Date: Sat, 18 Aug 2007 22:37:10 -0400
Reply-To: Wesley Pegden <wes@CS.UCHICAGO.EDU>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Wesley Pegden <wes@CS.UCHICAGO.EDU>
Subject: Re: Vanagon Cover
In-Reply-To: <000001c7e208$9bf2e0f0$6401a8c0@TOSHIBALAP>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
I know that this is a silly question, but...
what, primarily is the purpose of the car cover?
To protect from Snow? Salt? UV? Dents? All of these?
I'm in NJ weather. Cold, snowy, salty in winter. I've been thinking of
getting a cover to help decrease the toll this climate takes on the van
while it's wintering. Is this the kind of situation in which a car
cover is a good choice?
Obviously something like a carport would be better, but that's not an
option where I am.
-Wes
Scott Daniel - Shazam wrote:
> Considering how large a vanagon is, I know that any cover at the low
> hundred's price level wouldn't be a really good one.
> A really good breathable waterproof car cover........those are around 150 pr
> ,pre for a large sedan size I believe, so I would expect a comparable grade
> one to cover a vanagon to be much more like 200 to 225.
>
> I would not expect any cover to last very long in continual outdoor use.
> Perhaps under a car port ......but a constant cycle of moisture at night and
> sunlight during the day ........will deteriorate anything made of any kind
> of cloth unless it's Kevlar or something.....quite rapidly.
> UV rays and that moisture at night , UV during the day .....just eats things
> up.
> The end.
>
> More :
> - the requirements of a car cover are many, and each fights against the
> others - it has to keep the van dry and dust free, has to breathe, has to
> be water proof, and UV sunlight resistant, last well, dry quickly throughout
> etc.
>
> Worst of all, I think, if it sits out in a rain, then it's soppy wet until
> it dries....which can be days or weeks. .all kinds of gook gets on the car
> then...and it deteriorates the cover. If it rains, I *remove* my car covers
> - rain is really quite good for a car, if the seals work correctly etc.
> Rain in itself does not cause rust too much - it does of course on raw bare
> metal, and there shouldn't be any of that on a van or car anyway. So, to
> keep the car clean and fresh, and the cover healthy , remove it during rain
> periods, put it back on after the rainy period has passed.
> This isn't practical of course in Washington state, on the western side.
> Rain and wetness comes and goes constantly often. Not like a long hot
> sunny dry summer, followed by regular patterns of storm systems that last a
> week or so as it does in 'normal places.'
>
> When I lived in Port Townsend I described the weather as
> 'cloudy-murky-swirly'. If you awoke to sunshine ( a rare thing almost
> anyway ) that did not mean even slightly that the rest of the day would be
> like that , it could go from cloudy, to rain, to sunny, to cloudy around and
> around.
> When I moved to southern Oregon - AHHHH ! ....finally a place where it's
> worthwhile to wash a car because the weather might stay nice for many weeks.
> Speaking of...........it really works well to wash a van with a car wash
> solution.
> You add it to your water bucket, - it eats bug guts, washes off dirt,
> etc....and applies a wax coating to the van. It stays shinny longer, and
> dust sticks to it less, just by using a car wash solution.
> Later !
> Scott
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of
> Kim Brennan
> Sent: Saturday, August 18, 2007 5:51 PM
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> Subject: Re: Vanagon Cover
>
> I've gotten "StormShield" covers. When ordering they asked was it for
> a camper, and did it have power mirrors (as the cut is different for
> manual mirrors). I actually have 2 Vanagon covers. One is for my
> Westy, one is for the non-GL passenger van (with manual mirrors).
>
>
> On Aug 18, 2007, at 1:37 PM, Keith Ovregaard wrote:
>
>
>> My 2 year old cover is disintegrating and needs to be replaced, so I
>> need feedback from anyone who has a cover that deserves a thumbs up.
>> Mine gets a thumbs down for longevity and another thumbs down for fit.
>> It was obviously cut to fit a passenger van, not a westy. It's the one
>> from Van Cafe
>> <http://www.van-cafe.com/vanagon_parts.jsp?pa=p&p=1039354327>. Good
>> price at $115, but there must be better options out there. Not meaning
>> to slam the good volks at Van Cafe. Peter and the gang have done a
>> great job helping me keep the VikingWagen going strong.
>>
>> Thanks in advance...
>>
>>
>> Keith O.
>> 90 Westy Syncro "VikingWagen"
>> Past VeeDubs in the family
>> 1984 Westy "Brownie"
>> 1980 PU diesel
>> 1978 Rabbit diesel
>> 1979 Rabbit gasser
>> 1963? 23 window Splitty
>> 1965 Bus
>> 1969 Bus
>> 1959 Bug
>>
>
>
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