Date: Mon, 8 Mar 2010 00:27:00 -0500
Reply-To: craig cowan <phishman068@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: craig cowan <phishman068@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: On the Road Again
In-Reply-To: <c803c1a71003072112p6337f8davf340d51c2924395a@mail.gmail.com>
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I'm happy to hear of this outcome!
I've met all the aforementioned characters from this tale, and can
personally vouch for their sincere enthusiasm towards the general well being
of the vanagon scene.
Jeff, I know you will take great care of your new bus and truely "make it
your own", finding pride in every nut and bolt and savoring the experiences
it brings you. There is no replacement for the memories you made with your
old bus, but those memories are not lost as long as you have them, and
there's nothing wrong with building new ones! : )
Enjoy!
Sincerely,
Craig Cowan
'85GL turned WESTY
BOSTIG in the back
On Mon, Mar 8, 2010 at 12:12 AM, Jeff Lincoln <magikvw@gmail.com> wrote:
> Well, it has been a very long day :) Patty and I drove from our home on the
> Eastern side of MI (about 80 miles North of Detroit) down near South Bend,
> IN. It was about a 4 1/2 hour drive. Great day for driving - weather was
> near 50 and sunny. and there was very little traffic on the expressway -
> awesome.
>
> The goal of out trip was to meet our friends Scott Hengert and Pete O. at
> Scott's house - to pick up our "new" '85 GL. She's beautiful - runs and
> drives like a dream - and gets us back in bus business after that
> unfortunate affair with Grover.
>
> I tell you I loved Grover but this new bus (Gertie) is by far the best bus
> I've owned. Scott, Pete, and Pete's brother Chris did a wonderful job
> fixing
> her up. She was rescued from a recycling yard in IN - Pete said she was due
> to be crushed any day - I can't see why - she is straight and nearly rust
> free - what little rust she does have is very very superficial - especially
> for a 25 year old bus that has lived in IN and IL it's entire life. She has
> the expected scratches and dings of a 25 year old vehicle - and the paint
> on
> her roof needs some attention - but I'm amazed at what great shape she is
> in.
>
> There are a few things to work out but nothing major at all - especially
> compared to the things I needed to do to get Grover on the road. Biggest
> thing is getting the heat hooked back up - it was bypassed due to the bus
> being used in summer and a "rush" to get her on the road - the heater hoses
> were suspect so Scott removed them with the intention of replacing them. No
> big deal there - shouldn't be too hard to get that taken care of. I'll also
> need to R&R the gas tank - she over flows when filled up. The only other
> thng i'd like to do right away is get a proper fuel pump mounting bracket -
> she has a new pump but it's mounted right to the frame and is VERY loud -
> again not a big deal (By the way if anyone has one of these for sale or a
> DIY alternative I'm all ears).
>
> I quite enjoyed the 4 1/2 hour ride home - even with no radio, the noisy
> fuel pump, and loud snow tires - honestly I was in heaven. Pete is right
> this bus is something special.
>
> Turns out - as Pete tells me - the bus was "born" in March of 1985 so it
> was
> sort of cool I was picking it up now - I'll call today her 25th birthday.
> According to carfax it was delivered to the US 4/11/85 - it's
> destination...Indiana. So it hasn't traveled too far. Looks like I'm the
> 4th
> (maybe 5th) owner.
>
> I want to thank Scotty for making me such a nice offer on it - I can't wait
> to get her all set the way we want her (and get some quieter tires). Pete -
> thank you too for the pictures, meeting us there today, and just being a
> good friend - it was good to see you today.
>
> So there you have it - Gertrude "Gertie" Blue (named after the Gertrude St
> Recycling yard it was rescued from) has come home to our house - hopefully
> for a very long time.
>
> Life is good!
> --
> Thanks,
>
> Jeff
> '85GL (Gertie)
> '90 Carat (Grover) - preparing to become an organ donor
> '86 (soon to be scrap)
> '78 Bus (Melissa) Patty's Bus
>
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