Date: Sat, 29 Dec 2001 17:56:34 -0500
Reply-To: Stephen Steele <steeles@HORIZONVIEW.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Stephen Steele <steeles@HORIZONVIEW.NET>
Subject: Parting out vs. Repairing an '85 Westy
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Stan Wilder wrote in Re:Screwed in a Westy Deal:
> Don't try to salvage a bad deal.............. just wreck out the vehicle
> and go get a good one.
> I'd think you had at least $3000.00 in salvage value. When I part out an
> 80-83 Air Cooled I finalize out at about $1500.00 and still have lots of
> spare parts left.
Wow! I would take a bad engine in a great, clean Westy any day, over the
opposite. Wrecking and parting out an otherwise good vehicle may be the most
profitable course... I can't imagine taking that course for a mere $500
profit.
If we were into these vans for the money, how many of us could wreck and
part before the market would be saturated and we would see far fewer of our
vans on the road.
I don't pretend to know Brad's financial position, but I should think he
would be able to cut his losses by biting the bullet and putting a reliable
1.9 back in the '85 and use it as he intended. After all, with the initial
$2500 and the cost of a rebuilt or reliable junkyard WBX he would still be
in the ballpark of the going market rate for a clean, good looking, good
running '85 Westy... check out the pricing at WestFalia Owner's Website
classifieds...
> http://www.westfalia.org/
Of the eight 1985 listings that I saw...
$10,500, $14,000 (both Canadian$),
$6,500 and $8,500 (both California)
$6,800 and $2,600 with a bad engine (both Colorado)
$3,500 with a"coolant issue" and a "bad lifter" (IL)
and finally
$5,800 (NC)
IMHO...
Going out to get "a good one" will cost him at least as much as the original
purchase price and the cost to R/R his current 1.9. An I-4 conversion would
put him t the upper end of the 1985 price range.
--
Stephen Steele*
Chillicothe OH
'91 Caravelle "Hans"
'84 Westfalia "Fritz"
'81 Diesel Rabbit "Ol' Yeller" by PO
'82 Diesel Jetta "Donormobile" for...
'82 Caddy VW P.U. ( White with a nice "mossy" tone from the
years' of sitting waiting to be discovered by a VW
addict like me).
'90 Jetta GL 16 yo Sons' "together" car
'74 MGB My first car...yep, I've kept it since '74
'93 Chevy S-10 I hate it ... soon to be "Gone"
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