During a recent camping trip to Ft. Pickens near Pensacola Beach in Florida, I stumbled upon an elderly couple in a light beige '84 Westfalia. As I pulled in to the campground I spotted their Westy resting peacefully under a tree. Naturally, I had to knock on their closed sliding door although it was almost 9:30 at night. They were happy to talk to me, as any Westy owner would be to talk to another. During the course of our conversation I learned some fascinating facts about these people. First, I found out they have been Transporter owners since 1962! Wow. They bought no 'van' other than a Volkswagen since. Naturally, I had to ask about their current vehicle, its reliability and speed. I must say I was a bit surprised when I learned that they had put only 75K miles since they bought it new. Also, thanks the regular maintenance, they had very few mechanical problems with the Vanagon. Heads never leaked, and the Westy never let them down. Second, they drove all the way from North Carolina. Wow! these folks were true travelers. They explained that when they first bought the Vanagon Westy they could have made it in one day, but now, as they are a little older, they prefer to take two days. Then, imagine my surprise when I heard that they thought their Westy was fast! What? Fast? What about all those devout Subaru convertees? Could they have been wrong? The explanation followed: Our '62 could only do 35 MPH up this one hill, this one will do 65! Aaaaah, I like that perspective. You're on Westy time, relax and enjoy the ride. Chris, '85 Westy. |
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