Date: Sun, 23 Feb 2014 18:57:26 -0500
Reply-To: Dennis Haynes <d23haynes57@HOTMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Dennis Haynes <d23haynes57@HOTMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: I am not alone
In-Reply-To: <CAHTkEu+i=4PJ9aH-utOOXo=oRiO+of+JSaKuTXt=norxpxhXAA@mail.gmail.com>
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I think the Water boxer has an I'll deserved bad reputation. While head
sealing and outer gaskets can be troublesome many failures are still due to
support system failures. Look in the yellow pages. There are an awful lot of
engine shops and large scale rebuilders for many engines and A lot of them
do not do VW's. Having to perform some type of major maintenance at 60k
intervals is not all that unusual. Go price a timing belt, water pump, and
front seal replacement on some modern vehicles and you will be surprised at
what that can cost.
I like the inline engines as they usually offer more horsepower and torque
at lower speeds. There can also be a fuel economy improvement. However they
can still lose head gaskets, crack heads, and even have the deck of the
block get damaged requiring a tear down and machine work. All these small
engines still have to work hard to push our non-aerodynamic boxes. The more
work an engine does, the faster it will wear out.
Dennis
-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of
Don Hanson
Sent: Saturday, February 22, 2014 6:50 PM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Re: I am not alone
My Vanagon is pretty easy to keep going. I think the key is to replace the
troublesome WBX motor... Most of the unreliability issues seem to stem from
those...
When I first began to consider a Vanagon... a bit of research told me I
wanted nothing to do with a stock motor..... Every review said they were
poorly designed and very prone to frequent expensive repairs. I was smart
enough to choose to do an "end run" and find a Vanagon with a different
motor... Rather than learn all about how to fix a water boxer and keep it
fixed...
Yes a 30yr old machine of any sort is going to have things wearing out but
with the Vanagon we're able to do most of the needed replacements on our own
with simple tools. The Trick seems to be to replace stuff before it
fails...
On Feb 21, 2014 9:42 AM, "Jim Felder" <jim.felder@gmail.com> wrote:
> I would not argue with that logic. They have to be pretty smart to
> figure out how to keep them running at this point!
>
> Huntsville has had a military presence back to WWII, and has had NASA
> since the mid fifties. Back when I was a kid, soldiers could ship a
> vehicle back to the states at low/no cost. Parts places and mechanics
> for these cars were everywhere. I was friends with the guy who came
> here to be Dr Von Braun's Mercedes mechanic and he opened a shop that
> has survived him, and he spawned a lot of other shops (he was the Fiat
> dealer for a time, and you know what that means). I came of automotive
> age at a pretty interesting time. Morgan 3 wheelers, 2-stroke SAABs,
> Alfa Romeo Giuliettas, all manner of British T-series and on, Simca,
> Renault, Citroen, VW, Muscovich (sp?), NSA all cheap if you kept your
> eyes open. A lot of them deserved to be cheap, but some cars were fun
bargains.
>
> If you couldn't find it in town, JC Whitney had it. Look at an old
> Whitneys catalog and you won't believe your eyes. I have an old one
> that I am going to scan someday and put up a few pages. You will sob.
>
> When I acquired Fifty Shades of Brown, it had a sticker in the window
> that read
>
> SAVE ME FROM WHAT I WANT
>
> That is good advice for an old diesel Vanagon owner. I was obviously
> smart enough to ignore it : )
>
> Jim
>
>
>
> On Fri, Feb 21, 2014 at 11:25 AM, Stuart MacMillan
> <stuartmacm@gmail.com
> >wrote:
>
> > University towns have always been VW centers, especially for campers.
> The
> > Seattle area has three VW dealers, one four blocks from the
> > University of Washington campus. They all sold a lot of campers over
> > the years, which
> is
> > why we still have so many around.
> >
> >
> >
> > At least that seems to be true in the west, and Huntsville too
> > apparently. Hmm, does that mean smart people own Vanagons?
> >
> >
> >
> > Stuart
> >
> >
> >
> > *From:* Jim Felder [mailto:jim.felder@gmail.com]
> > *Sent:* Friday, February 21, 2014 9:09 AM
> > *To:* Stuart MacMillan; Vanagon mailing list
> > *Subject:* Re: I am not alone
> >
> >
> >
> > I'm in Huntsville (Madison, technically). No shortage of parts here,
> > thanks to me! LOL
> >
> >
> >
> > Plus we have a really good shop here and another in a nearby town. I
> > looked at a Carat automatic yesterday at my local shop. It was
> > parked out front with a Birmingham tag. The shop owner said that
> > they owner has the car towed to Huntsville for any kind of service
> > more complicated than an oil change.
> >
> >
> >
> > About a week ago a friend with a westy stopped by for a part. There
> > were my two in their respective driveways, and this one on the
> > street. My neighbor, who just bought a red passat TDI wagon, stopped
> > and rolled the window down and said "You better keep them apart!
> > They're starting to multiply!!!"
> >
> >
> >
> > Jim
> >
> >
> >
> > On Fri, Feb 21, 2014 at 10:24 AM, Stuart MacMillan
> > <stuartmacm@gmail.com
> >
> > wrote:
> >
> > I've heard that Huntsville has a pretty good quantity of Vanagon owners.
> > Aerospace folks seem to like them. Drive up for a weekend to get
> > your
> fix!
> >
> > Stuart
> >
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On
> > Behalf
> Of
> > JRodgers
> > Sent: Thursday, February 20, 2014 10:10 PM
> > To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> > Subject: I am not alone
> >
> > For the longest kind of time I have not seen any Vanagons around
> > Birmingham, AL but my own. Never see any mention of Birmingham on
> > the Vanagon List so have wondered if I am all alone in the big city.
> >
> > Well, today, just after parking my van and nearing the steps into
> > the house, I hear this familiar engine sound, and almost
> > simultaneously hear the unmistakable sound of a Vanagon horn down by
> > the street. I turn and look toward the street in time to see TWO
> > Tintop Vanagons with cargo carriers on top - one behind the other,
> > one blue, one green, chugging up my hill. They waved, blew the horn
again, but didn't stop. Wish they had.
> >
> > But it's nice to know I'm not alone in the big city.
> >
> > John
> >
> >
> >
>
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