Date:         Sun, 17 Feb 2002 09:45:03 -0600
Reply-To:     Stan Wilder <wilden1@JUNO.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Stan Wilder <wilden1@JUNO.COM>
Subject:      Re: WBX reliability - is it held in low regard in Europe?
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii

If you're driving any type of VW van pre 1990 you are not part of the
general driving public.
No car company has ever intended to make vehicles to run more than
100,000 K.
Most of those that reach that magic number fall into the hands of price
buyers just looking for transportation.
By keeping one of the older VW vans on the road you've accepted the
responsibility to *bring it back* from the dead or near dead.
You can accept this as a hobby or as an added expense.
None of my friends lust after my Westy and most of them never even check
their engine oil before taking off on a 1000 mile trip. Some of them add
oil when the light comes on ...... only then.
The Waser Boxers are certainly more complex than the Air Cooled but I
can't see any reason why they can't be enjoyed.
The underlying problem with aged Waser boxers is simply that the
maintenance and rebuild procedures are often performed by non-qualified
mechanics or vehicle owners.
The poor dependability factor has driven the prices down on Waser Boxers
and thats good for first time buyers but to an inexperienced mechanically
impaired individual they often become nightmare vehicles.
Most of you knew in advance about the history of the Waser Boxer and
chose to buy them over older Air Cooled models.
The Air Cooled models are not without their problems and I have a six
pack of $300.00 heads to prove my point.

Stan Wilder
83 Air Cooled Westfalia
On Sun, 17 Feb 2002 13:17:26 +1200 Andrew Grebneff
<andrew.grebneff@STONEBOW.OTAGO.AC.NZ> writes:
> >Does anyone on the list know if the WBX is held in low regard in
> Europe
> >(Germany)?  If it isn't then what is the difference?  Better
> maintenance?
> >Just curious because I'm new to this and was wondering if there is
> a
> >reason for all the reported problems with this engine on this side
> of the
> >pond, or if it is just truly a poor design (which I doubt).  Of
> course,
> >perhaps the answer lies in the fact that the new S. African
> Vanagons are
> >all (?) sold with the inline engines.
>
> I asked Tony Newman, then owner of Transporter Spares in England,
> who
> said that the wasserboxer has no problems, and scathingly said that
> american's just don't maintain them.
>
> Now, Americans in general may not understand car handling or world
> markets, but I'm sure they are as up as anyone on being able to
> maintain their cars!
>
> ANY engine which is so maintenence-critical and MUST have the
> absolutely correct antifreeze, has a serious design fault.
>
> >The bottom line is I like the Vanagon and bus styles, but need
> something
> >that isn't likely to leave the family stranded by the side of the
> road.
> >If there is a maintenance regime that will keep the water boxer
> reliable
> >(and maybe even improve the mileage), then I sure want to know
> about it.
> >If I can only expect average reliability and better mileage from an
> engine
> >swap, then so be it.
>
> There's always the Subaru swap...
> --
> Andrew Grebneff
> 165 Evans St, Dunedin 9001, New Zealand
> <andrew.grebneff@stonebow.otago.ac.nz>
> Seashell, Macintosh, VW/Toyota van nut
> Friends don't let friends do Windows
>
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