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Date:         Fri, 21 May 2010 09:23:17 -0500
Reply-To:     Jim Felder <jim.felder@GMAIL.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Jim Felder <jim.felder@GMAIL.COM>
Subject:      Re: Vanagon Woes
In-Reply-To:  <C0BFE1B0-E446-42E8-9CC0-ED1D513C534B@gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1

I don't mind working on a vanagon in particular. They are straightforward, stuff is pretty easy to get to, and once fixed they stay fixed, unlike their British and Italian and French counterparts I have dealt with in my life.

I have had newish Japanese cars that I didn't have to ever to anything to, but the times I have had to work on them I was wishing I was looking at a Vanagon or at least a VW. My wife's Acura had gone through three engines by 180K miles. That's not good by any standard.

I know what I will be getting into on a Vanagon. Friends and family think I am a genius with cars, I'm not. I just know that one car really well and have the specific tools I need to deal with anything on it.

Someone made an observation on this list a few weeks back that is relevant to this conversation and made me think about it since then: why do you hardly ever see old BMWs on the road? The probably sold better than VWs at the time, but where are they now? They are probably like a lot of other cars that would actually still run 15 years and more from when they were made, but broken latches, hidden-away problems to expensive to get to, electrical gremlins and broken plastic interiors simply make people send them to the junkyard. Just the lack of a plastic interior (or any interior, really) or a lot of finicky creature comforts has probably contributed a lot to the longevity of the vanagon. If it needs an engine or head job once a decade, it will be forgiven. If it needs a motor hidden deep within a door panel (and no excellent online resource to tell you how to get to it) the car is history.

My rambling point is that there are different kinds of dependability, and a car with a reasonable amount of all of them will outlive a car with only one or two outstanding quality attributes.

Jim

On Fri, May 21, 2010 at 8:59 AM, Jay lefstein <jleftbrane@gmail.com> wrote:

> I work on mostly VW's . I do agree they have a few odd ball designs. > but i have worked on many other cars that have many worse designs... > > On 20-May-10, at 9:59 PM, Arkady Mirvis wrote: > > One has to look at Vanagon from under to understand why Germans lost >> the WW >> II. Nothing made in Germany is simple. When I do maintenance and >> even minor >> repair on my 1991 diesel Jetta and 1987 Westy my frustrations are >> expressed >> in words one can hear a mile away during the hottest hours of >> portuguese >> day. Access to practically everything is limited at least. By now my >> Westy, >> while looking new outside has every boot everywhere rotted, falling >> apart, >> including the shifter ball boot. Both rear door grommets are gone. >> Germans must learn how to chrome plate plastics. I am positive that >> everybody, except living in a rain forest, noticed how wood inside >> Westy has >> shrunk, got out of flatnest. Look at wood furniture plastic trim. It >> srunked, got out of the securing groove. Is that a heralded GERMAN >> ENGINEERING? In just the first year I wrote to VW AG a letter >> listing 18 >> defects. ( both window motors failed, AC lost freon and compressor >> failed, >> propane leaked out, headlight switch, heater switches both melted, >> odometer >> stopped counting, original Continental tires horribly >> cracked.....and on and >> on. Is there anyone on the list who doesn't have broken wires in the >> harness connecting the doors with the body? One has to read the the >> messages >> appearing on my inbox list to see that Vanagon is an owner headache >> and a >> blessing for the reapairmen. Till the last Vanagon will be scrapped >> they >> shall not worry about the security of their jobs! >> Convenience Vanagon offers carries a heavy price. Read the message >> below >> mine and see for yourself reading the last sentense. Ark >> ----- Original Message ----- >> From: "Jim Johnston" <inmytree1@GMAIL.COM> >> To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM> >> Sent: Friday, May 21, 2010 4:27 AM >> Subject: Manual Shifter Woes >> >> >> I had to replace the shifter ball on my 4-speed manual transmission >>> in my >>> 1991 GL. Now I can't get into reverse. I push down and over, and >>> it goes >>> into first. I'm following the Bentley procedure to align the >>> shifter. I >>> am >>> missing a plastic tab on the front shift rod, but didn't think that >>> would >>> be >>> that big of an issue. Anyone else run into this? Any ideas or >>> guidance? >>> >>> I have to say, trying to get the shifter lined up has been one of >>> the most >>> frustrating jobs I've done on my Vanagon. >>> >>> >>> Jim >>> Wilmington, NC >>> >>


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