87 Syncro Body Rust: Fix or Body Swap?

[T3TRIS]

Thanks, after chatting with Shane, I'm confident they won't do an "ala bondo" job. But it's good to know!

[T3TRIS]

Thanks for the tip. I'll definitely do a little more research. That decision of ours was also based on how clean we could make the undercarriage look.

[0cean]

With unibody construction, I don't even think a body swap is an option.
_________________
I'm not a mechanic, I just play one on the internet

Cluster Rebuild:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=569920&highlight=

Left for Dead the Resurrection Story Build:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=613669
(Number of Different Donor VW Vans Body Parts Used: 12)
(Number of completely different vehicles parts used: 3)

[MsTaboo]

[T3TRIS]

[T3TRIS]

I realize I never updated this post with our results. We got the van painted at Los Panchos with Shane's help last summer.

Overall, we are happy with the results for the price we paid but there is definitely a little bit of "you get what you pay for." Only time will tell if this paint job will last. We are toying with the idea of getting it clear coated to try to make it last longer.

We ended up paying about $9,500 for (rust repair + paint inside and out + headliner/carpet + truck liner was about $5900):
- lots of rust repair (some welded, some bondo... oh well)
- full body (inside and out) paint job with windows, doors, handles removed
- New seals $1,100
- interior coated with QuietCoat paint $300 extra
- seats and interior panels reupholstered $1500
- headliner replaced
- new carpet
- hiring Shane's help as a facilitator and liaison to check on the van and get parts over the border $1000

We also had these issues:
- front radiator was disconnected and never reconnected (almost cost us our engine!)
- virtually all screws that they touched (which is a lot) were loose when we picked up the van! I'm talking door hinges, gas pedal, pop-top tent screws, pop top hinge, etc
- truck liner applied directly over the fresh paint without sanding it, which means it peels off very easily
- some connecters (powered mirrors, speakers) were painted over, including inside the connectors themselves
- los Panchos lost our front door seals (didn't install any) and never replaced our vent wing seals (they ended up reimbursing us the value of the seals)
- some threads in our reupholstered seats are coming a little loose
- lots of seals aren't glued
- we suspect our rear window (trunk hatch) and driver window leak since the paint job
- carpet is cut poorly in areas such as around the shifter and glued right on top of the windshield washer fluid cap
- headliner applied over opening for dome lights
- door sensors and rear windshield washer pump reinstalled without wiring

Shane does not offer his concierge service nor does he link his website to Los Panchos anymore. It was quite helpful to go to the shop with him when we dropped the van, have him check on it, bring parts and to pick it up. He still has his articles recommending the shop and sharing his own experience. I believe our van was one of the last ones he helped Los Panchos with. Whether it was because of difficulty or to pursue other business ventures, I don't know.

Would we recommend going there? Maybe... it's a matter of knowing what to expect. We had no experience with getting vehicles repainted or getting rust taken care of. Sure some corners will be cut when getting the job done for much cheaper but things like loose screws everywhere, painted connectors, raptor liner applied wrong, disconnected radiators and front doors reinstalled without seals were tough pills to swallow. You do the math.

But hey, our van DOES look awesome!

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Guillaume, Jennifer & T3TRIS
87 2-knob Syncro
- 94 Subaru EJ22, 225/70-R16 CLK 16x7 ET37
- Transaxle rebuild, Mexico paint job, Front end rebuild, 320Ah LiFePO4 Battery

[Alaskaberrys]

Very nice!
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'91 Westfalia, Bordeaux Red Pearl 2.1L 2wd Auto
'91 T3 Syncro Doka, Escorial Green 1.9L TD AAZ “Gremian” (to provoke, irritate, exasperate, vex...)

[T3TRIS]

[Steve M.]

[shagginwagon83]

Looks great man! What did you use for the driver rear window? Van Cafe alum?

What's with the area between the top grill and lower grill, drivers side?

Also if I were in your shoes, I would be testing every single area for water to get in. Like every single area. Protect that investment

_________________
Brandon
"Jo Ann" - '83.5 Westfalia EJ22e w/Peloquin
Instagram @joannthevan

[Steve M.]

[T3TRIS]

[shagginwagon83]

[T3TRIS]

[shagginwagon83]

Ah guts!!
_________________
Brandon
"Jo Ann" - '83.5 Westfalia EJ22e w/Peloquin
Instagram @joannthevan

[T3TRIS]

[riceye]

Your van is beautiful, Guillaume and Jennifer. I love the bold color choices.

And then this, outside of Helena, MT. Biggest damn bug I've ever hit.

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'87 Westy Weekender - daily driver on salt-free roads

There's gonna be some changes made.

“I find that things usually go well right up until the moment they don't.” - Ahwahnee

"Quality isn't method. It's the goal toward which the method is aimed." - Socrates, later quoted by R.M. Pirsig

[T3TRIS]

[rmcd]

Looks great and you got a ton of work done for the cheddar. I had similar done in pdx shop and they fubared many of the same things as you described.

Custom work on a budget doesn’t exist. It looks great 👍
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VW LT40 build. Like a Vanagon but 30% larger in every direction and 40% slower even in metric.
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=749359&highlight=

[T3TRIS]