Date:         Mon, 22 Dec 2014 23:01:43 -0500
Reply-To:     The Bus Depot <vanagon@BUSDEPOT.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         The Bus Depot <vanagon@BUSDEPOT.COM>
Subject:      Re: super cheap 88k orig mi. '87 westy for sale $4000
In-Reply-To:  <ae5d2.584cd765.41ca3a15@aol.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

> i dont personally know the seller, im not trying to sell the van for  him.
> im just saying i feel its worth what he is asking and its a good  solid
affordably priced
> westy that could be really nice with minimal effort.


Like I said, I'm sure he'll get the $4k asking price. IMO it's not a bargain
given its flaws, but I don't think it's overpriced either. Like you said,
he's probably asking about what it's worth.  As for being really nice with
minimal effort, there are a lot of unknowns. It is entirely possible that it
could be up and running and cleaned up a bit for $6k, which would make for a
decent and very cheap Westy (albeit one that needs a paint job). But the
worst-case scenario is that it turns out to have a broken odometer rather
than 89k original miles, needs heads, an auto trans, and who knows what
else, and ends up costing thousands more. In that scenario you could be
approaching what it might cost to buy a half decent (but not perfect)
ready-to-drive Westy with a known repair history.  Given the lack of
service/repair history and evidence of corner-cutting like the spray paint,
I just wasn't feeling warm and fuzzy about the odds of it needing $2k worth
of work and not $4k or $5k. But I'm sure someone will gladly take the
chance, and hopefully it will pay off. It would be especially well suited
for someone who has a donor vehicle with a good drivetrain at their disposal
just in case. Someone with a donor vehicle and the time/ability to do the
work themselves could make out pretty well.

Ron Salmon
The Bus Depot, Inc.
www.busdepot.com