Question about some parts I'm thinking of ordering.

[ROCKOROD71]

aftermarket side markers are garbage. Find OG Hella ones and they won't turn clear in 12 months. Took me buying several markers, lights, housings, lenses, and seals from swap meets to put a good set together.
I second calling Bus Depot customer service with a list of your part numbers before ordering. The people who take the orders do not have ANY answers for you, so best to put a list together with the part numbers and call the info line. Ask them what country it comes from, manufacturer, etc etc, especially the seals, you want the best quality there. Their listings on the site are shady and misleading sometimes, and you won't know something is in stock on their shelf until you call. If you just place the order you could be waiting a while on backordered items.
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1971 STD BEETLE- DD-1st car, 1st love. keepin' it stock! 1600DP, Solex 34-3 Mexi Bosch SVDA Dist NOW w/POINTS
1977 WESTY "KrustyKamper" 2L FI

[SixStringMadMan]

Thanks fellas. I got 2 emails this morning confirming my order. First one said everything was on its way except the oval engine seal. Then 20 mins later I got an updated email from a manager saying all parts are shipping. I'll let you guys know when they get here, probably somewhere around a week.

Now back to dreaming of jailbreak bars, new rims, shortened beam from Arkweld, and many other things.
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1978 Kombi
http://www.vw-mplate.com/mplate-10020.htm

[Busdepot]

[Jake Hoff]

the drop shipping has freaked me out before ordering from Bus Depot
So I as well will call their toll free number and place the order and make sure they have it
if they don't I have ordered it from someone else but the past ordered parts have drop shipped to me the next day

[Busdepot]

A large proportion of the Bus parts we carry can't be dropshipped. I have to import them myself from Europe, because U.S. suppliers either don't have the quality we demand, or the price, or the product itself. But on those items that CAN be dropshipped, it often makes the most sense to do that. For example, if you live in Seattle, why should we ship you a Bosch starter all the way from Pennsylvania which will take a week to reach you, when we can have a Bosch distributor in northern California ship it directly to you and you'll have it in a couple of days? Each time your order (or a portion of it) ships, you get an email with an attached invoice updating your order status. If an item is in the "backordered" column on that invoice, but also says D/S or Dropship, it is not actually backordered but rather being shipped separately from the supplier. (Theoretically your online account should update to show this too but it's been buggy. We have a developer looking at it.)
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- Ron Salmon
The Bus Depot
www.busdepot.com

[oscarsnapkin]

[SixStringMadMan]

I may have access to a 3d printer at work. Wonder how hard it would be to scan and print one of these rear side marker housings. Hmmmm... or some of the other little parts.
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1978 Kombi
http://www.vw-mplate.com/mplate-10020.htm

[Busdepot]

[vwwestyman]

I'll pop in to comment about the H4 headlights.

I honestly don't remember if I saw it here first (probably did) but I knew that they were the motorcycle lights before purchasing for my '78 bus. I think that in this case, what they are being marketed for is what makes the price difference.

Anyway, I bought them and installed along with some relays and upgraded headlight bulbs.

The improvement over stock was fantastic! Much brighter and the light is actually aimed at the road vs all over the place. (Though some would have to get used to the cut off line, which is normal with Euro style lights.) When the lights are on high, you could use them to melt paint off something!

I will have to follow along with the side marker thread, however.
_________________
Dave Cook

President, Wild Westerner Club

1978 Champagne Edition Westy, repowered to '97 Jetta TDI
1973 Wild Westerner
My Thing

[71whitewesty]

Bus depot has always been great to deal with in my experience. I also had the window scrapers arrive bent, not BD's fault as those things are fragile. They immediately shipped me out another set and I didn't even have to ship the damaged ones back. You just have to do a bit of research on the product and if you still have an issue, call them.
I thing it's great that BD comments on these threads. It shows me that they are paying attention and are concerned about what their customers think.
I know you can't please everyone but I think they try.
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71 Westy 1600 DP, all stock Bus 1
1970's Snow Trac 1600 SP (sold 12/2016)
1968 Tucker sno cat, sold 2021
1969 Tucker Sno cat 542
2017 VW Alltrac
71 tin top stock 1600 DP (project but runs)
Twin 71 White Westy, Bus 2, that I pulled from a 15 year slumber in a dry eastern WA field in 2015.
1966 Sundial Camper "Boomer"

[Wasted youth]

I cannot understand why so many people think that because it says Germany on the box or the distributor says it was made in Germany, that this somehow implies that a meticulous, bitter old German guy is supervising a crew of young, bright machinists and a room full of tool and die men working next to shriveled up old clock smiths.

This is 2014, and mechanized Germany has long ago joined the rest of the world in global supply chain solutions. The era of perfect German engineering simply cannot be expected to also cover aftermarket parts for 40+ year old cars that are no longer supported by Volkswagen.

Please also be aware that many items stamped Made in USA can be absolute garbage.

[firedawg24]

Don't let the stories here sway you. As far as BD goes they have been nothing but great to deal with. I have ordered about $1600 worth of stuff over the past few months, 9 orders and 50 or so parts total, and I think the only thing that was back ordered was a roller bearing for the sliding door. Plus their customer service has been great. And every part, including wipers, have been perfect.

[70westie]

I have just started purchasing odds and ends I know I will need for my 70 Westie.. Christmas and my significant other going apeshit and spending $1,600 in the past 30 days has put a small damper on progress.

I have only ordered about 6 things from Bus Depot, but the purchases I have made from Bus Depot have been as described, and delivered quickly.

Seeing the communication from them on this site only makes me feel that much more confident regarding future purchases.

-70

[ROCKOROD71]