.  I think the key is to replace
> the
> > troublesome WBX motor... Most of the unreliability issues seem to stem
> from
> > those...
> >
> > When I first began to  consider a Vanagon... a bit of research told me I
> > wanted nothing to do with a stock motor..... Every review said they were
> > poorly designed and very prone to frequent expensive repairs.  I was
> smart
> > enough to choose to do an "end run" and find a Vanagon with a different
> > motor... Rather than learn all about how to fix a water boxer and keep it
> > fixed...
> >
> >  Yes a 30yr old machine of any sort is going to have things wearing out
> > but with the Vanagon we're able to do most of the needed replacements on
> > our own with simple tools.  The Trick seems to be to replace stuff before
> > it fails...
> >> On Feb 21, 2014 9:42 AM, "Jim Felder" <jim.felder@gmail.com> wrote:
> >>
> >> I would not argue with that logic. They have to be pretty smart to
> figure
> >> out how to keep them running at this point!
> >>
> >> Huntsville has had a military presence back to WWII, and has had NASA
> since
> >> the mid fifties. Back when I was a kid, soldiers could ship a vehicle
> back
> >> to the states at low/no cost. Parts places and mechanics for these cars
> >> were everywhere. I was friends with the guy who came here to be Dr Von
> >> Braun's Mercedes mechanic and he opened a shop that has survived him,
> and
> >> he spawned a lot of other shops (he was the Fiat dealer for a time, and
> you
> >> know what that means). I came of automotive age at a pretty interesting
> >> time. Morgan 3 wheelers, 2-stroke SAABs, Alfa Romeo Giuliettas, all
> manner
> >> of British T-series and on, Simca, Renault, Citroen, VW, Muscovich
> (sp?),
> >> NSA all cheap if you kept your eyes open. A lot of them deserved to be
> >> cheap, but some cars were fun bargains.
> >>
> >> If you couldn't find it in town, JC Whitney had it. Look at an old
> Whitneys
> >> catalog and you won't believe your eyes. I have an old one that I am
> going
> >> to scan someday and put up a few pages. You will sob.
> >>
> >> When I acquired Fifty Shades of Brown, it had a sticker in the window
> that
> >> read
> >>
> >> SAVE ME FROM WHAT I WANT
> >>
> >> That is good advice for an old diesel Vanagon owner. I was obviously
> smart
> >> enough to ignore it : )
> >>
> >> Jim
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> On Fri, Feb 21, 2014 at 11:25 AM, Stuart MacMillan <
> stuartmacm@gmail.com
> >>> wrote:
> >>
> >>> University towns have always been VW centers, especially for campers.
> >> The
> >>> Seattle area has three VW dealers, one four blocks from the University
> of
> >>> Washington campus. They all sold a lot of campers over the years, which
> >> is
> >>> why we still have so many around.
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> At least that seems to be true in the west, and Huntsville too
> >>> apparently.  Hmm, does that mean smart people own Vanagons?
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> Stuart
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> *From:* Jim Felder [mailto:jim.felder@gmail.com]
> >>> *Sent:* Friday, February 21, 2014 9:09 AM
> >>> *To:* Stuart MacMillan; Vanagon mailing list
> >>> *Subject:* Re: I am not alone
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> I'm in Huntsville (Madison, technically). No shortage of parts here,
> >>> thanks to me! LOL
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> Plus we have a really good shop here and another in a nearby town. I
> >>> looked at a Carat automatic yesterday at my local shop. It was parked
> out
> >>> front with a Birmingham tag. The shop owner said that they owner has
> the
> >>> car towed to Huntsville for any kind of service more complicated than
> an
> >>> oil change.
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> About a week ago a friend with a westy stopped by for a part. There
> were
> >>> my two in their respective driveways, and this one on the street. My
> >>> neighbor, who just bought a red passat TDI wagon, stopped and rolled
> the
> >>> window down and said "You better keep them apart! They're starting to
> >>> multiply!!!"
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> Jim
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> On Fri, Feb 21, 2014 at 10:24 AM, Stuart MacMillan <
> stuartmacm@gmail.com
> >>>
> >>> wrote:
> >>>
> >>> I've heard that Huntsville has a pretty good quantity of Vanagon
> owners.
> >>> Aerospace folks seem to like them. Drive up for a weekend to get your
> >> fix!
> >>>
> >>> Stuart
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> -----Original Message-----
> >>> From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On
> Behalf
> >> Of
> >>> JRodgers
> >>> Sent: Thursday, February 20, 2014 10:10 PM
> >>> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> >>> Subject: I am not alone
> >>>
> >>> For the longest kind of time I have not seen any Vanagons around
> >>> Birmingham, AL but my own. Never see any mention of Birmingham on the
> >>> Vanagon List so have wondered if I am all alone in the big city.
> >>>
> >>> Well, today, just after parking my van and nearing the steps into the
> >>> house, I hear this familiar engine sound, and almost simultaneously
> hear
> >>> the unmistakable sound of a Vanagon horn down by the street. I turn and
> >>> look toward the street in time to see TWO Tintop Vanagons with cargo
> >>> carriers on top - one behind the other, one blue, one green, chugging
> up
> >>> my hill. They waved, blew the horn again, but didn't stop. Wish they
> had.
> >>>
> >>> But it's nice to know I'm not alone in the big city.
> >>>
> >>> John
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>
>