Date:         Fri, 6 Sep 2002 10:31:51 -0500
Reply-To:     Chris Mills <scmills@TNTECH.EDU>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Chris Mills <scmills@TNTECH.EDU>
Subject:      Re: VW obscene parts pricing
In-Reply-To:  <5.1.0.14.2.20020905165951.037a2b20@gemini.tntech.edu>
Content-type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset=us-ascii

Don't understand why VW wants to be another BMW or Mercedes when I thought
Audi was supposed to do that for them...

I know they make more money off of expensive marques (new VW) than
pedestrian marques (old VW) but why have two expensive marques in the same
corporate lineup? May have just answered my own question there - market is
big enough to support two overpriced brands within the same corporate entity.

Are they trying to be another Mercedes or another Honda? I though the idea
was to let Audi compete with Mercedes and BMW and let VW compete with
Honda, etc.

Guess they are just trying to price our old VW's into the junkyard.

Maybe making a better vehicle also makes it last longer and the only way
you can motivate the market to dispose with the old ones is to price the
repair bills in the clouds...

I too see alot of cars that could go another 200K miles if somebody would
invest $1500 to get it going again. Seems so wasteful to toss a car that
just needs TLC. Seems people are inclined to believe a new car payment is
more cost effective than taking care of the old one. If the Greenies wanted
to make an argument I would agree with - it would be one that involved
caring for your car to make it last 400K miles safely with a drivetrain
that was as clean as it could be. Funny how no one talks much about the
environmental impact of building new cars - just how dirty the old ones
that still run the roads are. Obviously LOTS and LOTS of money driving the
process here.

I think alot of people get that first scratch or that first tear in the
upholstery and then start letting their car fall apart which greatly
accelerates the process of scrapping the present one to buy a new one.

I hear folks all the time say - this car is costing me too much to keep on
the road. When I ask for a number - they will tell me they've spent $750 on
it in the past 6 months and it requires another $500 to fix a bum power
window and the a/c before hot weather arrives. After pronouncing the car as
worn out (which otherwise is a good car) they start talking about the new
car they want. They seldom compare the new car payment of $375 for 60
months to the $1500 (4 months of new car payment, 56 months to go) their
old car needs to last them another couple of years.

I have a friend who used to gripe about her minivan and all it's troubles.
Once in a while I would suggest a full detail - pay somebody to do it for
her. Then for months she would praise the van 'til it got filthy again.
Eventually it developed some serious engine problems that would have cost
$1500 but rather than fix it she dumped it and bought a new car payment.
Her money, not mine thankfully.

"We are slave to the lenders" somebody once said. I was the person that
sold a 113K mile Honda Accord b/c I didn't want to fix an expensive dealer
only available EGR valve. The aftermarket one never fixed the problem
completely (surging and rough idle). I spent alot of time hunting that
problem and was able to zero in on that valve. One month's new car payment
could have bought me several new EGR valves at dealer prices despite the
fact that they were overpriced!!!

We bought a new '99 CR-V which we love but hate it's car payment. Goes away
soon thankfully (the payment - not the car). The last Honda still runs
around town. My Honda previous to that one still runs around with 300K
miles+ and the current owner is caring for it well. Still looks very good.

My current '78 Westfalia has 200K miles and I am shooting for 300K. The
chassis is in good condition so I expect that number to be reached easily.
I plan to upgrade the fuel and emissions equipment to newer style injection
and a catalytic converter b/c I can. My Honda has 60K miles on it and I am
shooting for 300K miles on it too.

Off my soapbox.

Chris M. <"Busbodger" of "TEAM SLOWPOKE">
Cookeville, Tennessee

ICQ# 5944649
scm9985@tntech.edu

'78 VW Westfalia (67 HP -> that is...67 Hamster Power)
'65 Beetle - Type IV powered
'99 CR-V AWD station wagon
'81 CB900 Custom moto-chickle
2.5 Corvair engines for my Trans-vair Conversion