Thanks Scott … that was 225,000 kms … in a vehicle that heavy, the clutch owes me nothing.  I was concerned with a new (made in China or Mexico) clutch not lasting as long as the original.

> On 11-May-2016, at 18:33, Scott <SCOTTDANIEL@TURBOVANS.COM> wrote:
> 
> Hi.
> unlike all Old VW Buses..
> on a 2wd Vanagon ..ya just pull the trans to do the clutch !
> engine stays in place.
> need to watch hoses, wires, cables, undo throttle cable ..all easy little stuff. 
> 
> I use Sachs brand stock vanagon clutches.
> they happen to be rebuilt in Mexico ..but ...must have put in at least 10 of them ..
> work fine for me, price is decent.
> 
> your original clutch lasted 225K miles and now you want one that will last better than that ???
> 
> I sure hope the Sachs clutch kits I get from Halsey Import Parts in Portland Oregon are the same 'rebuilt in Mexico' ones I've gotten for years. 
>   Sure would not want new from China.
> 
> Kenedy sells stronger pressure plates for engine conversions with more powerful engines.
> for a stock waterboxer I wouldn't want that myself. Stock is nigh perfect.
> 
> Scott 
> 
> 
> 
> On 05/11/2016 06:58 AM, Roy Nicholl wrote:
>> When I pulled the Hyena (’88 Westy WBX) out of storage last Saturday, I felt what I though might have been a little clutch shudder on the way home.  I experienced a shudder twice more this week - first thing in the morning after the Hyena had been sitting all night.
>> 
>> The van has ~@235K on the clock and, as far as I can tell from the records I inherited, the clutch has never been replaced.   I’m guessing the actual clutch replacement is similar to my ’66 Westy, but the disconnecting and reconnecting of the engine’s “tethers” is a much more involved.
>> 
>> Given my work schedule over the next month, I’m going to have to pay to have this done if I plan on being able to take the boy camping this summer - he’s been playing in the Hyena every day since it came home - and that likely won’t be cheap.   If I’m going to shell out a very wince-able amount of cash to have the old, snarly-but-good, local guy swap the clutch, I may as well use the opportunity to upgrade to a clutch that will (should?) last longer.  
>> 
>> I looked at an OEM (Sachs) clutch kit last autumn - because it was for sale locally - but it was stamped as made in China (not Germany).  I know parts quality coming out of China can be hit or miss, are the Chinese Sachs bits of the same calibre as those made at home (Germany)?   I have yet to find a Canadian supplier of the Luks clutch kit {I’ve read there are two Luk clutches - a “regular” one and a “heavier" one intended for syncros?} or a Kennedy replacement clutch.
>> 
>> Are there other candidates I should consider?
>> 
>