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Date:         Thu, 20 Sep 2012 20:43:28 -0400
Reply-To:     Dennis Haynes <d23haynes57@HOTMAIL.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Dennis Haynes <d23haynes57@HOTMAIL.COM>
Subject:      Re: How To Choose YOUR Engine Conversion
Comments: To: Jarrett Anthony Kupcinski <kupcinski@GMAIL.COM>
In-Reply-To:  <1EAE987B-0237-4ADA-969E-24392325AEEC@gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"

If you really think this through the real problem with the Water boxer or Vanagon reliability is the support systems. The Zetec is nice that there are some protection features built into the computer and it is a modern engine and control package but if the 20+ year old support systems are still there she may still have to walk home. From years of experience especially with today's lubricants engines are healthy or not. A very high mileage engine if healthy is a well-tested engine and should continue to be used until there are indications that it needs work. No knocks, smoke, good compression and oil pressure, keep on driving. For the water boxer, pop a head gasket, pretend you are paying someone to do a water pump and timing belt with tensioners on many modern cars. The cost is a about the same. Now imagine if you kept the engine and it ran to 250K. What could you have done with the money used for the Zetec? Now if the engine is gone and you have to replace it anyway now you just need to consider the up-charge.

Dennis

-----Original Message----- From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of Jarrett Anthony Kupcinski Sent: Thursday, September 20, 2012 4:32 PM To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM Subject: Re: How To Choose YOUR Engine Conversion

I think there is one important question to answer before you source a donor, decide your price point, or fall in love with (or write off) a particular vendor: why are you replacing the engine?

It's a tough question that I think a lot of people gloss over. And everyone's going to have a slightly different response. Here's mine:

About six years ago I bought my Vanagon. Convinced the wife that it was what "we" wanted and even sold her Honda Accord to do it. We kept my TDI Jetta Wagon, which became her car because she can't drive a manual transmission (which the van is). The van ran well enough, but at 150K miles I never completely trusted it as I knew little of its history other than it had clearly seen quite a few years of rough service. So shortly after I got the van, I began thinking about engine replacements.

WBX's were a known quantity. Modern VW engines were attractive, but required a lot of custom work to get right. Bostig was an intriguing but fledgling operation. Subaru's never were more than a thought because we don't know what they are here in Texas. At the time my decision was to stick with the WBX. I began tuning and replacing parts with the idea that eventually I'd buy a rebuilt WBX from GoWesty or Boston Bob or somewhere. Even up through last year that was the plan.

Then this spring I came to a realization: I want to be able to share this van with my wife. This means a couple of things. 1) The van has to be reliable. 2) The van has to be easy to drive.

A WBX would never give me those two things in adequate measure. Yes, I know that many people drive reliable WBX's and that compared to some engine systems, WBX's are refreshingly simple. But my wife is not a car person. She's a get in, turn the key, push the gas and go kind of gal. If she could eliminate any of those steps and still reach her destination, she would do so. My experience is that WBX's are, in a word, fiddly. And if you don't give them the right kind of attention, their reliability decreases significantly. So the WBX was not a long-term solution. For me.

Which left a VW or Bostig. I suspect in a few years we'll see some companies producing DIY I-4 VW conversion kits using production models and philosophy developed by Bostig. In the meantime, Jim and his crew have built a solid operation that puts them ahead of the competition. And most importantly for me, they have a system with a proven track record of reliability and simplicity. Thats why I've got a Zetec pushing my van around now.

So my recommendation when considering a conversion is that even before you follow Neil's advice and do a whole lot of reading, first decide why you want a new engine. It will change the way you read things.

-Jarrett


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