Date:         Fri, 31 May 1996 11:28:39 -0700
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         jwakefield@4dmg.net (john wakefield)
Subject:      Re: Extra long, or Vanalong

Wouter de Waal graciously extends his invitation to visit South Africa 
to see his dad's factory built, one-off-special Kombi, which in the US 
would be called a Vanagon or a Vanalong were I naming it.  As though this 
weren't enough, he, knowing full well from our private conversations that 
I lust greatly for a 140 horse Audi direct injection diesel TDI (Turbo 
Diesel Innercooled) powered Vanagon Westie, inserts the fact that it has 
a 5 cylinder Audi power plant.  Humm.. South Africa, now why didn't I 
think of that?  It's so convient.  And I could make my own observation as 
to whether or not draining water spins the other way while there:>
  Wouter is talking about a 5 cylinder Audi gas motor, not even their 
older design indirect injection diesel that VW offers in Syncro vans to 
British customers.  I'll post a synopsis of Diesel Car magazine's review 
of the VW Syncro van circa 1995 indirect injection 2.5 liter 78 
horsepower vehicle in another post soon.  One wonders if this 5 cylinder 
gaser and the newer direct injection 2.5 diesel motor would similarly 
attach to a 5 speed Vanagon trans using a bell housing bearing the same 
VW/Audi part numbers as are on father de Waal's unique factory special.  
Thanks Wouter, but the virtue of your gracious offer will remain untested 
by me.
  Now, let's return to Vanalongs.  Wouter estimates that his dad's 
machine is about 18 inches longer than standard.  Brian Verbeek reports 
that the Holland company Kemperink produced at least one long VW van that 
he encountered which was, by his estimate, 1 to 1.5 meters longer than 
stock.  This matches my conversation with a person who's extended a Dodge 
Maxivan with an eye toward preserving factory-like appearence.  He 
suggested that this is best done by adding one more rear window section 
to the back.  I believe 45 inches was his rough approximation after 
inspecting the Vanagon Westie, well within the 1 to 1.5 meter range Brian 
mentioned.  From this, I gather the South African factory machine must be 
a different "clean sheet" approach rather than what would be easily 
available for after-market convertsion.  The complexity of performing 
this on a Vanagon would be much worse than on an American van due to 
wheel wells, floor pan, high side vents, and motor location.  That's why 
I'd like to study work others have performed to handle these 
difficulties.  Is there an address available for Kemperink?
  There's a final related issue I'd like to hear others address.  I find 
the Vanagon Westie to be the peak of some kind of hard to describe camper 
continuum.  I know of no better vehicle available, FOR ANY PRICE, suited 
to allowing up to two persons to drive and park over night where they 
like anywhere USA in reasonable comfort and safety without alerting 
locals and their "men with badges" to the fact that someone is sleeping 
inside.  Now you take my Bluebird Wanderlodge bus, with its 40 inch 
diameter 9.00-R20 tires, looking for all the world like it might house a 
sports team, and try to park it on some randomly selected street at 
night, and you're likely to have someone knocking within the hour telling 
you to more on.  That's understandable.  But most smaller RVs parked 
overnight draw the same kind of attention from uniformed officers.  Even 
unfamiliar parked large American "conversion vans" and beautiful low 
sleek turbo diesel Vixens seem to demand investigation.  But a clean dark 
windowed Westie seems to be almost immune from this if it's parked as 
though the owner had simply gone into a nearby residence.  I've chatted 
with patrol car officers twice about this.  They just don't think it's 
likely that it would house a sleeper.  One told me that he was sure the 
VW camper top had to be up to make a bed!  I said 'oh,' and nodded my 
head in agreement.  I only wish holographic window shades were available 
that displayed an empty van interior, behind which illumination could be 
run as we please.  Just using careful judgement while selecting a parking 
location and having deeply darkened windows seems to render clean Vanagon 
pop-top-down Westies unworthy of investigation.  The Vanagon appears to 
have no competition as the most inconspicuous complete comfortable 
apartment on wheels that can make this an option.  I've never done it 
yet, but like people who buy all kinds of toys incorporating design 
effort they'll never use, it pleases me greatly.  I'm a lot more likely 
to use this capability than they are to drive 160 mph as an example.  So 
would a factory-like Vanalong conversion ruin the stock apparent 
invisibility to those who aren't especially VW van aware?  That's an 
important issue to me.

	John Wakefield

clips:
> project in Uitenhage,  experiment didn't go anywhere, so the van is
> unique, being a factory built stretched kombi. Seats 10 + driver.
> So John, if you want to check out the van and the 5 cyl engine, come > visit :-)
> Wouter de Waal