Somebody needs to snap this up quick! I am the listmember Steve bought it from, and the only reason I sold it was my 1985 Westy I sold 6 months earlier was offered back to me, and I couldn't keep both. The interior on the van looks new, it was never a kid or a mulch hauler, thats for sure. In fact, that was another reason I sold it, it was so perfect inside I was afraid I'd screw it up! The day I brought it home I was going sit inside it and have a glass of red wine. Instead I stood outside and just looked at it, being afraid I'd spill the wine on the pristine upholstery. I am really sorry to hear that Steve has to sell it, but I totally understand. Jeff Jeff Stewart ----- Original Message -----
> Well I bought this quite nice manual Blue Star van from a list member
> just about a year ago with an uninstalled 2.1 engine. Then I bought
> the exhaust parts and pulley and lots of other bits and pieces etc
> needed to put the engine in and proceeded to assemble things and
> install them and it went fairly well. Unfortunately, about a month
> later I was involved in a really bad accident in my tdi Golf on a
> freeway in Tennessee. It almost killed me and I had serious traumatic
> brain injuries. I have recovered pretty well the Doctors say but I am
> now slightly physically handicapped and still healing the brain
> injuries and as a result I am having to rethink my vehicle project.
> I have worked on the van again somewhat, since the beginning of the
> year but I live in the NC mountains and have no garage. The 2.1 wbx is
> installed and running and I have driven the vehicle a little on the
> road where we live at 3200ft in rural Ashe County. There are still
> some exhaust leaks and a few little coolant drips have appeared from
> the infamous cylinder head seals. Otherwise it starts and runs quite
> nicely and I have driven it up steep hills in first and second gears
> and everything seems to work fairly well, clutch, electrical system
> etc, at least to my limited experience. It has a/c, all hooked up etc
> but I have not tried it.
> I am thinking of selling it as it is, as I am not really able to do
> mechanical things much anymore. Its in pretty nice condition, metallic
> blue and the interior is in good shape with the special Blue Star
> upholstery and table, folding bed, jump seats etc. Wheels and other
> things, I believe are original. No radio.
> About 140 k miles on the van itself and I think that is accurate. The
> engine supposedly has less but it dates from ~1986 and comes from a
> Canadian syncro I think as it had a heater block attached and a single
> crankshaft pulley. It runs pretty smoothly but the idle might need
> some fine tuning. I have not registered and insured it yet so it still
> has a Virginia title. Located west of Winston Salem, a little south of
> Virginia state line and a little east of Tennessee state line, close
> to Boone NC.
> If anyone has any interest in finishing this nice project, please send
> me a private email and I can take some pictures and supply additional
> info. Hoping to get most of what I paid for it.
> The Blue Star van was to take the place of a small Aliner camper that
> I pulled with a Tdi VW Jetta wagon and a Land Rover Discovery to which
> I fitted a 300tdi diesel and 5sp.
> A big thank you to Dennis, Scott and other notables on the list who
> have helped me get as far as I have :-)
> Best regards to all, Steve Cotsford