Date:         Sun, 9 May 2004 00:57:27 -0500
Reply-To:     "Donald Baxter / Iowa City, Iowa" <onanov@MINDSPRING.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         "Donald Baxter / Iowa City, Iowa" <onanov@MINDSPRING.COM>
Subject:      Re: State Your Ages!
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"

I'm 45.

I got my first VW when I was 17 and in college (1976).  My father gave me
his old '68 Ford Custom 500 (Lime Green, white vinyl seats) when he got his
first old pickup truck (1969 Ford F100--he had always wanted a truck so he
decided to start cheap).  I immediately took the '68 Ford and traded it at
Crain-Daly VW in Atlanta for a 1971 VW Bus--Kansas Beige with a white top--9
passenger.  It had 130,000 miles on it and an engine, that I later found
out, wouldn't hold studs.  The Bus, other than the engine, was perfect and I
really loved it.  I later moved from Atlanta to Lawrence, Kansas, with it.

After a couple of attempts to resolve the engine problems with case inserts
to hold they cylinder heads on the block (it would make horrendous noises
when started, but when warmed up it sealed the compression leaks and ran
well) I traded it in on 1975 VW Rabbit that had other problems... but I was
really stuck on VWs by then so it didn't really matter to me all that much.
The Rabbit got me through college at least (University of Kansas) and back
to Atlanta.  I got a real job and a new 1980 VW Rabbit--US made--and VW at
one of its lowest ebbs.

After that, a 1981 Dasher (Passat for those of you not old enough to
remember Dashers) Diesel Wagon.  Then a 1985 Jetta GL (the best VW I've ever
owned--flawless for 145,000 miles).  Then a '92 Passat GL Wagon (back to
low-ebb for VW).

About a year after I got the Passat, I was diagnosed with what appeared to
be a fatal disease and decided that since it looked like I didn't have long
to live I wanted another bus.  It was the middle-aged version of the trip
you give to Disneyworld for the dying kids.  I didn't care that most people
considered the lack of a front end a vehicular recipe for a death trap; none
of us had seen those crash tests with the Volvo, and I didn't think I'd live
that long anyway!  I purchased a well-worn 1985 Vanagon GL in 1994 with
125,000 miles on it and proceeded to deal with all its issues. I finally put
a remanufactured engine in the beast in '96.  The illness went into
remission so I'm alive and healthy now and so is the Vanagon--mechanically
it is almost flawless.  The Vanagon was my only car for four years and I
drove it back an forth from my house in Central Atlanta to my job in the far
reaches of Peachtree Corners.

Before I moved to Iowa three years ago I purchased a slightly used '96
Passat GLX Wagon (sort of another low ebb for VW but not as low as the 1980
Rabbit) that I use as my daily driver.  With front wheel drive and ABS and
those difficult to find 50 Series tires it's just much better for Iowa snow.
I probably put about 4,000 miles a year now on my Vanagon and mostly put it
away for the salt-laden Iowa winters.  I don't think I can part with it.  My
partner, on the other hand, would LOVE to see it go away.

Donald Baxter, Iowa City