Date: Sat, 31 Jul 2004 21:22:28 -0400
Reply-To: "P.Dooley" <pdooley@VERIZON.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: "P.Dooley" <pdooley@VERIZON.NET>
Subject: Re: diesel conversion
In-Reply-To: <20040731225641.76129.qmail@web13526.mail.yahoo.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"
This is very good advice from Malcolm.
A conversion usually takes much longer than even most professional
mechanics estimate. You will be out huge time and money, especially
with your air cooled model.
Sell your van, take that money and the conversion money and get
something nice.
-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf
Of Malcolm Stebbins
Sent: Saturday, July 31, 2004 6:57 PM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Re: diesel conversion
I guess you know that your 1980 vanagon is air cooled and a diesel will
have to be water cooled so
they will have to plumb in an entire radiator and lets hope that your
1980 has the brakcets up
front for a rad or else they will just welt\d the rad to the
front????????
If I were you, I'd go on all of the van forsale places and see what I
could find for $6 or $7,000
and get back on the road.
I just looked on ep.com and there is a nice 89 westy for $7,000 (not
mine).
http://ep.com/js/mi/n0/1706375.html;jsessionid=1D379845FE8B78B395244D970
2E6B0E3
I question your idea re conversion and loosing 6 weeks of your trip.
Malcolm
--- Skip Emmert <skip@SKIPEMMERT.COM> wrote:
> Well, we've left on the grand voyage. The plan is to travel in the
'80
> Vanagon for a year or so. Made it 150 miles before the engine gave
up. I
> knew we were in trouble when the golf cart passed us going up the
hill.
> So, we've holed up in Pine Valley, UT and started talking about engine
> conversions. The turbodiesel has pretty much won our hearts and minds
and
> initial estimates to install a used 1.6 TDI in our '80 van are running
> about $5000. A brand spanking new 1.9 TDI could be added for around
> $6000. Needless to say ... ouch. The real rub is even worse though
for a
> traveling couple, three weeks before they can even start and then
another
> couple of weeks for the conversion.
>
> This conversion is way out of my league, so we're going to have a
> professional do it. Has anyone had a gas to diesel conversion done in
the
> southwest? How'd it work out and how much did it cost. Any
suggestions
> would be helpful.
>
> I'd also love to know what owners of the 1.6 turbodiesel think of the
> engine. Does anyone have an intercooler? Does it make a large
> difference?
>
> Thanks again.
> Skip Emmert
>
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