Vanagon EuroVan
Previous messageNext messagePrevious in topicNext in topicPrevious by same authorNext by same authorPrevious page (August 1999, week 5)Back to main VANAGON pageJoin or leave VANAGON (or change settings)ReplyPost a new messageSearchProportional fontNon-proportional font
Date:         Sun, 29 Aug 1999 10:38:18 -0500
Reply-To:     Tim Marciniak <tmarcini@MAIL.EXECPC.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Tim Marciniak <tmarcini@MAIL.EXECPC.COM>
Subject:      Re: cost of vanagon parts??
Comments: To: Larry Bssell <lbissell@SLONET.ORG>
In-Reply-To:  <37C856BA.6C66@slonet.org>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

At 5:38 PM -0400 8/28/99, Larry Bssell wrote: >I looked at an '87 wolfsburg today. >It had about 178k miles and was priced At $3k. >This could be a candidate van for a fixup. I really want a nice clean >vanagon. > >I'm trying to find out what to offer based on what I need to spend on >bringing it up to snuff. I did a title search to see if it had been >salvaged, and it had not. > >On monday I'm going to take it to my mechanic to get everything checked >out. My visual inspection determined these flaws: > >1. It needs a new paint job. It has a small dent above one of >the headlights, and about a 3 ft. long dent in the sliding door. There >is a little bit of rust on the metal inside the van >around the windows on the drivers side. > >2. It is missing the single seat that flips behind the passenger side. > >3. The inside is extremely dirty...probably a new upholstery >job would be in order.[the upholstery on the roof was fine...i.e. could >be cleaned. > >4. The interior was missing all sorts of small things like: > a. no seatbelts > b. light cover for the light above the table > c. many other small things that were missing or broken. > >5. The fiberglass bumpers on the front and back were cracked and need to >be replaced. > >The interesting thing is that the engine and trany seemed [from my test >drive] to be in good order. Only my mechanic will know for sure. > >I would like to get a general idea of some of the costs so that I can >estimate if this project is worth it. > >1. new paint job >2. new bumpers >3. new single seat >4. new upholstery >5. new seat belts > >regards, > >LL Bissell

Larry,

I would make a very low offer on this van, I'm thinking like $500 max. Just the general appearance of a van like this can tell you a lot about how the thing was maintained. I bet the guy selling it does not even have any maintenance records. My feeling is that you would be better off paying more for a van that has a complete service and maintenance history in writing. As far as I'm concerned mileage on a 12 year old vehicle doesn't mean much if the van was maintained and this includes keeping it clean. A wasserboxer with 178,000 miles on it concerns me--this engine is certainly capable of running up this kind of mileage but I would want some assurance that proper wt of oil and oil change interval was at least every 3-5k. With high mileage 2.1L wassers you have to be very concerned about the connecting rods large end bearing clearance, this is something that may be very difficult to judge by even a qualified mechanic just doing a purchase inspection unless he could easily measure the oil pressure. Check for coolant leaks, inspect all coolant hoses and connections, check the head gaskets if possible have you mechanic pressurize the cooling system and check to see if the cooling system holds pressure, keep in mind that to make this a really nice dependable van you will probably have to replace many of the coolant hoses and pipes which themselves are almost 13 years old now. Some prices to keep in mind are head gasket replacement will cost you $1000 to $2000 depending on the condition of the heads and if they need to be replaced. Complete exhaust systems I think are in the neighborhood of $500 just for parts. This van probably has A/C--is this still working--if not you can probably expect to pay big bucks to get it going again minimum $200 for a leak test and recharge--replacing A/C parts like hoses or compressors or evaporator etc could put this job over $2000 easily.

I'm probably sounding fairly negative but I don't want you to get stuck with a nightmare either. These vans are wonderful and the fact that this one is a Wolfsburg edition makes it even better. I have never had any problems getting parts and with the vendors on this list and the Limbo list its quite easy to get parts. Many VW dealers will even give you a 10% on parts if you belong to one of the local or national VW clubs. Some parts for the Vanagon seem expensive but many seem reasonable to me to. Finding used parts may be a little more difficult but if you have a lot of time to make phone calls you'd be suprised what you can find--used parts are out there you just have to find the right supplier.

Just as a comparison check out the Limbo newsletter, I'm looking at one now and there are a number of 85 to 87 Vanagon in the $1000 to $6000 range.

From a sellers point of view I think that if this guy cleaned up this van, no missing parts and working A/C he might get close to his asking price, but to just slap a For Sale sign on it and ask $3000 and expect to get close to $3000 is a farce.

Good Luck and let us know if you buy it.

Tim 79 Toyota L/C 90 VW Vanagon Multivan 95 VW Passat GLX 99 VW Beetle


Back to: Top of message | Previous page | Main VANAGON page

Please note - During the past 17 years of operation, several gigabytes of Vanagon mail messages have been archived. Searching the entire collection will take up to five minutes to complete. Please be patient!


Return to the archives @ gerry.vanagon.com


The vanagon mailing list archives are copyright (c) 1994-2011, and may not be reproduced without the express written permission of the list administrators. Posting messages to this mailing list grants a license to the mailing list administrators to reproduce the message in a compilation, either printed or electronic. All compilations will be not-for-profit, with any excess proceeds going to the Vanagon mailing list.

Any profits from list compilations go exclusively towards the management and operation of the Vanagon mailing list and vanagon mailing list web site.