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Fri Jun 24, 2016 11:11 pm

If it there was an all time best camper based on ... getting parts the easiest..most reliable..easiest to work on...and least expensive..

..what year and model would you say?

Sat Jun 25, 2016 5:56 am

I'd say '71 Westy .

Sat Jun 25, 2016 6:48 am

crukab wrote: I'd say '71 Westy .
^^^X2
My mom had a 71 Westy when I was 12-13yo. We drove it all over California on camping adventures. Funny thing was that the first time that we camped on a trip over the Tejon Pass in So Cal. We unrolled the overhead cot that went up into the POP to and found a $1 silver certificate. I have no idea why it was there. But I have not seen another since.
At 13yo I was the oil changer for the Westy. :D 43 years later I am the oil changer on my 67 beetle. :shock:
Westies are heavy and slow in stock form. But the reward is that you save $$$ on hotel rooms. And you get alot of smiles to the miles.
Good Luck.

Sat Jun 25, 2016 11:37 am

They all suck. A tin top '70 would be the absolute easiest for someone who knows 0 about VWs.

Sat Jun 25, 2016 12:36 pm

Pre type IV bay window would be easiest on parts and expense, I think. 68-72. You could build a simple 1600 with a universal block and use all Beetle style components, just need a mustache bar, bus front engine tin and a bus style air-filter.
Reliable and cheap is a tough combination though.

Sat Jun 25, 2016 1:03 pm

Brian wrote: They all suck. A tin top '70 would be the absolute easiest for someone who knows 0 about VWs.

this^^^

there is no "cheap vw" anymore...

Sat Jun 25, 2016 1:09 pm

ninteeneightyfive wrote: If it there was an all time best camper based on ... getting parts the easiest..most reliable..easiest to work on...and least expensive..

..what year and model would you say?

Tent trailer and a hitch on your modern vehicle.

Sat Jun 25, 2016 8:25 pm

skills@eurocarsplus wrote: Brian wrote: They all suck. A tin top '70 would be the absolute easiest for someone who knows 0 about VWs.

this^^^

there is no "cheap vw" anymore...

There's not an alternative. By easiest to work on you are ruling out type IV engines, by easy to find parts you are ruling out anything progressively older than the last year available, thus '71.

Wed Jun 29, 2016 7:23 pm

78 Westy with FI properly working. Comfy, good brakes, great Westy set up. T-4 is not that hard to work on, once you have the parts. (I know, I know)