So I'm buying a van...

[Jb1rd]

so are you saying i should consider other vanagons instead of this one?

I am just saying you should drive several before making that big of a commitment, as I think Stroverlander said, if you are narrowing into the Vangon realm then you should drive as many as possible before making the decision, esp a VW they are asking premium dollar for them. 16k is nothing to sneeze at. Now the hard part is containing yourself when you think you have found "the one", truth is that there are many, be patient! Or buy one cheap enough that you know without a doubt you can flip it and try something different, it gets trying but it is also a huge education, trust me, I just got a huge lesson, but now I know more than I did a week ago

 

[Belltownbikes]

well, i'm no longer concerned about the storage space after looking at it. i think it's wonderful, and i might have found my van :coffeedrink:

i'm thinking it over tonight and giving him a decision tomorrow... figured i should sleep on it. but i love it!!

:iagree: :clapsmile:

Perfect! Just need to put a rack on the top and you are ready to go!

 

[Jb1rd]

Just to keep stirring the pot, this looks ********** rad!!!(oh yeah baby I am bringing it back, if those you no whats can remake perfection then I can bring back RAD)

http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/rvs/4346978329.html

 

[HoboJen]

you're right and all... but we are going to the mechanic tomorrow....

 

[alanr]

Hey guys

I am hoping someone can offer me advice or point me in the right direction.. I'm planning on driving to the West coast and buying a suitable camper for the Pan-am and as far South as possible. As a Canadian is it possible to buy a vehicle in the USA without having to return for registration etc in Canada... Has anyone experience in doing this?

Thanks in advance
AR

 

[FurthurOnTheFly]

Jen, I say go to the mechanic, see what they say. In the meantime try to set up some drive time with one or two others in your area. If your heart is set on one then go for it. And just be prepared…things WILL need to be fixed. The motor might be good to go, but these are 25+ year old vans at this point, and VW's to boot…somethings bound to need a fix sooner rather than later. Hopefully its just small issues, things that will allow you to stay on the road and fix when needed. Good luck!!

 

[Alboy79]

Just to keep stirring the pot, this looks ********** rad!!!(oh yeah baby I am bringing it back, if those you no whats can remake perfection then I can bring back RAD)

http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/rvs/4346978329.html

That's awesome.

 

[fritz]

you're right and all... but we are going to the mechanic tomorrow....

Awesome. I just got rid of an 85 Vanagon Westfalia camper and do miss it- but. In my instance I have been a mechanic for 30+ years so know my way around mechanical stuff a little bit ;^). You are in the hotbed of VW Vanagon country so plenty of Vanagons and Vanagon resources in your backyard.

A couple of pointers-

First- go to a Vanagon garage- several highly reputable ones in Washington to give you their expert opinion on the Vanagon you are looking at.

Second- if you buy one get a AAA Plus membership with the RV towing- you WILL need the service regardless of how nice the Vanagon is or how much you pay for it.

Third- get the Bentleys Service Manual- you will need it to fix the many small (hopefully) and medium sized issues that WILL arise.

Fourth- learn how to use tools and work on the Vanagon- You WILL need the knowledge.

Vanagons are COOL. Especially the campers. But ya gotta love working on them- cause you will be working on it.

Also check out the Vanagon Forum on theSamba.com

Good Luck.

 

[HoboJen]

Awesome. I just got rid of an 85 Vanagon Westfalia camper and do miss it- but. In my instance I have been a mechanic for 30+ years so know my way around mechanical stuff a little bit ;^). You are in the hotbed of VW Vanagon country so plenty of Vanagons and Vanagon resources in your backyard.

A couple of pointers-

First- go to a Vanagon garage- several highly reputable ones in Washington to give you their expert opinion on the Vanagon you are looking at. --- heading there tomorrow

Second- if you buy one get a AAA Plus membership with the RV towing- you WILL need the service regardless of how nice the Vanagon is or how much you pay for it. --- yep, have AAA already and am about up for renewal so i can upgrade then.

Third- get the Bentleys Service Manual- you will need it to fix the many small (hopefully) and medium sized issues that WILL arise. --- comes with this van and dang that thing is huge twss

Fourth- learn how to use tools and work on the Vanagon- You WILL need the knowledge. ---- i sure hope so. i do not like being helpless... but I've never invested time in learning this kind of stuff before but i would like to this time around.

Vanagons are COOL. Especially the campers. But ya gotta love working on them- cause you will be working on it. --- yep, i hear that. though i think i would need to learn some of this for just about any vehicle i was thinking of getting...

Also check out the Vanagon Forum on theSamba.com

Good Luck.

thanks for the advice...

 

[Cole]

A few words of caution.

The Vanagon is OLD, so every system in the van is OLD. Rubber parts wear out, hoses, seals, bushings, etc. Plastic parts do the same. Not saying they can't be reliable, but unless all of those parts were maintained/replaced you may have to do it. Even a van 10 yeas newer is still 10 YEARS newer!

While I think a Vanagon with a swapped engine is cool, its not ideal either. First off, nearly nothing in the Bentley manual will apply anymore. The Subaru engine is better, but still not perfect. If/when it has an issue it will be difficult to find a mechanic to work on it. It would be one thing to have a swapped van if YOU could do he the work or had a good local guy willing to do it, but traveling with it might prove more challenging! Can't just roll into any VW shop, independent or factory! Many will refuse to work on it! (I've had several swapped cars)

Even the forum experts might not be able to help as much as they could with a factory set up. Simply fewer people running swaps, and not every swap is created equal. People put in different year/model engines into different year/model vans. Lots of variables in swaps. (Donor car options, year, model, recipient car options, yer model. Swap components used, etc)

 

[mtnbike28]

Cole, those some great thoughts and I agree on difficulty finding a mechanic to work on swap motors... I wondered if Subaru dealers would plug into the OBD2 port on the van and help fix it, but it also gives them an easy "out" - can't fix it, it's a problem with conversion...

Lots for Jen to think about.

A few words of caution.

The Vanagon is OLD, so every system in the van is OLD. Rubber parts wear out, hoses, seals, bushings, etc. Plastic parts do the same. Not saying they can't be reliable, but unless all of those parts were maintained/replaced you may have to do it. Even a van 10 yeas newer is still 10 YEARS newer!

While I think a Vanagon with a swapped engine is cool, its not ideal either. First off, nearly nothing in the Bentley manual will apply anymore. The Subaru engine is better, but still not perfect. If/when it has an issue it will be difficult to find a mechanic to work on it. It would be one thing to have a swapped van if YOU could do he the work or had a good local guy willing to do it, but traveling with it might prove more challenging! Can't just roll into any VW shop, independent or factory! Many will refuse to work on it! (I've had several swapped cars)

Even the forum experts might not be able to help as much as they could with a factory set up. Simply fewer people running swaps, and not every swap is created equal. People put in different year/model engines into different year/model vans. Lots of variables in swaps. (Donor car options, year, model, recipient car options, yer model. Swap components used, etc)

 

[coguzzi]

Having owned many a vanagon, I disagree, it's almost impossible to find anyone to work on a stock vanagon anymore. And anyone who does not know how to work on a vanagon should ever be allowed to touch one in the first place. Half of vanagon problems are caused by mechanics who do not know the idiosyncrasies of the vanagon. So in the parts of this country you will frequent, you will have no problem finding a mechanic to help you witha Subi swapped vanagon. But the fact remains, you will be much better off learning to do your own work, and I never recommend a vanagon to someone unwilling to learn

Ps, all my Subi-vanagons were 5 times more reliable than my ford e350 diesel 4x4 van, all needed regular maintenance though. My stock vw water boxer will be in my current van for about 5 more days before it's removed for a Subi 2.5.

 

[Cole]

Having owned many a vanagon, I disagree, it's almost impossible to find anyone to work on a stock vanagon anymore. And anyone who does not know how to work on a vanagon should ever be allowed to touch one in the first place. Half of vanagon problems are caused by mechanics who do not know the idiosyncrasies of the vanagon. So in the parts of this country you will frequent, you will have no problem finding a mechanic to help you witha Subi swapped vanagon. But the fact remains, you will be much better off learning to do your own work, and I never recommend a vanagon to someone unwilling to learn

Ps, all my Subi-vanagons were 5 times more reliable than my ford e350 diesel 4x4 van, all needed regular maintenance though. My stock vw water boxer will be in my current van for about 5 more days before it's removed for a Subi 2.5.

Have you ever tried to get any swapped vehicle worked on? Seriously?

I had a Chevy engine in a Nissan truck and couldn't even get places to change the oil!! If the oil filter wasn't in their little book then they didn't want the liability of changing the oil!! Despite being the most common engine in the USA, I still couldn't get shops to do even the simplest of tasks!

Just telling someone to "learn to work on it" isn't that simple. The OP is looking for something to jump in and travel with, not learn to work on!

Very few, if any, Subi mechanics will be willing to work on it too! It goes both ways. For auto shops to be financially successful they need to know how long and what parts a repair typically takes. If they can't just look in the "book" to see what typical shop time is for a repair then they start charging YOU while they learn to do it!

What does she do when shop asks her which clutch goes in this van?

I swapped a FI Jeep XJ 1992 4.0l into a Jeep Wrangler that came with a 4.2l carbed motor. Simple right? Same basic engine! I did the swap with 280k miles on the Jeep with an engine that had 80k on it.sold the jeep in 1999! I met the current owner in 2008. He claimed he bought the jeep with 120k on it and the swapped 2005 Grand Cherokee engine only had 30k on it when he bought it!!! Yet, it was the same engine I'd put in there long before he bought it. Many of the simple parts had been hacked up and screwed up because somewhere along the line of owners (and lies) after I owned it the swap information got lost!! People were mixing and matching whatever random parts they could find! Even simple stuff like "short or long waterpump" was impossible for a mechanic to sort out. (Jeep made about 8 styles of water pumps for various engine/car configurations)

If the shop can't simply "look up" what part fits, then you never know what you will end up with! Or you have to pay the guy $150 AN HOUR to do the research for you!

 

[Cole]

Doing and owning your own swapped rig is VASTLY different than traveling with a swapped rig you didn't do and can't work on yourself!

 

[HoboJen]

oh boy! what am i getting myself into! :coffeedrink: