In my opinion, the original Vanagon engineers did FAR more right than they did wrong.  It's like any occupation...you make mistakes, you learn, you correct.  That is why on the bottom right corner of every engineering drawing or document on the planet....you will see a Block titled as "REV".  It starts out, once released, as "A".  Then it proceeds to revision "B".  And so on. I have seen it go to multiple letters.  

Yes...I am an engineer.  Now retired.

Of course, the other saying "Hindsight is 20/20" is also very valid.  Just the way it goes.  Hence, our forum here.

But, do you want to drive a Model T?  Or fly in a DC-3?  It's all about progress.  One learns far more from their mistakes than from their successes.  Experience builds.
Those Vanagon Engineers did a pretty cool job.  In my opinion, with all the constraints they had to deal with.  Most of the time, they were correct.  Not always though.  And so, we all slug along.

Rich
San Diego

    On Tuesday, February 2, 2021, 9:50:47 PM PST, OlRivrRat <olrivrrat@comcast.net> wrote:  
 
         You asked the ? >

 “is my thinking that the VW engineers might know more than the rest of us completely bogus?”

I Answered > Bogus ~

> On 2 Feb , 2021, at 10:19 PM, David McNeely <davmcneely40@GMAIL.COM> wrote:
> 
> Hmmm.... .  Meaning?  You seem pretty sure of SOMETHING.  What are you
> saying is bogus?
> 
> On Tue, Feb 2, 2021 at 9:05 PM OlRivrRat <OlRivrRat@comcast.net> wrote:
> 
>>        Bogus !!
>> 
>>> On 1 Feb , 2021, at 12:10 PM, David McNeely <davmcneely40@GMAIL.COM>
>> wrote:
>>> 
>>> Am I stupid, or is my thinking that the VW engineers might know more than
>>> the rest of us completely bogus?