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Date:         Fri, 23 Oct 2009 15:06:15 -0700
Reply-To:     Robert Fisher <refisher@MCHSI.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Robert Fisher <refisher@MCHSI.COM>
Subject:      Re: Friday: than Vanagon smell?
In-Reply-To:  <4AE223EC.8030808@gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

No wonder you've had three wives.

My great-uncle Julius had an early sixties Beetle, which was the first VW I ever rode in. He bought it new, and thinking back on it now it seems a strange thing for him to do considering his sensibilities, particularly at that time in the South. I was just a six-year-old that thought it was a cool car. As far as know he drove that thing 'til he died almost thirty years later. Anyway, the first time I got in the thing... er- the bug, rather, I asked him what 'that smell' was. He said it came from the straw that VW used to stuff the seats. If we've had the Vgon closed up on a really hot day, I can get a whiff of that same smell right when I open the door; otherwise I don't smell it at all.

Cya, Robert

-----Original Message----- From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of Rocket J Squirrel Sent: Friday, October 23, 2009 2:45 PM To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM Subject: Re: Friday: than Vanagon smell?

When I was in high school one of my friends was able to borrow the family's splittie for our occasional ill-considered ventures. That thing had a dank and resentful* smell, which we attributed to my friend's older brother.

========== * The way I like my women.

-- Mike "Rocket J Squirrel" Elliott 84 Westfalia: Mellow Yellow ("The Electrical Banana") 74 Westrailia: (Ladybug Trailer company, San Juan Capistrano, Calif.) Bend, OR KG6RCR

On 10/23/2009 1:52 PM Jim Felder wrote:

> Recently I went camping and paddling, and, not being near a trash > receptacle, didn't get a waterlogged bag of overnight group garbage > out of my westy until the end of the day. Following this were two > straight weeks of rain and three nights of camping during that time. > The vanagon didn't have a chance to dry out. My supernice rubber rear > mat held most of that, but in a matter of days it became obvious that > water had gone everywhere--the smell of mildew got pretty strong. I > put in a heater and a fan for three days and then the sun came out and > things got better. As a test, I had my wife come out and give it the > test as my nose is unpredictable. She said she couldn't smell anything > but a "vanagon smell." > > "What?" > > We've had three vanagons, one new since 90 (gone as of last summer) > and a 91 (both gas) and the 83 westy (diesel) > > "Do you mean a cooking smell, in the westy?" > > "No, they all have a certain smell." > > My daughter got in on the conversation and said that all VWs have that > smell, going back to the first VWs she remembers, my wife's 65 bug and > my 69 bus we drove through the 70s. She thought it might be that > rear-engined VW were substantially different from front-engined ones, > but I assured her that that was probably not the case. > > I asked her if my Jetta, which is fairly new to me (and a diesel), > smelled that way. Leading to the possibility that it is me, not the > cars, with the volkswagen/vanagon smell. But it was agreed that I have > had other cars that did not have "that smell." > > What to make of this? > > The malevolent odor of the wet westy is almost gone. Anything to do to > ensure the smell doesn't come back in wet weather? > > Jim >


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