here is how i approach the subject. the end of life will be when you can no longer supply enough parts to keep your van running. the general rule of thumb is that the older the machine the smaller the quantity of parts that will be available for it. here is where it comes down to how committed to the machine you are. if you what the longest life and lowest cost per mile you "need" to stock pile parts. that means purchasing replacement parts when they are cheap in advance of when you need them. additionally the cheapest source of parts is to buy a vanagon and part it out. the parts on hand are worth much more than the $300-500 that the van will cost you, of course i discount the labor to part the van out and box everything in a organized fashion. for example i have two spare transmissions and both vans that they came out of cost me $500. i've already recouped at least the purchase price from both vans so the transmissions are basically free at this point. jonathan |
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