Date: Thu, 8 Apr 1999 20:52:30 -0400
Reply-To: The Bus Depot <ron@NETCARRIER.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: The Bus Depot <ron@NETCARRIER.COM>
Subject: Re: Wolfsburg bumper kit or rear black fiberglass bumper wanted
In-Reply-To: <370D1F0C.F8313489@value.net>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
> Does anyone know where I can get a used or good price on new
> either Wolfsburg bumper kit or rear black fiberglass bumper with
> endcaps for an 89 Vanagon GL Camper???
I stock a European-made aftermarket "Wolfsburg-like" bumper kit that will
fit any Vanagon, for $499 complete, including front and rear bumpers plus
side skirts. This is less than the price of one new original plastic
Vanagon bumper.
The front and rear bumpers are plastic like the Wolfsburg ones and come
painted black, but of course can be painted to match. They have a slightly
thinner profile, allowing them to be used with the stock bumper mounts on a
Vanagon that didn't come with the plastic bumpers. I suspect that if your
Vanagon DID come with the plastic bumpers, you may have to break off the two
mounting tabs that protrude upward from your front bumper mount, but I'm not
positive of this. One note, these bumpers are at least as flimsy as the
stock ones, if not slightly more so. If you hit something, they'll crack
just like the stock ones. Then again, the metal ones crumple just about as
easily. The truth is, these (and the stock ones) are bumper covers. The
front "bumper" itself is the metal protrusion that is built into the Vanagon
body; it absorbs the impact, while the plastic bumper cover (stock or
aftermarket) is merely cosmetic. That said, I'll add that despite this, the
Vanagon is quite safe in a front collision in my opinion. I had a parts
Vanagon once that had gone through a building at 40 mph, and while totaled,
fared better than the building. The driver walked away; the building was
closed for a week.
Also included in the $499 price are side door skirts, similar to the
Wolfsburg ones except that they lack the cosmetic raised ridge that the
original ones have. The skirts do not come with mounting hardware, having
been included somewhat as an afterthought, but it looks to me like
constructing a bracket would not be very difficult. (Then again, perhaps a
dealer Wolfsburg bracket would work, or you could use your stock skirts if
you have a later year.)
Finally, skirts for under the rocker panels are also included. They are
metal and do not go partially up the side of the vehicle like the Wolfsburg
ones do; rather, they bolt directly to the bottom of your rocker panels, and
do look quite good with the rest of the kit.
For a fraction of the price of the Wolfsburg bumpers, these give you a
similar-to-Wolfsburg look. They do look quite sharp installed, as you can
see by viewing the picture of the van at http://www.busdepot.com/spoiler.htm
. It has these bumpers installed, including the rocker panel skirts but sans
the door skirts that are now included at no extra charge. (And no, the image
is not reversed, it is a right-hand-drive Vanagon that my friends at Just
Kampers in the UK take to local VW events.)
- Ron Salmon
The Bus Depot
http://www.busdepot.com
| 
