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Looking at my first bus
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schmittie120
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Location: San Diego, CA
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 21, 2013 2:00 pm    Post subject: Looking at my first bus Reply with quote

Hello All,

My wife and I are looking for our first VW bus as we have finally saved enough to begin looking. We are located in San Diego, CA where it seems the prices for a quality bus is quite high. We are mostly interested in 1969-1979 Westfalia busses. We have located one locally via craigslist and are thinking about looking at it. At first glance it seems like there will be a bit of body work being needed but the mechanicals seem solid. Please take a look and let us know what you think is a fair price and also anything specifically to look at while we are there. I am trying to locate a good mechanic in the area to possibly bring the bus to.

http://sandiego.craigslist.org/csd/cto/4141229105.html

Please be brutially honest as we want a good patform to work off of. At the posted price we have some money left over to get professional bodywork done. Tthanks for your help in advance!
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compdrag
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 21, 2013 2:08 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Well from the photos I can tell you that your passenger side dog leg needs to be replaced. Not expensive just gonna be work since you have to cut and reweld it in. Also under neithe the window seems pretty crusty too. Nose looks like it has a pretty good amount of damage too. I would say your common areas for rust probably have rust.

I just bought a 68 Riviera for 3500 with some rust and my pop top canvas needs to be replaced. interior is good just need seat reupholstered to get that 70s theme out of it. Mine is mechanically sound that this is good.

$6500 seems a bit much to me just my 2 cents.
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AudioFanatix
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 21, 2013 2:31 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I would agree that 6500 is probably a little high on this one. If you plan to have a shop do all the body work, then I strongly suggest that you get a quote on what you want fixed before you buy this. Body work is NOT cheap. I also can't tell if there are a couple of Re-sprays on there. If you can find a bus with 100% original paint, then its a plus. You never know what problems a fresh layer of paint might be hiding.

It also comes down to, what kind of body shape will you be satisfied with? If there a a few dingers, like there are on the nose, will you be ok with that?

Me personally, I'd keep looking. One thing that mattered to me when I was looking for my bus, I'd rather have one that needed a lot of mechanical work, but the body was in decent condition, as opposed to being a great runner, but rust being a terrible issue. Reasoning, I don't know how to weld, nor have the money to pay a shop to fix all the rust for me, but I can figure just about anything out mechanically. I also believe it is cheaper to have a shop fix engine issues for you, than it it to have them weld in new panels..
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scrivyscriv Premium Member
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 21, 2013 2:34 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

He says "Back fees" with the DMV. For the price and the potential hassle I don't think it's really worth your time. The market truly goes up and down depending on the time of year, so if you give it a little longer, you should be able to find something without strings attached to it!
If you can, try shopping for Arizona buses. They tend to be a lot better bang for your buck, from what I see on the classifieds.
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schmittie120
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 21, 2013 2:34 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The back fees are not an issue as I will be registering out of state (a plus to being active duty miltary). I have a soft quote from a reptuable body shop here in SD that keeps everything within my price range. I won't consider purchasing the bus if the owner will not budge on the price as well.

I appreciate all the comments and will most likely continue looking. I cannot really look to far into AZ as my job in the military doesn't allow me to leave the area, but I will keep my eyes peeled. I think my wife and I are considering just about anything at this point as we have been saving since we got married and dreaming about a bus, so now thats its here we are wanting one ASAP.

Thanks again


Last edited by schmittie120 on Mon Oct 21, 2013 2:42 pm; edited 2 times in total
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justcruzin
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 21, 2013 2:41 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I can't comment on the price of the bus, I'm not that experienced on prices of these. I can comment on the DMV fees though.

When we registered a bus for a friend of ours (no title, just a bill of sale) besides the other paperwork needed for a transfer with no title, we had to fill out a statement of facts explaining why the PO had not registered it or non opped it and then told of how it was a historical vehicle and that we were going to restore it. That dropped the back fees down to pretty much nothing. It went for over 800 bucks to 130 bucks to register it.

I also read somewhere that another person had to do the same thing and it reduced their fees too. This is in CA though, can't say what it is like in other states and can't say for sure you will get a DMV person that knows about this trick.

Good luck on your bus hunting. Very Happy
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AudioFanatix
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 21, 2013 2:45 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

schmittie120 wrote:
so now thats its here we are wanting one ASAP.



Be careful with this one.
Let the bus find you, not the other way around. Razz
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Desertbusman
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 21, 2013 3:08 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The engine details sound good providing it was built correctly by someone that knew what they were doing. A lot of people have slapped a lot of good parts into something and it still is a looser engine. Ask him who built it. Probably he did. So enquire a bit further. Does he have the Bentley Service manual that goes with it? Ask him if he has the Tom Wilson engine building book. If all he has to go with it is the muir idiot book then walk away.

It looks like a decent bus except for the body issues that you are aware off. But inspect it closely inside, underneath, under mats and carpets for other rot issues you arn't aware of yet.

The bigger issue with that one or any other is the quality of workmanship on all the mechanicals. A lot of them slop crap and make it crappier.

BTW the interior is probably considered semi-stock. The wood work is stained darker than original and the table top is a replacement. Bottom line is don't consider it a stock camper interior.

And is the owner a Samba member? Or a loner or loose cannon? It might have to do with how bus knowledgable he is.
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GeorgeO.
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 21, 2013 8:11 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Some say this is too pricey for what you are getting. You have to consider, people are asking more because the dollar is worth less than it was 5 years ago. If the underside is clean and the only rust is just surface, ask for 6k. I'm sure he will take it.
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Pcrog027
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 21, 2013 9:18 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I can't comment on the price for a SoCal bus bit here in the mid Atlantic area you can find better deals that are also hassle free. However, with that said- if it is a quality rebuild then this could be potentially a good deal.
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richparker
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PostPosted: Mon Oct 21, 2013 9:40 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I would bet that is not a Cali bus. The windowsill looks rusted bad. What up with the damage to the noise? Looks like it hit a trailer hitch. Slider dosent look original. I'm think that $6k is real high for this bus, since I don't think it's a Cali bus. You have a lot to choose from out there.
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Tom Powell
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PostPosted: Tue Oct 22, 2013 1:54 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

" ... It's a very strong running daily driver that would also make a great restoration project ... The bus has been sitting for a couple of years because of back registration owed to the DMV. ... "

Is this a daily driver or a restoration and registration project? The horn doesn't work, a new steering coupler is in the spare parts, and the gas pedal has been replaced. I would assume those are indications that steering column work needs to be done.

Gary "Aeromech" is an excellent source for evaluation and advice on mechanicals in SD.

Aloha
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poptop tom
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PostPosted: Tue Oct 22, 2013 6:09 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Have you checked out this bus?

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=1540376

Looks pretty solid.
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aeromech
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PostPosted: Tue Oct 22, 2013 7:53 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I live in Ocean Beach and have helped people find buses before. If you'd like I can do a pre-purchase inspection for you. There's a lot to consider and things to be aware of. It's a lot of money to spend so be wise and get some professional advice before jumping into something and making a mistake. For example, here's a bus that was recently purchased by an older couple from Rancho Bernardo. They just bought it without getting help. It was a mistake. They paid $7500. 8 passenger (non walk through) bus.

Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.


So after they purchased the bus they contacted me and I became their mechanic. They brought it down to Ocean Beach and I found several things wrong which had they known about would have affected their offering price.
I had to rebuild almost the entire steering system including steering gearbox ($600) and rebushing the center pin, plus new steering tie rods and finally an alignment.

Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.


Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.


Then I found quite a bit of rust

Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.


Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.


So after I got most of the mechanicals done I dropped it off at my autobody guy who started in on fixing the rust and changing the color. Once into it he found even more rust

Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.


Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.


So now the autobody charges are going to be around $5500 or so I think.

Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.


Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.


If you add up the cost of my work, plus the autobody, and the $7500 you will see that these people will be into this for close to $14k roughly. They bought the bus in August and have only actually driven it for a week or so before starting into all this work. They might have it back around early November and still have a list of stuff they want to do such as install satellite radio and a curtain set.
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shiningstar76
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PostPosted: Tue Oct 22, 2013 6:07 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I'm starting to think my bus is worth 10 grand. Rolling Eyes
I wouldn't want to get 6k up front into that bus, but I think he'll get it somewhere else if you don't buy it. I'd offer 5 and not budge too much. Don't rush the bus purchase.
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schmittie120
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PostPosted: Tue Oct 22, 2013 8:05 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

thanks for the replies everyone. Went and looked at the bus today and my wife and are hesitant to purchase the bus at that price. There is more body work needed than expected and who knows what we would find when we get into it. The search continues....
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aeromech
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PostPosted: Wed Oct 23, 2013 6:03 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Schmittie,
I heard back from the owner and he is still considering selling. No price info yet though.
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Supertramp
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PostPosted: Wed Oct 23, 2013 6:13 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I can't really add more than others have said, and I don't live in the US so over here prices for a westy are considerably more.
What I can say is that it may take a while for you to find the 'right' bus. My bus found me rather than the other way around, after lots of time and disappointment. Keep patient and level headed.
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