Date: Fri, 13 Sep 1996 19:44:51 -0700
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From: rickgo@halcyon.com (Rick Gordon)
Subject: eurovan/winnebago
>
>I've hear lots of bad and a little good about the Eurovan.
>
You must have been reading old issues of Consumer Reports or something.
I'm certainly pretty happy with mine so far.
>But... I am looking for something between an RV and a Conversion Van so that
>I can travel in some comfort and not have to stay at motels and eat at
>restaurants all the time. About the only vehicle that I know about that
>fills this requirement is the VW EuroVan camper. I was talking to a dealer
>yesterday who mentioned the marriage of Winnebago and VW in the latest
>camper incarnation. Does anyone know anything about these puppies. Like:
>how long have they been made? are they any good? cost? availability of
>used ones? should I buy new if I can afford it?? If they used to be lousy,
>are they better now? etc., etc.?
>
To attempt answering your questions:
They were made in 1995, carried over into 1996.
Yes, they're "any good". Basically a Westfalia-like design.
Cost is high, MSRP is about $32K, street price is $27-$28K.
There are not many used ones, I've heard total # manufactured around 5000+.
I recently heard of a used one in Idaho, it was selling for $28K too.
There have been some reports here of problems with the '93 EV, notably
"piston slap" which has been covered by the warranty. I don't know if these
apply to
the '95 model - they do have the same engine though.
Eventually, VW is supposed to be bringing EVs with the VR6 engine in, but
no one seems to know if/when they'll do that to the Camper model. Nor how
much more it will cost.
>I am especially concerned about their reliability, as this has been a huge
>question about the Eurovans.
>
Hard to say: the '93s haven't been especially troublesome. There's rather
a small sample to determine anything from here though. I've seen lots of them
in the Seattle area lately. You know how VWs are though: even if you have
trouble with it, you still love it.
The '95s are still pretty new and low mileage: we'll have to wait awhile and
see what breaks. They are pretty much the same vehicle though: the Camper is
just the extended wheelbase model of the EV.
>I really need some help here, so any and all advice on the specific question
>of the VW/Winnebago vehicle or potential solutions to the general question
>of what is a good vehicle to buy for "camping" would be greatly appreciated.
>
A lot of people are happy with trucks with campers on the back.
Certainly cheaper. The EV is a lot better in a cross-wind I'll bet though!
I've seen a Canadian (Vancouver/Victoria) company which does camper
conversions of more common vans. I don't know what they cost though.
If the UPS.EDU you're at is Univ of Puget Sound, you might check out:
Carter VW in Seattle, and whatever the dealer is in Everett.
-rick
Rick Gordon
Bainbridge Island, WA, USA
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