Date: Fri, 15 Apr 94 15:49:00 PDT
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From: Steve Johnson <sjohnson@pcocd2.intel.com>
Subject: Re: The Suburban saga continues....Again
> Joel Walker uttered the following:
>
> having watched all those comments fly by, i thought i'd put out a few of
> my own:
>
> i don't think a reworked/update Vanagon would go well in the u.s. i think
> it is a problem with Volkswagen as a company ... i think that basically they
> (the company) have lost touch with the u.s. market, and, because of problems
> with personnel in dealerships (salespeople who didn't know the products or
> the history of the company; service people who were not trained on vw cars
> and especially buses; parts people who don't know what they are doing), VW
> lose the confidence of the volkswagen-buying public. imho.
I agree with the above but would like to add that the prices of the vans have
inflated astronomically as well. And I don't see how the prices could come
down either with all of the additions to the Vanagon as opposed to the bread-
loafers. But regardless, it was the simplicity of the earlier buses/campers
that made them affordable. Most people cannot afford the difference and that's
all there is to it. I am not ashamed to admit that I felt like I lost 2 quarts
of blood when I signed the dotted line for my '91 and sometimes wonder if it
would have been better to have bought a used older one. I could have bought
a '71 and cherried it out many times over for the cost of the new 'brick'.
I'm glad I have it though. As with Joel, I feel it is the car that 'most'
fits my needs and do not have any regrets as far as that goes. We looked
at US vans as well before the Vanagon Camper, but they just were not what
we wanted and the conversion would have made it closer the $30K.
>
> the Vanagon had several 'faults' as a van for america:
> * you had to climb up into the vehicle. i've had just about every female that
> ever rode in my bus complain about that. even the step up into the sliding
> door is higher than they want it to be. note that it is NOT higher than,
> say, a Chevy Astro (which, in my opinion, is a large, lumbering Truck!),
> but it is high.
That's interesting, because I see alot more women driving the Vanagon than
men. The buses I mean. I thing the campers are pretty evenly divided.
This is true for the older buses/campers as well.
>
> * there is no 'nose' on the vehicle, by which the driver (or especially the
> passenger) gauges just how soon impending doom would arrive. my mother
I know what ya mean... ;)
>
> * the front seats are directly over the front wheels. this gives a strange
> feeling to one's butt when one slams on the brakes. :) you don't get this
> in a 'regular' car or chrysler minivan. >Snip - Snip<
I like it this way. I know exactly where how much room I have in front. The
the rear end I'm never sure about.
>
> * it doesn't fit into most american garages very well. or automatic car
> washes at the gas station.
>
Mine fits with no problem. Who built your garage? The seven dwarves? :)
> the chrysler mini-van, imho, sold so well BECAUSE it was nearly a car. but
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Exactly. So why buy one?
> Aside: what amazes me is that Chevy and Ford took TEN years to even try to
> come up with competition for the Voyager/Caravan. it's like they didn't
> really believe it was selling that well.
Those clowns take forever to do what customers want and what is right. Look
at air bags. They fought tooth n' nail not to put them in. Now they all
act like they were the ones who's idea it was an that they really care about
you and your loved ones. Yeah right.
> i personally think the Vanagon has more 'style' ... whatever 'style' is ...
I think 'charm' is the word. Especially the bread-loafs. The Vanagon is
more of a well I don't know but I drive one and don't mind. ;)
> than the Eurovan. the Eurovan, to me, is a combination of the chrysler mini-
> van and the chevy astro. it's too large to compete with the chrysler and
> costs too much to compete with the chevy.
I'm sorry, but the Eurovan is just another minivan. Under-powered to boot.
>
> culture. have you folks ever noticed that other people (who don't have vw
> buses/vanagons) will ask you 'Why do you drive that thing'?
I have some friends that give me shit, but I don't care. I'm the one who's
payin' for it so I'll get what I need and not what they want. And, of course,
whenever a the bunch wants to go somewhere, who's car do they want to take.
Need you ask?
>
> now, i've been driving vw's since 1958, and have been driving vw buses since
> since 1970, so i will admit to a great deal of bias here. or habit, if you
Bias, my ass, admit it, your a satisfied customer. ;)
> but that's ME ... and i'm not everybody. i can see a lot of things about the
Hey we Vanagon/Camper drivers can't help it if were perfect. ;)
> mini-vans for other people to like. my sister has one. five people here at
> work have one. but we have a chevy astro as a work truck here ... and i can't
> see anything about it that i think is likeable. haven't tried the new big
> dodge vans yet, but i suspect they are the same as before, with only a outer
> sheet metal change.
Can you say "clone"?
>
> so why, with all the aggrevation and heart-ache with the water-boxer engine
> and my very low opinion of dealer service departments, do i keep driving
> vanagons?
Hey, ya got good taste..
and why do i want another second one? and why do i want a double-
> cab vanagon pickup truck?
Cause you just know it's you Joel.... ;)
>because i have found that the design fits my idea
> of a van almost exactly: there are very few things i would change about the
> vanagon to make it 'perfect'. i really like it's design. i feel 'comfortable'
> in it. and i think that is what is important with a car.
>
Any dork can buy a minivan, but you know your cool when you own a VW Van. ;)
--
Steven
sjohnson@pcocd2.intel.com
--
Steven
sjohnson@pcocd2.intel.com
