After hearing this last guys problem with his mechanic (not knowing that you
need to bleed the coolant system in a Vanagon) it reminds me of the many
other horror stories that I have heard which is what prompted me to start my
business.
Here in NJ where I live, even the VW dealer doesn't know anything about a
Vanagon.  If you have head gasket problems they tell you to replace the motor
with a nice rebuilt one from VW (junk!).  Any idiot can remove and replace
the waterboxer motor.  It is the easiest thing that you can do on the van
(which is why the dealer only wants to do that).
I talked to a guy yesterday who lives here in Jersey too.  He had a rebuilt
engine from VW put in his '87 Wolfsburg a couple years ago.  20k miles later
it is losing compression on one cylinder and running terrible.  VW says
"sorry out of warranty".  VW dealer says "replace with rebuilt motor from us"
another $3500.  He talked to some other mechanics that told him that the
motor was made of Chinese aluminum (I didn't know they made waterboxers in
China:) and that it would never be right even if you rebuilt it properly.  He
talked to me and I said lets check it out, probably a head problem and get it
back on the road for less than $1000.  You should have heard the relief in
his voice.  He loved this van and hated to lose it but all other sources were
telling him that this was a very expensive or even Non-fixable problem.
Ignorance is high on these vans, look for other Vanagons in your area and
point them to the List.  After spending thousands of dollars at the dealer
they will be surprized and relieved to find folks who actually know about
thier van (which most dealer mechs don't) and can offer them affordable parts
and service.
That's why I went into business.
Ken Wilford
Van-Again
John 3:16