Date:         Mon, 27 Dec 2021 18:21:05 -0800
Reply-To:     Bruce Todd <beeceetee@GMAIL.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Bruce Todd <beeceetee@GMAIL.COM>
Subject:      Wallaced...and the next 20 years
In-Reply-To:  <CAKA=wSZV+pYrBs_ERLhNHLbwAVrUyCXMMCiTrTZgDUYX_JmRZg@mail.gmail.com>
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Good day Vanagonians  - happy holidays - I hope everyone had a good "boxer"
day yesterday.  I was never one to gravitate to new technology or computers
and so my internet birth is likely a bit older than most.  I do recall
buying my current van in June of 2006 and purchasing some wheels from a
list member who had posted them on Craigslist...(if I recall properly? or
maybe it was a newspaper ad).  Anyway I forget the member's name but he was
pretty active at the time with Subaru swapping…Paul Guzyk…that is the
person, and he told me all about the Vanagon list and how to join which I
fortunately did.

The first VW I recall was the Beetle that took me home from the hospital
when I was born.  My parents had a 1962 white Beetle which my brother and I
adored.  I still dream about driving it - even though I never did as my Dad
sold it for $50 in 1979 prior to us moving to another town - I was 12 at
the time. The smell of the interior and of the motor compartment comes back
when working on my vans over the last 15 years.  The Bug was also the first
vehicle that I passed wrenches and sockets to my dad - as he worked on the
driveway underneath it.

I bought my first bus in 1996 and it was a 77 Westy.  I also had John
Muir's Repair Manual and it got me started on understanding of the basic
principles of how the motor worked and all the electrical components
supporting the motor and power systems.  I enjoyed setting the timing and
eventually pulled the motor and had the top end rebuilt after taking it
apart and bringing it to a well known old time VW mechanic.  Even I drove
the hell out of that bus with a number of good stories to add, the van was
a poor purchase as it was from Eastern Canada - super rusty and pretty beat
and ended up rotting out on me. In the end I could only make right turns -
(didn’t drive it long in that condition but always had to overshoot my
destination). I sold  it for parts in 2000 and spent a few months without a
vehicle before finding a pristine 1979 camperized Panel Van - a real
beauty. It was a localized conversion and I was the third owner and it was
a really nice van but it was only built for 2 people and kind of limited
overall as a result.  It also began to give me headaches as it had fuel
tank issues - gunk kept plugging up the outlet so the tank needed to be
removed and replaced which I never ended doing.  Sold that van and bought
the current 86 Syncro Westy as we were going to have a child and a two
seater would not work for us.

Bought the Syncro for $12,500 in 2006 and have been driving it ever since -
it was my daily driver until 2018.  I had it stripped down and painted in
2011 and it looked pretty nice for awhile however not all the panels that
needed replacing got replaced so I will be embarking on the second
restoration and will change the colour from white to a hunter green.  The
van will get a complete suspension overhaul, new starter, new canvass, big
brakes, oil cooler, new power steering hoses, brake lines,  fuel line
replacement as the gas tank will be dropped for the work plus other small
upgrades.  Not touching the motor at this point - hoping to get 5 or so
more seasons before considering that swap - and I don’t know exactly what I
would purchase at this stage - electric will not likely be commercially
available in 5 years.  Leaning toward the GW 2.3 and new ignition
system…but we shall see about that and the price of gasoline.  Cooling
system has pretty much been redone fully - so should be pretty good there.
But I recognize nothing is bullet proof.

Anyway I plan to retire in 3 to 4 years and this will be my adventure
wagon.  It really is ideal for 1 to 2 travellers and is stealth enough for
urban camping when needed.  Hoping to take in some of the Vanagon events
across North America and meet some of you fine folks.

All the best in 2022.

Bruce