Help! looking at a westy and need quick repair info/estimate

[cheeseisgood]

Hi Guys,

My search continues and I need some quick info(he is planning on taking it to go westy for me tomorrow). A 87 westy full camper that I am looking at has a few problems acording to some paperwork the owner faxed and I wanted to know how much they would cost to have fixed/ or fix them myself if isn't too much work(don't really have a lot of time lately). It has a recent engine and trany rebuild, but I am concerned with the following. I want to get a ballpark idea tosee if it is still in my budget before I have go-westy do another inspection. Here is what a report from go westy said in october.

Fridge update-to make easier to light-owner uses it off of the batteries so not sure if it doesn't light or just difficult

coolent bottle cracked, but not leaking

some coolent hoses look old

fuel tank reseasl (he says the overflow tube has slight leak)

original shocks- not leaking but recommend changing


He has also cleaned up and primered some rust around the bottom that I will have them look at. Not looking buy a rust problem.

Thanks

[cheeseisgood]

Ok I did a search like a good boy

looks like the big things are the coolant hoses(depending on which ones are needed) and the rust(depending on how it looks)

Also, is it difficult to change the shocks? Do I need a special tool to compress the springs?

[Deep_Blue]

Do you have a camera? Pics say a thousand words...per post.

[cheeseisgood]

not the best, but look at the bottom

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=259356

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=259354

[Deep_Blue]

Heck no! It looks pretty good! How much is he asking?

Might wanna check those tires for a ply rating!

The place to look for rust is mainly in the engine compartment, and the Y supports on the rear wheels.

[cheeseisgood]

asking $9700, but I already told him that is above my budget.

I like it because engine <20,000 nmiles
tranny about 3000miles
front suspension all rebuilt

[Deep_Blue]

It looks like a nice one. 9700 is a bit steep for an 87...if you have faith in eBay, you might wanna look there. Tons of great westys that need to be picked up.

[cheeseisgood]

Thanks for the info.

new inspection showed:

A/C not working, will need new drums and rotors at next brake job, and running rich.

They said the rich running is most likely the cat. Owner will take care of the smog and I will do the rest. If all goes well I will have a new westy on Thursday

[mightyart]

If it has the original shocks and the rotors and drums are bad I would guess that the suspension hasn't been maintained well. They said the front end was rebuilt but they left out the simple stuff like shocks?
I would have some money in the budget for repairs.
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[cheeseisgood]

Original style shocks. Work fine, but gowesty recommends upgrading.

[cheeseisgood]

.....I plan on going ahead and buying the stuff to do the brakes,a/c and fridge upgrade when I get the van. That way I will have what I need when summer gets here and I have a bit more time to get things in order. Gotta get them done.....otherwise I have to face the rath of an angery pregnant wife

I also plan on putting 500-1000 in savings for the unexpected, but most of the big things should already be in order......in theory

[Deep_Blue]

If it's running rich you also might try looking at the green wire for the O2 sensor...they pop loose, or don't fit in all the way, which will cause the computer to run it rich.

[bljones]

what rust?
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