Date: Tue, 1 May 2007 17:19:15 -0400
Reply-To: BJ Feddish <bfeddish@NETREACH.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: BJ Feddish <bfeddish@NETREACH.NET>
Subject: Thanks for all the help, the van is looking better
In-Reply-To: <WM2A34B0017F21432fADDDDE14A90EF5FF@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
I'd like to thank everyone for all the help this spring getting by van back
in shape after driving it for 11 years. Chris got my ass in gear last year
when he told me that if my van came in with a blown motor he would part it
out (ouch!). Last spring I got (what was apparently one of the last) the
interior from an '84 Wolfsburg. It is in mint condition. I completed putting
that in this spring with the rust repair. With lots of help from the list I
got the camping gear out (and back in) and fixed all the rust. I also added
the South African front grill which has a set of lights that are amazing. I
got allot of help with that one. The final plan I took was to run a fresh
wire up to them and put a switch on the dash. I only need them for the long
dark stretches of road around here. I also got a nice Shady Boy awning. Not
really a whole lot easier to setup than the Bus Depot one I had but gets me
that much more room back for traveling. I added a 3 point seat belt for the
rear seat. I added a 3rd eye brake light to the rear cabinet. Lots of misc
parts from GoWesty, including the best part, that cool flip down cup holder.
There are some pictures at http://www.feddishbasses.com/vw/ . GoWesty can
get addicting, point, click and it's in your mailbox 3 days later.
Yeah, I know I need new bumpers but I'm sticking with "as needed" this
spring.
The next step is the pop-top canvas. I need to see of Bus Depot has those
Westfalia ones in stock. Of course I'll be asking someone out there how to
replace it with the top still on. I know some of you have done it but I
cannot find it in the archives.
As for the engine, that's a different story. It was rebuilt by my old
mechanic 11 years ago. It was the last thing he did before he retired. He
was semi-retired when he rebuilt the motor because he was drunk all day. The
heads blew 1 week after getting the van. I did them myself after that
happened. OK, the motor has 72K on it and has had a knock since day 1. Would
YOU drive this thing to CA. I don't think so. I will add it runs smoothly
and the van has only seen 1 tow truck in it's live with me and that was my
fault. This summer I'm going to stay within "AAA towing distance" of my
house. I've been doing ALLOT of research on engine options, even lurking on
the Subaru Vanagon list. I'm still up in the air right now. If money was no
option I would order a Ztec tomorrow from Bosig. The thought of having an
almost new engine back there with overheating fail-safe is really enticing.
The turn-keys from Vanaru also look awesome. I can't say that a new rebuilt
WBX is out of the question but the thought of putting that shiny new engine
in then strapping on all my old stuff gives me the shivers. I've met list
members who say to just get a $300 Subaru junker then the KEP kit and go to
town, giving you an engine for a total of $1800. That one is probably out of
the question. I'm not going to spend hours upon hours matching wires and
installing an old motor only to be worse off than I started. That's easy to
do if you are mechanic but it's not for me. If I did do it myself it would
be with a complete kit from Bostig or Vanaru, I think it's worth the time
saved to spend some more money to get everything. Of course the final
decision will come from "she who pays the bills."
Now, what to do with these mysterious leftover parts from putting the
camping gear back in...
Bryan
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