Date: Sat, 16 Sep 2000 22:42:05 -0600
Reply-To: James Sperl <JiMelody@WORLDNET.ATT.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: James Sperl <JiMelody@WORLDNET.ATT.NET>
Subject: Back on the Road, good Mechanic, Ohio
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Hi. I'm happy to say that we're back on the road with both of our VWs. The
NB came out of the body shop just right and the Syncro has a new Luk HD
Syncro clutch which I got from the BD. As it turns out, I hit a stroke of
real luck (I needed it after the NB rolled into the van with the door open
and a week later the clutch on the Syncro quit) when I was referred to
Davidson Imports in Fairborn Ohio. Funny thing was, I'd actually started at
a different garage but since I've got a hightop, they couldn't raise the van
high enough and referred down the street to their friend. (I'm new to
Ohio.) Imagine my surprise to pull into Jim Davidson's and see a beautiful
white Westy out front a silver vanagon on his outside rack, and a blue
vanagon on the side. Thought we were having a vanagon convention, the most
I've ever seen together for a long time. Turns out the Westy is Jims and he
works on Vanagons quite often. His shop was immaculate and he seemed very
knowlegeable even though I believe he said he'd only worked a couple of
other syncros before.
If anyone has read this far, remember my clutch had only gone 25,000 miles
since last replacement. Turns out it was a bad pilot bearing. So, $400 to
replace a $4.00 item. He mentioned several possibilities for the premature
failure including a missing felt pad behind? the pilot bearing but I
honestly don't remember the other reasons. I mention this only because as I
listed to him talk about finding locktite on some bolts which aren't
supposed to be loctited, what appeared to be non-replacement of other
seals/rings which are considered standard clutch replacement items on a
vanagon, I was once again made aware of the value of a good mechanic. I'd
had my clutch replaced by someone in Alamogordo NM who may have never done a
Vanagon before (had to pull the tranny twice because of a main seal leak the
first time), had the driveshaft misaligned so the van practically fell apart
at 30 mph (and he wondered if that was normal) and smashed the starter cable
up against the frame so hard that it rubbed through the rubber cover on my
10 miles home, wrecked my battery, caused me undue stress and work and
forced me to get towed home. So those of you who don't do your own work and
have found a good mechanic, please, please count your blessings. This three
weeks without my van was (I think) caused by poor mechanicship but I believe
life here in Ohio will be fine now with an expert vanagon mechanic just 2
miles from our home. It was fun to get back in my van and drive away with
confidence. Jim Davidson, the confidence I've developed in him in just one
job is significant. When I see him driving a Westy and having other
Vanagon customers, I feel even better. His number is 937-878-7464.
Cheers,
Jim Sperl
91 Syncro Adventurewagon
99 NB TDI
Fairborn OH
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