Hello folks! I've been away from the list for a couple of months but I'm finally getting around to thinking about the van again. There is one question that continues to plague me. In the computer world I'm familiar with there is always an end of life (EOL) to every product. And I'm not talking about when a company stops producing something or stops supporting it but when it becomes nearly impossible to maintain an old product. If you've got some old 486 computer chugging along and the network card dies on it you'd have a pretty hard time finding an ISA card to replace it, etc etc. So my question is, if anyone has quantified such, when will our dearly loved Vanagons have their inevitable EOL? Sure, some parts can be easily rigged, a few parts may come out of Germany or South Africa or where ever else. But there comes a point when even if a part is available it's at a cost that doesn't make it feasible. Of course there are other factors that may not affect many van owners, like how long does it take to get that part? This question has been eating me ever since trying to locate transaxles for my (now) 3 speed van. Cores are very precious it seems. Anyway, it's good to be back. Happy 2005! Chris Nashville, TN USA 85 GL (yeah it's still broken) |
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