Author |
Message |
dobryan Samba Member
Joined: March 24, 2006 Posts: 16473 Location: Brookeville, MD
|
Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2017 9:28 am Post subject: Re: Would Anyone Be Willing To Help A Girl Find A Nice Vanagon? |
|
|
katstan wrote: |
dobryan wrote: |
That is worth taking a look at. |
Okay that is 3 votes for this one and as it turns out it's actually only 45 min away from me. Is $20k steep or reasonable for what you see here? I called the owner and am going to look at it soon. We've had a lot of snow up here though so may have to wait a couple weeks till it's not snowed in to the garage where it's being kept. |
katsan, This has been listed since September 2016 so they may take less for it. There is a lot of work that went into this. Likely close to $10-15k++ if they had a shop do it. _________________ Dave O
'87 Westy w/ 2002 Subaru EJ25 and Peloquin TBD
"To travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive." Robert Louis Stevenson
MD>Canada>AK>WA>OR>CA>AZ>UT>WY>SD
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=620646
Building a bus for travel in Europe (euroBus)
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=695371
The Western Syncro build
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=746794 |
|
Back to top |
|
|
mikemtnbike Samba Member
Joined: March 26, 2015 Posts: 2780 Location: North Carolina
|
Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2017 9:41 am Post subject: Re: Would Anyone Be Willing To Help A Girl Find A Nice Vanagon? |
|
|
yeah, although I personally am going through my stock engine is just fine in fact I love it look I worked on it myself phase, a documented vanaru (or RMW or Metric Motors or fill-in-the-blank professional outfit with documented positive history) conversion would be a huge selling point for me if I was shopping on the OP's budget.
If it's more expensive, you have a good chance of not needing the 3-5k annual maintenance budget you've wisely planned for. _________________ 1991 Vanagon GL 2.1 AT Westfauxlia. "Frankie" Totaled https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=764510&highlight=carnage
1995 Eurovan Camper "Marzivan"
2020 GTI SE manual |
|
Back to top |
|
|
davevickery Samba Member
Joined: July 16, 2005 Posts: 2887 Location: Fort Collins, CO
|
Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2017 9:44 am Post subject: Re: Would Anyone Be Willing To Help A Girl Find A Nice Vanagon? |
|
|
dobryan wrote: |
katsan, This has been listed since September 2016 so they may take less for it. There is a lot of work that went into this. Likely close to $10-15k++ if they had a shop do it. |
That one looks good too. The one I was talking about was the first link and has a lot of seam rust for 18K with lots of mechanical work done. It was the one that she said she is going to look at over the weekend. Seam rust scares people, but my point was if you aren't trying to restore it to new, seam rust is only a cosmetic issue and you can clean it up a little bit on the cheap so it doesn't spread and just enjoy the van. I don't recommend them to anyone that would really want to fix it.
I like you link above too. The subie engine conversion is a question mark. They cost a lot so it is priced well considering the work that went into it. But if there isn't a shop nearby that will work on it or if it currently has conversion glitches, they can be very frustrating to own. I would want more details on the engine conversion before I would recommend it. But as far as price, it certainly does not appear overpriced considering the sew fine interior, the recent paint job and the subaru conversion, and rebuilt/regeard transmission. That will be a fun one to test drive. |
|
Back to top |
|
|
campism Samba Member
Joined: September 07, 2007 Posts: 4485 Location: Richmond VA
|
Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2017 9:44 am Post subject: Re: Would Anyone Be Willing To Help A Girl Find A Nice Vanagon? |
|
|
Regarding the Weekender versus full camper, consider a couple of things. Since you already camp a lot now, do you intend to use the kitchen enough to justify it over the wider bed and additional room you would get by choosing the Weekender? Some folks get the kitchen version and never use it. You will occasionally see a Westy for sale with the blue plastic still covering the stove parts, although these vans are becoming rarer and rarer.
You are more likely to find a full Westy but be aware of the differences. Might help to get inside both kinds of vans for a closeup lookaround if there's anyone in your area who can volunteer a visit.
We bought our '87 Westy a decade ago and have used it pretty much strictly for camping, we use the kitchen, and even we can see the advantages of the Weekender version. You won't regret a full Westy, but if you like or prefer cooking outside you may not need one. _________________ '87 Westy in Wolfram Grey Metallic |
|
Back to top |
|
|
katstan Samba Member
Joined: February 13, 2017 Posts: 175 Location: Woodstock, NY
|
Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2017 9:49 am Post subject: Re: Would Anyone Be Willing To Help A Girl Find A Nice Vanagon? |
|
|
dobryan wrote: |
davevickery wrote: |
That one you are going to look at, looks like a nice van except for the seam and window rust spots. It depends what you plan to do about that that would make me receommend or not recommend it.
|
Dave, I am confused about which one you are referring to. This one does not seem to have of the rust you describe?
katstan wrote: |
dobryan wrote: |
That is worth taking a look at. |
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=1926528
Okay that is 3 votes for this one and as it turns out it's actually only 45 min away from me. Is $20k steep or reasonable for what you see here? I called the owner and am going to look at it soon. We've had a lot of snow up here though so may have to wait a couple weeks till it's not snowed in to the garage where it's being kept. |
|
I think Dave was referring to this one http://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=1926528 that I am planning to see this weekend. I'm going to go look at the subaru conversion one that so many of you seem to like the weekend after this I hope. |
|
Back to top |
|
|
katstan Samba Member
Joined: February 13, 2017 Posts: 175 Location: Woodstock, NY
|
Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2017 9:55 am Post subject: Re: Would Anyone Be Willing To Help A Girl Find A Nice Vanagon? |
|
|
campism wrote: |
Regarding the Weekender versus full camper, consider a couple of things. Since you already camp a lot now, do you intend to use the kitchen enough to justify it over the wider bed and additional room you would get by choosing the Weekender? Some folks get the kitchen version and never use it. You will occasionally see a Westy for sale with the blue plastic still covering the stove parts, although these vans are becoming rarer and rarer.
You are more likely to find a full Westy but be aware of the differences. Might help to get inside both kinds of vans for a closeup lookaround if there's anyone in your area who can volunteer a visit.
We bought our '87 Westy a decade ago and have used it pretty much strictly for camping, we use the kitchen, and even we can see the advantages of the Weekender version. You won't regret a full Westy, but if you like or prefer cooking outside you may not need one. |
Yeah I am a bit conflicted on this one and really just wish there were somewhere that I could rent both locally to see what it's like to actually live in one for a weekend and how much I like using the kitchen. The bigger bed and more space is appealing, especially as we'll likely bring a friend along for our daughter at times. I tend to be up earlier than everyone else though and when it's still cold in the mornings there's just something so nice about the idea of being able to make some coffee in the van before going outside and/or having a place to cook if it's raining out. That said, the extra space and bigger bed are what keep me open to the weekender. |
|
Back to top |
|
|
davevickery Samba Member
Joined: July 16, 2005 Posts: 2887 Location: Fort Collins, CO
|
Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2017 10:04 am Post subject: Re: Would Anyone Be Willing To Help A Girl Find A Nice Vanagon? |
|
|
Addressign another point. I wouldn't get a weekender. If you do a lot of outdoor stuff like just going, climbing, hiking, taking the dog to the river, and you like to tent camp, then a weekender can be a decent Get Outside vehicle, but it isn't a camper. The built in camper stuff makes a poptop a camper and you go on camping trips, you will want the cabinets, the on board water, propane, fridge, and stove inside for crappy weather. If you really only need a weekender, you would be happy with tent and a 4runner. |
|
Back to top |
|
|
katstan Samba Member
Joined: February 13, 2017 Posts: 175 Location: Woodstock, NY
|
Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2017 10:04 am Post subject: Re: Would Anyone Be Willing To Help A Girl Find A Nice Vanagon? |
|
|
davevickery wrote: |
dobryan wrote: |
katsan, This has been listed since September 2016 so they may take less for it. There is a lot of work that went into this. Likely close to $10-15k++ if they had a shop do it. |
That one looks good too. The one I was talking about was the first link and has a lot of seam rust for 18K with lots of mechanical work done. It was the one that she said she is going to look at over the weekend. Seam rust scares people, but my point was if you aren't trying to restore it to new, seam rust is only a cosmetic issue and you can clean it up a little bit on the cheap so it doesn't spread and just enjoy the van. I don't recommend them to anyone that would really want to fix it.
I like you link above too. The subie engine conversion is a question mark. They cost a lot so it is priced well considering the work that went into it. But if there isn't a shop nearby that will work on it or if it currently has conversion glitches, they can be very frustrating to own. I would want more details on the engine conversion before I would recommend it. But as far as price, it certainly does not appear overpriced considering the sew fine interior, the recent paint job and the subaru conversion, and rebuilt/regeard transmission. That will be a fun one to test drive. |
Would a VW mechanic who is good with vanagons be equally capable working on the subaru engine or would I need a subaru mechanic for that? What kind of details would you want on the engine conversion? |
|
Back to top |
|
|
katstan Samba Member
Joined: February 13, 2017 Posts: 175 Location: Woodstock, NY
|
Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2017 10:07 am Post subject: Re: Would Anyone Be Willing To Help A Girl Find A Nice Vanagon? |
|
|
davevickery wrote: |
Addressign another point. I wouldn't get a weekender. If you do a lot of outdoor stuff like just going, climbing, hiking, taking the dog to the river, and you like to tent camp, then a weekender can be a decent Get Outside vehicle, but it isn't a camper. The built in camper stuff makes a poptop a camper and you go on camping trips, you will want the cabinets, the on board water, propane, fridge, and stove inside for crappy weather. If you really only need a weekender, you would be happy with tent and a 4runner. |
But the weekender has the pop up bed as well. It just doesn't have the stove, fridge, sink. That said I still agree and I think I am more inclined to go with the full camper despite the limited space. |
|
Back to top |
|
|
vanjoe Samba Member
Joined: December 25, 2009 Posts: 606 Location: Santa Maria
|
Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2017 10:13 am Post subject: Re: Would Anyone Be Willing To Help A Girl Find A Nice Vanagon? |
|
|
I have a 1990 Tin Top Carat weekender with an automatic. Thus is my 4th van. I want to get another one just like it. I would never have another one without and automatic, PW, PL, and cruise control. I love hain these options it has made this van a little more enjoyable than my other ones. This is just my personal preference on what i prefer. But I have loved all of my vans. _________________ 1990 VW Vanagon tin top weekender Carat
1998 Mercedes S420
"Why is there never time to do it right the first time, but there is always time to do it twice?"
"Back to the basics!" |
|
Back to top |
|
|
mikemtnbike Samba Member
Joined: March 26, 2015 Posts: 2780 Location: North Carolina
|
Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2017 10:20 am Post subject: Re: Would Anyone Be Willing To Help A Girl Find A Nice Vanagon? |
|
|
'Would a VW mechanic who is good with vanagons be equally capable working on the subaru engine or would I need a subaru mechanic for that? What kind of details would you want on the engine conversion?"[/quote]
The paperwork that shows vanaru did the work. To me, that's the deal- that a known and verified conversion specialist did the work, not somebody like me hacking my way through it in my garage.
Flint European Automotive Services is in Nassau. Pretty sure Andrew can work on any van on any configuration, but not sure what his availability for basic mechanic work is. _________________ 1991 Vanagon GL 2.1 AT Westfauxlia. "Frankie" Totaled https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=764510&highlight=carnage
1995 Eurovan Camper "Marzivan"
2020 GTI SE manual |
|
Back to top |
|
|
Zeitgeist 13 Samba Member
Joined: March 05, 2009 Posts: 12103 Location: Port Manteau
|
Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2017 10:35 am Post subject: Re: Would Anyone Be Willing To Help A Girl Find A Nice Vanagon? |
|
|
Has the OP driven a Vanagon yet? If not, then I suggest driving one before getting too far along in the decision-making process. Personally, I'd recommend driving a well sorted example of a late model Vanagon and a late model EV...lack of excitement notwithstanding. I've owned four of the former and one of the latter, and the open road driving experience of the EV is superior in every single way imaginable. I like my Vanagon as an around town hauler and have no plans to ever sell it, but we wish like hell that we would've bought the EV Weekender a decade ago when our kids were pre-teens. Just a few perspectives from the road and parenthood. _________________ Casey--
'89 Bluestar ALH w/12mm Waldo pump, PP764 and GT2052
'01 Weekender --> full camper
y u rune klassik? |
|
Back to top |
|
|
VWagabond Samba Member
Joined: March 19, 2011 Posts: 272 Location: Charlotte, NC
|
Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2017 10:35 am Post subject: Re: Would Anyone Be Willing To Help A Girl Find A Nice Vanagon? |
|
|
Good luck with your search..sometimes a body gets to feeling impatient to find & buy what they perceive they want. Try to resist the urge to buy the first thing you look at. As others have said, fear the rust as it is always worse than it appears. Seam rust is not too much of a concern but in the salt belt I would be crawling around under the van with a flashlight looking at the wheel wells, rocker panels, frame rails and where structure members meet. This is where the dangerous rust will be found. if you see rust in these areas or there is fresh undercoating..run like hell. One area of seam rust that is of great concern is the lower driver's side between the wheels. Rust here is usually coming from the inside behind the kitchen cabinet. It is due to water leaking around the hook-up ports and/or fridge vent which results in heavy rusting of the floor and inner rocker….run from this.
I like the camper model with the storage cabinets, closet, water tank, fridge & stove. The layout is well thought out and quite utilitarian. I recommend replacing the kitchen light bulbs with LEDS..much brighter. I also recommend getting a van with AC…you might not think you need it as much in the Northeast as we do in the south but if you don't have it, there'll be times when it's hot & humid and the sun is glaring thru all that glass & you'll wish you did.
Finally, think about looking here in the south for a van; prices aren't as high as out west and if you stay away from costal areas then rust is usually not a big issue. I looked on the local craigslist & found one offering that I'll post a link to. Only one photo so can't tell if it's a camper or a weekender but you could contact for more info. It's located between Greensboro, NC & the Virginia line. https://greensboro.craigslist.org/cto/5998473440.html
Good Luck & Happy Hunting,
Tom _________________ The Road Goes Ever On & On……...
VWagabond
87 Camper GL
87 Syncro GL |
|
Back to top |
|
|
katstan Samba Member
Joined: February 13, 2017 Posts: 175 Location: Woodstock, NY
|
Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2017 10:46 am Post subject: Re: Would Anyone Be Willing To Help A Girl Find A Nice Vanagon? |
|
|
Zeitgeist 13 wrote: |
Has the OP driven a Vanagon yet? If not, then I suggest driving one before getting too far along in the decision-making process. Personally, I'd recommend driving a well sorted example of a late model Vanagon and a late model EV...lack of excitement notwithstanding. I've owned four of the former and one of the latter, and the open road driving experience of the EV is superior in every single way imaginable. I like my Vanagon as an around town hauler and have no plans to ever sell it, but we wish like hell that we would've bought the EV Weekender a decade ago when our kids were pre-teens. Just a few perspectives from the road and parenthood. |
Not yet. And yes, I hear you. I will find at least one Eurovans to look at and drive as well. Why would you go for the weekender vs. the full camper though? I only have one kid so extra space isn't quite as important as it would be with two.
mikemtnbike wrote: |
'Would a VW mechanic who is good with vanagons be equally capable working on the subaru engine or would I need a subaru mechanic for that? What kind of details would you want on the engine conversion?" |
The paperwork that shows vanaru did the work. To me, that's the deal- that a known and verified conversion specialist did the work, not somebody like me hacking my way through it in my garage.
Flint European Automotive Services is in Nassau. Pretty sure Andrew can work on any van on any configuration, but not sure what his availability for basic mechanic work is.[/quote] Got it. Thanks. |
|
Back to top |
|
|
katstan Samba Member
Joined: February 13, 2017 Posts: 175 Location: Woodstock, NY
|
Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2017 10:48 am Post subject: Re: Would Anyone Be Willing To Help A Girl Find A Nice Vanagon? |
|
|
VWagabond wrote: |
Good luck with your search..sometimes a body gets to feeling impatient to find & buy what they perceive they want. Try to resist the urge to buy the first thing you look at. As others have said, fear the rust as it is always worse than it appears. Seam rust is not too much of a concern but in the salt belt I would be crawling around under the van with a flashlight looking at the wheel wells, rocker panels, frame rails and where structure members meet. This is where the dangerous rust will be found. if you see rust in these areas or there is fresh undercoating..run like hell. One area of seam rust that is of great concern is the lower driver's side between the wheels. Rust here is usually coming from the inside behind the kitchen cabinet. It is due to water leaking around the hook-up ports and/or fridge vent which results in heavy rusting of the floor and inner rocker….run from this.
I like the camper model with the storage cabinets, closet, water tank, fridge & stove. The layout is well thought out and quite utilitarian. I recommend replacing the kitchen light bulbs with LEDS..much brighter. I also recommend getting a van with AC…you might not think you need it as much in the Northeast as we do in the south but if you don't have it, there'll be times when it's hot & humid and the sun is glaring thru all that glass & you'll wish you did.
Finally, think about looking here in the south for a van; prices aren't as high as out west and if you stay away from costal areas then rust is usually not a big issue. I looked on the local craigslist & found one offering that I'll post a link to. Only one photo so can't tell if it's a camper or a weekender but you could contact for more info. It's located between Greensboro, NC & the Virginia line. https://greensboro.craigslist.org/cto/5998473440.html
Good Luck & Happy Hunting,
Tom |
Good advice. Than you. And yes, I think A/C is a must. It does get very hot and humid up even up here at times. |
|
Back to top |
|
|
Zeitgeist 13 Samba Member
Joined: March 05, 2009 Posts: 12103 Location: Port Manteau
|
Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2017 10:55 am Post subject: Re: Would Anyone Be Willing To Help A Girl Find A Nice Vanagon? |
|
|
katstan wrote: |
Zeitgeist 13 wrote: |
Has the OP driven a Vanagon yet? If not, then I suggest driving one before getting too far along in the decision-making process. Personally, I'd recommend driving a well sorted example of a late model Vanagon and a late model EV...lack of excitement notwithstanding. I've owned four of the former and one of the latter, and the open road driving experience of the EV is superior in every single way imaginable. I like my Vanagon as an around town hauler and have no plans to ever sell it, but we wish like hell that we would've bought the EV Weekender a decade ago when our kids were pre-teens. Just a few perspectives from the road and parenthood. |
Not yet. And yes, I hear you. I will find at least one Eurovans to look at and drive as well. Why would you go for the weekender vs. the full camper though? I only have one kid so extra space isn't quite as important as it would be with two. |
Space. Two of my Vanagons were full campers, and I ended up pulling the cabinets from both. I'm still trying to design the perfect modular cabinet that fits into place when needed for certain trips, but removes for the 355 days a year its not needed. _________________ Casey--
'89 Bluestar ALH w/12mm Waldo pump, PP764 and GT2052
'01 Weekender --> full camper
y u rune klassik? |
|
Back to top |
|
|
katstan Samba Member
Joined: February 13, 2017 Posts: 175 Location: Woodstock, NY
|
Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2017 10:56 am Post subject: Re: Would Anyone Be Willing To Help A Girl Find A Nice Vanagon? |
|
|
Abscate wrote: |
My EV Weekender is the only car I have ever bought new...
Transporting a car across America is really easy, lots of ways.
I found a nice NYC girl, married her, and moved her out of the city 30 years ago
|
Hi Abscate. Got your pm but since I only officially joined the board today I can't reply for another 24 hrs. Great to see your kids are still enjoying the Eurovan. If I could buy one new I'd certainly do that - vanagon love be damned. But since at best I"m looking at a 13 year old van at this point I'm more inclined to go with the Vanagon. A friend had one when I was growing up - a transporter, not a camper, but I always had a soft spot for that van. That said I probably should at least try driving a Eurovan and see how the two compare.
Last edited by katstan on Mon Feb 13, 2017 10:59 am; edited 1 time in total |
|
Back to top |
|
|
dobryan Samba Member
Joined: March 24, 2006 Posts: 16473 Location: Brookeville, MD
|
|
Back to top |
|
|
johnnyjewel Samba Member
Joined: April 23, 2009 Posts: 48 Location: Mid-MO
|
Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2017 11:09 am Post subject: Re: Would Anyone Be Willing To Help A Girl Find A Nice Vanagon? |
|
|
Wow, 2 pages just this morning. From now on, I'm going to say I'm a female when I'm looking for advice!
If you need more information, another source would be Go Westy. The library has lots of info including, "Are you a Vanagon or Eurovan person." There used to be a Classifieds section; not sure if there still is. _________________ 1986 Vanagon Westfalia Weekender
1958 MG Magnette
2017 Subaru Impreza Hatch
"Everybody matters or nobody matters." Hieronymus Bosch |
|
Back to top |
|
|
Abscate Samba Member
Joined: October 05, 2014 Posts: 22568 Location: NYC/Upstate/ROW
|
Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2017 11:11 am Post subject: Re: Would Anyone Be Willing To Help A Girl Find A Nice Vanagon? |
|
|
Its much easier to get advice by saying you arent looking for a kickstarter so you can quit your job and live off society.
And Female Physicists are Quarks of Nature...
sent you my email too, K.
Quote: |
That said I probably should at least try driving a Eurovan and see how the two compare. |
I don't advise this.
_________________ .ssS! |
|
Back to top |
|
|
|