Date:         Sun, 15 Sep 1996 21:01:48 -0400 (EDT)
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         Michael Pelikan <strlngis@sover.net>
Subject:      Re: EV Horsepower (was EV-Winnebago)

At 03:32 PM 9/14/96 -0500, you wrote:
>
>First off....VW vans have NEVER been overpowered....
>
>The EV's 5 cyl engine (at least in our 5 speed/MV config) is plenty powerful 
>enough...the engine is slightly altered from its Audi 5000 counterparts in 
>that it has a high torque output and the torque band extends from about 2000 
>rpm up to about 5000 rpm.
>
>What other VW van do you know of that can pass other cars while going up 
>hill at 70-80 mph with the AC on?
>
>Ric

Hi Folks - 

We were out of town for the weekend, so I couldn't jump on this right 
away but - a BIG Amen to everything Ric has said here!

Ric's right.  The engine hits peak torque at 2200 rpm.  I've had 1200
lbs or more loaded in the van on half a dozen or so occasions, and it's
always amazing to discover how slight the performance penalty is for
that kind of payload.  I'd like to see 'em put a half-ton or more of
books or lumber or whatever into the range of American minivans and see
how they really do.  This vehicle was made for hauling, and ought to be
an excellent platform for conversions.

Bought my 93 EuroVan MV 5 speed in Anchorage Alaska when we still
lived there, then drove it (and a monster U-Haul) down the AlCan
and across Canada to Vermont when we moved here a little over two
years ago.  Now we do about twenty trips a year between Morrisville
Vermont (just north of Stowe) to Hamden Connecticut (just north of
New Haven) to visit family.  Our EuroVan is about to turn 68,000
miles.  Outside of a air conditioner compressor electromagnetic
clutch which self destructed, and a fairly common EV glitch in the
water temp / fuel gauge causing flakey readings (soon to be fixed,
via directions published in the EuroVan newsletter we get from an
outfit out of Kansas - if anybody needs this address, I'll be happy
to provide it) this vehicle has been entirely, 100% functionally
trouble-free.  I mean, you've just read everything that's gone wrong.

Drive one this long and you'll see.  The overwhelming impression it
leaves you with is what someone called, "that sense of cohesion
we've come to expect from a German engineered, German built vehicle."

I've owned 12 or so VWs, including four previous VW vans.  The EuroVan
is vehicle in which VW addressed all the issues left unaddressed in
all their prior vans.  I would recommend the EuroVan without hesitation:
if you've ever loved a VW van, you will absolutely love over the EuroVan.
And you true VW lovers rest assured; it even feels like a VW.  It handles
better than any van I've ever driven, thanks to four wheel independent
suspension.  It's fabulous in snow.  It's incredibly solid cruising
on a freeway (ought to be - it weighs just about two tons).  On our
trips we consistently get 22 to 24 mpg cruising at 60 to 65 mph.
By all means hold out for a 5 speed if you're at all inclined to do so.

Anyway - didn't mean to go on so long but - we really like our EuroVan!

Michael Pelikan
'74 Super Beetle Sun Bug
'93 EuroVan MV 5 speed