Date:         Sat, 2 May 2015 09:24:49 -0700
Reply-To:     Steve Williams <sbw@SBW.ORG>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Steve Williams <sbw@SBW.ORG>
Subject:      Re: Sliding Door for '84-85
In-Reply-To:  <543815E2.6010504@sbw.org>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=windows-1252; format=flowed

Last October I asked for help finding a used, straight sliding door to
replace mine (email below).

A couple of weeks ago, I found one in right my neighborhood, in a stack
of doors under the lean-to behind Van Cafe in Santa Cruz. They
recommended AA Auto Collision Center in Santa Cruz to paint and install it.

In the end, AA painted the whole right side of the van, because there
were scratches on the rear quarter panel (apparently from the same
collision that bent and scratched the door) and a small patch of rust on
the rear fender.

I also picked up a longer outer sliding door handle from Van Cafe, and
AA installed it.  I had the shorter, later-model door handle, adapted by
Fred's Garage in Redwood City back in 2009 when I bought the van.
Fred's said the handle on the van was cracked, or something, and the
longer handles weren't available.  Nice to have the longer handle back,
as it makes the door easier to open.  (I always bragged that I could
leave the sliding door unlocked, because it's so hard any thief who
tried the handle would just assume it was locked.)

Alas, the new handle came with its own keys.  Maybe that'll finally
motivate me to get my doors and ignition straightened out: The door
locks barely work, and the keys are nineteenth-generation, no longer
symmetrical.

The straight door and new paint are a big improvement.  I was never
bothered by the scratches and dents, but a van that looks nice is worth
more, I think, if I ever decide to sell it.  (I'd like to find an
air-cooled camper, but they're SO expensive these days!)

On 10/10/2014 10:22 AM, Steve Williams wrote:
> A previous owner crunched the sliding door pretty good on my '84
> Wolfsburg Westy.  I decided not to fix it when I bought the van in
> 2009, but now I'm thinking of fixing or replacing it.
>
> I'm told it is likely to cost less to replace the door than to fix it.
>
> So who knows where's the best place, preferable in Northern
> California, to look for a door?
>
> A straight door from the same model, already painted two-tone brown to
> match my van, would be ideal.  Here's the color scheme:
>
> http://mira.sbw.org/photos/20090408/SN850725/
>
> Taken from @sbwsty's "good side," naturally.