Date: Wed, 20 May 2020 18:35:16 -0700
Reply-To: Mark Belanger <mbelanger@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Mark Belanger <mbelanger@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: Heads-Up - Potential Odometer Fraud
In-Reply-To: <A9A3CDAD-3764-4739-AB5B-89F059262A67@gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8"
That's what I paid for a pristine '91 Westy Camper with ~100K in 2000.
-MB
On Wed, May 20, 2020 at 5:58 PM Vanagon Man <t3vanagon@gmail.com> wrote:
> $17k-ish
>
> > On May 20, 2020, at 6:11 PM, Abel Longoria <houstonphotog@gmail.com>
> wrote:
> >
> >
> > Yea... Not cool. Pass.
> >
> > How were their prices? If they're low enough maybe someone looking to
> get into a van relatively inexpensively will take a chance on them.
> >
> >> On Wed, May 20, 2020, 6:52 PM VW Vanagon <t3vanagon@gmail.com> wrote:
> >> Yeah, Peacevans would be a no-brainer.
> >> I've been following them for a while and am consistently impressed by
> how well they maintain their fleet.
> >>
> >> This on the other hand, was clearly a van that was not properly cared
> for.
> >> They have no idea what service or maintenance has been done on any of
> their rigs. Period.
> >> And again, wouldn't even let me hear it run.
> >> I would ask and there was no acknowledgement that I'd even asked a
> question.
> >>
> >> And for the sake of perspective, here are some of the odometer readings:
> >> 7/12/2003 - 168,172
> >> 3/15/2005 - 103,974
> >> 3/9/2007 - 87,851
> >> 3/10/2009 - 71,890
> >> 4/2/2011 - 98,749
> >> 4/18/2019 - 189,072
> >>
> >> Last night I was told it has 189,073 miles on it, which (all things
> being equal) would tell me that it hasn't moved in over a year.
> >> Today on the call that went down to 145,000 and I was told that she
> mistakenly gave me the miles of a different van. . .
> >>
> >> But to then tell me it's simply not important and that it's someone
> else's fault without hesitation or any other consideration tells me that
> I'm not the first to bring it up...
> >>
> >> This surpassed "red flag" stage and went straight into "traffic flares
> on an interstate overpass train derailment" stage in the span of about 3
> minutes.
> >>
> >> But if this process was simple, it wouldn't feel like a rewarding
> accomplishment on the other side, would it?
> >>
> >> Onward!!!
> >>
> >>> On Wed, May 20, 2020 at 5:26 PM Abel Longoria <houstonphotog@gmail.com>
> wrote:
> >>> What's probably true in this case is they have so many vans they don't
> know the history or story on all of them.... I know when I rented. It
> wasn't necessarily the best kept van mechanically. It was a money maker so
> maintenance was probably minimal.
> >>>
> >>> All the more reason not to purchase a van that's been used as a rental
> vehicle.
> >>>
> >>> Although... I've rented from Peacevans as well and those vans are
> awesome. I'd purchase one from them in a heartbeat.
> >>>
> >>> Good luck with your search
> >>>
> >>>> On Wed, May 20, 2020, 6:21 PM VW Vanagon <t3vanagon@gmail.com> wrote:
> >>>> Valid argument. Fine for others, but that ain't my jam.
> >>>> Like I said, there were other red flags - like "I don't know how to
> drive a manual transmission, so I can't let it idle."
> >>>> And telling me different mileage today than she did less than 12
> hours ago, by 40k+.
> >>>> And the list goes on and on.
> >>>>
> >>>> Bottom line is that f I can't trust the seller to tell me basic
> information, I can't trust that the van is ANYTHING they say it is.
> >>>>
> >>>> Caveat emptor. . .
> >>>>
> >>>>> On Wed, May 20, 2020 at 5:16 PM Abel Longoria <
> houstonphotog@gmail.com> wrote:
> >>>>> Really not important in my mind either. I bought my van with a
> broken speedo/odometer. I replaced it with a new speedo that was zeroed out
> mileage wise.
> >>>>>
> >>>>> If the van is in good shape and it looks good mechanically then I
> wouldn't worry about it too much. These are 30 year old vehicles. They're
> gonna have a lot of miles on them... That's just how it is.
> >>>>>
> >>>>> Abel.
> >>>>>
> >>>>>> On Wed, May 20, 2020, 6:13 PM VW Vanagon <t3vanagon@gmail.com>
> wrote:
> >>>>>> Howdy all-
> >>>>>> I'm in the process of finding an 86+ Westy to start taking my
> family on
> >>>>>> some Montana adventures.
> >>>>>> (side note: if you have a lead on a solid one, hit me up).
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>> In the process of the search, I came across a listing for an '89 in
> Maui
> >>>>>> (turned out to be a damaged, spray painted and rust-eaten can on
> wheels)
> >>>>>> and that, in turn, turned me on to some folks down in CA who are
> selling
> >>>>>> the last few of their rental fleet.
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>> I texted back and forth with the seller last night and arranged for
> a video
> >>>>>> call today to check things out.
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>> Throughout the very short call, there were red flags *ALL OVER THE
> PLACE*!
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>> I won't go into the gory details, but I ran the CarFax report and
> >>>>>> immediately saw that the odometer has clearly been rolled back
> multiple
> >>>>>> times over the course of the past 10-14 years.
> >>>>>> I asked her about it, and got all kinds of excuses and reasons why
> it
> >>>>>> wasn't important.
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>> This will be my 3rd Vanagon, and with the previous two I learned to
> follow
> >>>>>> my gut and *always* to run a CarFax report!
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>> Moral of the story:
> >>>>>> THAT REPORT IS GOLD!
> >>>>>> GET IT EVERY TIME! :)
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>> The search goes on!
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>> -Drew
> >>>>>> Missoula, MT
> >>>>
> >>>>
> >>>> --
> >>>> Drew
> >>>> Missoula, MT
> >>>>
> >>>> Searching for our next Westy!
> >>
> >>
> >> --
> >> Drew
> >> Missoula, MT
> >>
> >> Searching for our next Westy!
>
--
________________________________________________________________________
Mark Belanger - mbelanger@gmail.com
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