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Date:         Fri, 13 Jun 97 14:18:33 EDT
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         jag@cs.rochester.edu
Subject:      Dreams about a future VW T5 synchro "bus"

So how about some dreaming about this future VW T5 synchro "bus"?

I looked at these links that Tom gave us:

> May have been a VW LT 4x4 or a Volvo Lapplander or a Steyr-Puch Pinzgauer

> Chek out the following links:

> http://www.sofcom.com.au/4WD/Steyr/Steyr.html

> http://www.sofcom.com.au/4WD/Steyr/Pinzgauer/1974.4x4.html

> http://www.sofcom.com.au/4WD/4WD.html

> see Volvo c202

I've driven the Volvo 4x4 and 6x6's. These are very capable vehicles. They have huge tractor-type tires, 6 cyl mid mounted engine, pneumatic diff locks, and are much more capable off road than the Vanagon. Still they were never a commercial success. Except for a few sold as service vehicles to, for instance, utility companies I seldom saw any in civilian use.

I like the design choices Volvo made, but their implementation is probably a too large and expensive series of vehicles to appeal to a mass market. The smallest one (the "valp"=puppy which was mentionen in another post) might have been ok, but the larger TGB 13 and 20 are big trucks. (TGB 20 loads a 16 man troup with all equipment in the military).

My preference would be to go smaller, more like something between the Haflinger and the present Vanagon, that is perhaps the size and weight of the T1, but in a modern form.

So how about:

Take the basic drive train out of a Golf synchro. Keep the transverse engine, but flipped around behind the driver in a forward cab, mid engine design. Put everying into a body which size and shape wise would be a cross between a Haflinger and a Vanagon. Put on good size tires (maybe with reduction boxes one can keep all the stard golf tranny and diff components). Make it in roughly the same styles as the busses (Caravelle, Transporter, Singlecab.

Result would (hopefully) be:

A lightweight (about the same as a golf), potent 4x4. Forward cab gives it about the same interior space as a splittie. Keeping it high retains the safety of the vanagon (assuming the other guy is the idiot, doesn't help when you hit a rock wall).

Market: Vanagon list type people, but also a lot of service functions where today small tractors are used. Several body styles and engine alternatives (all the Golf ones: VR6, 16V, 2.0, 1.8, 1.9TDI 1.9SDI, 1.9IDI), should appeal to a broad market. A common platform keeps the costs down in mass production.

So what do you think? Should I send this to "Gute Fahrt"?

/Martin

PS While waiting for the T%, can someone tell me how much a restorable Haflinger costs, and where I need to look for them? Do people generally keep these registered?

-- Martin Jagersand email: jag@cs.rochester.edu Computer Science Department jag@cs.chalmers.se University of Rochester

Slow down and visit the VW diesel Westy page: WWW: http://www.cs.rochester.edu/u/jag/vw -------------------------------------------------------------------


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