Date: Tue, 12 Aug 2003 07:39:08 -0400
Reply-To: Shawn.Luft@COMPLETIONS.BOMBARDIER.COM
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Shawn Luft <Shawn.Luft@COMPLETIONS.BOMBARDIER.COM>
Subject: Advice requested....'81 AdventureWagen
Content-type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Well my first advice concerning VWs is that everybody has their own
opinions and you've got to do what is best for yourself. Anyways, that
being said I will now share my thoughts on this with you.
Air-cooled VWs tend to be a little simpler in mechanics. This often can
result in more reliable driving and cheaper repairs.
Also the size of the engine is all relative. You know the '81 had better
power than all of the 70's buses. Sure it may not be as powerful climbing
mountains as a new SUV, but don't fret it'll always get you where you want
to go. You've got to ask yourself if you want a vehicle for speed or for
the amazing camping comfort and coziness of the VW. Now if you choose the
speed then I'd suggest you consider looking at a Dodge or Chevy V8 which'll
guzzle about twice as much gas and probably not be as comfortable.
Now it's true the '86 is more powerful but so is the 2003 model as well.
Both will be more expensive to buy and also to maintain. I suppose it
depends on your budget and what you need/want. Personally I once bought a
'71 air-cooled and drove it to Central America and back. Sure it climbed
mountains a little slow at times, but it worked great on the flat stretches
and always got me where I wanted to go. On top of that I've got some
priceless memories that I wouldn't change for anything.
This brings me to another of your concerns which is the price. On this
subject I'd suggest that location is as much as a factor as year and model.
For example Southern California is full of 70's Bay Window air cooled for
the 2000$ and under price range, and the Pacific North-West is probably
more stacked with Vanagons that the middle of the country. That being said
you will find a variety of prices. Depending on how great the vehicle is
and where you live, I'd suspect an 81 to run anywhere in the price range of
100$-10000$. And I'm not kidding on the two ranges, although the 100$
special is something you only stumble upon once in a lifetime.
The best thing to do is shop around your neighbourhood and what what else
is available. Now depending on what you want it may be best to buy a
pop-up camp trailer, perhaps a bigger camper or a different model of VW.
It's you who's got to decide. The best way to do this is shop around a
little bit in your neighbourhood. Check the VW specialty shop for
word-of-mouth vehicles for sale, check the paper, ebay, and all that stuff.
Who knows maybe your neighbour will take 1500$ or maybe someone will show
up today with 4000$ and snap it up. You never know.
Also keep in mind how much is costs for new cars, and when you make the
comparison of what you're getting for the price, it usually makes the
vanagon look pretty damn good. Also, If you're interested there is another
list at Type2.com that specialized more in air-cooled models and perhaps
you'll find more people with the same year and model that can help you out.
Sonetimes there are good vehicles that go up for sale, and it may be worth
travelling a bit to get a good deal.
Good luck,
Shawn.
'73 Campmobile
'86 Camper GL
