Date: Thu, 3 Jun 2004 12:12:35 +0000
Reply-To: joe trussell <vanagongl@HOTMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: joe trussell <vanagongl@HOTMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: Non-Family Hauler
Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed
With a carseat in the middle back of the 4Runner, the front seats could not
be moved completely back. (this was a '94, second generation, before they
went to the larger body.) I'm 6'1", which isn't huge, but my legs still
almost touched the steering wheel every time I squeezed into the thing.
Also, nobody over 5'10" could fit in the back seat with the baby seat in.
Our Corolla actually had more interior space for passengers. Couple that
with 17 MPG, a carnote, and outrageous insurance premium due to 4wd and my
wife's less-than-perfect driving record, and it was simply not a good
vehicle for us to own. It was solid as a tank, though, and very much fun in
the snow...
I've read in the archives of people retrofitting shoulder belts in to the
rear seats in older vanagons. That will probably be what we do. Or, if it
becomes apparent that the Vanagon doesn't suit our needs, we'll bit the
bullet and find something that will. If fatherhood has taught me anything
thus far, it's that I gotta be flexible...
Joe T.
'85GL
>From: "Aristotle Sagan" <killer_jupiter@hotmail.com>
>To: vanagongl@HOTMAIL.COM, vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
>Subject: RE: Non-Family Hauler
>Date: Wed, 02 Jun 2004 23:26:55 -0700
>
>Nope, no way. The kids like the 84 van but ya know, no shoulder belts, no
>rides. As soon as the kids were out of baby seats, the van became a extra.
>
>Volkswagen proved that saving 30 bucks a vehicle and making a much unsafer
>van... just don't cut it.
>
>Fricking a-holes.
>
>So some day I will finish making the 84 into a Westy type vehicle. It will
>serve my SO and I for trips to the mountains and seashore. Until then, I
>haul junk in it.
>
>Do I sound bitter? Be prepared. Get yourself another real vehicle. I hope
>you don't regret selling the Toyota. How the heck could you not have
>enough room in it. We did fine with a Saab 9000.
>
>tim in san jose
>
>
>
>
>>From: joe trussell <vanagongl@HOTMAIL.COM>
>>Reply-To: joe trussell <vanagongl@HOTMAIL.COM>
>>To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
>>Subject: Family Hauler
>>Date: Thu, 3 Jun 2004 02:02:42 +0000
>>
>>Hi List,
>>
>>I hate to add more fluff to the list, but I'm happy to be back and am
>>sharing...
>>
>>I've had my second '85 GL for about four years now, and when my wife got
>>pregnant eighteen months ago, we decided that the Vanagon was not going to
>>cut it as our primary family hauler. It went into the garage and we
>>bought
>>a '94 4Runner (with part of the downpayment courtesy of selling my '66
>>Westy
>>project--never even got to drive it.) The 4Runner was a great truck, but
>>we
>>found out once we had our daughter that there was NO ROOM in it. My wife
>>was driving it, I was driving a '93 Corolla, and the Vanagon sat. Then
>>about six weeks ago we decided to sell the 4Runner--I can't believe the
>>thing sold after being posted online for two days.
>>
>>To make a long story short, after the sale of the 4Runner we tried to
>>justify to ourselves the expense of a Eurovan. It just didn't make sense
>>to
>>me to shell out a gigantic car payment and only get 18 MPG.
>>
>>So, much like the USS Missouri in the '80's, my '85 GL has been taken out
>>of
>>mothballs and is now back in fulltime service as the primary family
>>hauler.
>>A Vanagon that once was used primarily for following bands, camping, and
>>tailgating now has two strollers, a pack-n-play, and a carseat in it. Our
>>daughter loves riding in it; she loves the view.
>>
>>Nothing technically valuable here, just letting folks know that our
>>Vanagon
>>is once again worth its weight in gold, and in my opinion, all Vanagons
>>are
>>worth their weight in gold. Of course, after driving it for a few weeks I
>>realize that it needs brakes, shocks, eventually a new engine, and a
>>thousand other things, but I find myself a much happier person turning it
>>into our family machine, and I also am refamliarizing myself with this
>>list
>>after re-signing up from an 18 month absence and thoroughly enjoying the
>>posts, even if there are a thousand today.
>>
>>Here's a photo of my Vanagon in the parking lot at Arapahoe Basin after
>>making it over 12000 ft. Loveland Pass a couple of weekends ago fully
>>loaded! My daughter is checking things out, making sure I'm not leaking
>>anything:
>>
>>http://photos.yahoo.com/joetrussell.
>>
>>Oh--Sidewinder Salvage in Commerce City has an '80 Sunroof van in their
>>U-pull-it yard...Picked pretty clean, but somebody might find something
>>useful on it. Also, there's an aircooled sunroof van (same color,
>>coincidentally) at Colorado Salvage out on Ratcliff.
>>
>>It's great to be back on the list.
>>
>>Joe T.
>>Denver, CO
>>'85 GL
>>
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>
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