Subjective Advice

[eugenev]

Ultimately, I know the answer, "what do you want?" I'm not sure, let me lay out the story and you might be able to help me identify that.

One year ago I bought this van, no motor, no tranny, and riddled with needed maintenance updates. My wife and I spent a pretty penny and a lot of time in the driveway breathing life back into this van. Well about eight months later we finished and the van was road legal (maybe worthy).

(Photo added to help form opinions)

September I started grad school, while on my way back from a school event I heard a loud PING!! The axle bolts had worked loose and the final one gave way leaving me on the side of the road in a less than desirable area (40th st and waterman in san bernardino). Now I have owned many old vehicles that are made up of more bailing wire than actual parts, so I knew that I would be breaking down in this van, it was only a matter of time.

This particular experience was not idea, I waited four hours for a tow truck.

I'm not a very important person but, with my schedule this four hour delay was not ideal. I was so frustrated that when I finally got home I told my wife that I couldn't budget that kind of set back again and we would be purchasing another car and selling the van. I had been driving it through the hottest part of the year with no AC, I think this incident was simply the straw. So we bought a 2005 subaru legacy GT, the opposite of a vanagon. Small, fast, and new(er).

Over my thanks giving break I fixed the axle bolts, I replaced all of them in order to not have another incident. On my test drive I think I fell back in love with the van. I have been driving it all week and took the family (wife, kids and classmate) on a small road trip on Thanksgiving. I'm having second thoughts, should I keep this thing? It still needs work but, I feel like we are on the tipping point and doesn't need much more.

Things I hate about my van:
It's slow....soooooo slow. I don't need to fly down the road but I would like to travel at 72mph on the highway and talk to my wife while doing so.

AC is out, not a huge concern right now but it's something I don't like

There is still an unknown about what will break next

Things I love about my van
It runs really well, I really enjoy driving it

My kids LOVE the van, they are small and it's the best thing that is going on in their life right now

It seems to have a potential of possibilities, I would love to drive it on longer adventures

I bought it in pieces so I am pretty comfortable working on it.


So, am I living a life that isn't mine or should I sell the subbie? It isn't in the cards to keep both right now, we need to put money back in our savings account. I don't live far from school or work so public transportation is possible. While I worked on the van I rode my bike most places (work and parts) so I think if it does break down I should be fine. Its just a little inconvenient when we are down to one car but, maybe that is God telling me I'm fat and should ride my bike.

What opinions do you have? Is there something I haven't thought about? Is there too much romance in my eyes?

Thanks!![/b]
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1986 Savannah Beige tin top GL 2.1 manual... sold
1990 White Westfalia 1WD

[robert reese]

KEEP IT, I sold my 1991 westy and got a 2001 eurovan camper and I miss my vanagon every day. Nothing is like a vanagon . SMILES PRE MILES are priceless

[Ahwahnee]

I have never had a Vanagon as our only car & I have never had a Vanagon w/o working AC. The combination of those two would be tough (my opinion) in the summer in the Inland Empire.

I take your word for it that there is no way to keep both cars so perhaps this isn't the right time to have the van.

But don't listen to me... sometimes it seems like every car I keep I wish I had sold and every car I sold I wish I had kept.

[hdenter]

Unless you really need the cash back out of it for a significant necessity, keep it! You are obviously capable of doing your own repairs. You can manage with out it periodically and you have a somewhat reliable second car. Your kids love it and those kinds of memories are priceless. Some of the best adventures are the unplanned ones. I have never met anyone who sold their van or bus and didn't regret it...

Hans
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'79 triple white convertible bug
'84 sunroof vanagon
'85 weekender

[Abscate]

With ride sharing everywhere the impact of being “ carless” for a week while you repair it is minimal.

However, you need to be your own mechanic on this car. The available mechanic base is shrinking and there is no replacement.

Dropping the CVs every two years and cleaning / repacking Themis an example of the operation you have to sign up for. You cannot take that job to Pep Boys and expect it to be done right.
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🇺🇸 🇺🇸 🇺🇸 🇺🇸 🇺🇸 🇺🇸 🇺🇸 🍊 🍊 🍊

[campism]

Can you park the van, let the tags and insurance go idle? Keep it for the time when you can put it back on the road without fear of failures. Drive the Sube and do what you must and then come back to the van at a better time.
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'87 Westy in Wolfram Grey Metallic, tragically crushed by a falling hickory tree in my own driveway and now gone, leaving me Vanagonless and with no plans to replace it, alas.

[newerwesty1987]

Been there. Sell it. You will live some life and things will change but you will want one again. At some point you will have more money and the desire will be strong once again. You can find a nicer one then, with a Sub or newer wbx engine that has AC and that will be the keeper!

[danfromsyr]

in an 1986 2.1l 4spd tintop you 'should' be able to travel @ 72 mph and hold a conversation.
the later models have better door seals.
but I drive an 80 with nearly non existent seals and can conversate (it's a swapped van so only referring to forward wind noise).

my 1991 tintop 4spd 2.1l rolls just fine @ ~70mph..

[owokie]

[Gnarlodious]

The main thing is that you are a good mechanic. so why not keep it as a spare vehicle and for fun times?
_________________
Vanagon ’83 diesel AAZ w/Giles injection, 5spd 4.57R&P+TBD and a '78 diesel Rabbit

[E1]

^^^ My take exactly as selling the Subie will probably be at a loss -- and insuring the Vanagon as a second vehicle can be downright cheap.

You listed four things you love and three you don't. Bingo.
_________________
1984 Westfailure/2.1 Digijet/5.43 Ring & Pinion/Peloquin/D-rated BFG KO2s
AI has spoken to further illiteracy, to steal, to cheat, and to replace humans

"Adding power makes you faster on the straights.
Subtracting weight makes you faster everywhere." — Colin Chapman

[space]

let the tags and insurance expire
fix EVERYTHING in time
The one thing u dont fix WILL break down ur next trip
Take ur time
If u dont need the kitchen I wud prolly go with a domestic conversion van (ford, gm, dodge)
If u decide to keep it on the road before u fix EVERYTHING
U ABSOLUTELY NEED (NEED) AAA it will save u literally thousands of dollar
I had mine towed 100 miles once for a cost of nearly 1k
Ive had mine towed twice (in a year) for a $150 AAA membership and i still have a tow or two left
It is ESSENTIAL for piece of mind no matter how good u are as a mechanic
Another benny of AAA = Its not vehicle dependent
Ur subi needs a tow =covered
Ur VW needs a tow=covered
By far the best insurance u can have
turns a really expensive bad trip into just a bad trip
T

[?Waldo?]

If I installed CV bolts and a while later they came loose, my takeaway from the frustration of waiting a long time for the tow truck would not be to sell the van. My takeaway would be to wonder what I had done (or failed to do) that caused them to come loose and a determination to use a better process for installing the CV bolts the next time. That difference in perspective/reaction makes me wonder if you are well suited to owning a Vanagon and results in my recommendation to sell it.

[SSWesty]

If money is tight I'd sell it and buy another one down the road after your finances are in a better spot. Vanagons are cool but not worth getting into a financial squeeze over owning one.

[Wildthings]

If you tighten the bolts to 33-36 ft-lbs, the chance of them backing out is pretty nil. A 3/8" clicker torque wrench is a lot cheaper than a tow.

[dsdunbar]

As a parent with small(er) kids (7, 5, 3), the dependability of a ride is high, not in the sense of long camping weekends or outings, but in the more day to day mundane things where being without wheels could be very hard (maybe a trip to the urgent care is needed etc).

With that said, I think having a very reliable vehicle is the best choice - this could be your vanagon or this could be your subaru, it all depends on the maintenance of both.

Not knowing more than what you laid out here, I'd be inclined to keep the 2005 and part with the van if parting with one is a necessity.

Wishing you the best
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'89 2WD Westy "Grey Goose" - Manual 4spd
Crozet VA
Vanaru EJ25, Peloquin

[bobbyblack]

Well, for a perspective from a parent, I have to say that your kids will never forgive you for selling it, if that is what happens. It did to me.. well, I bought a Westy new off the lot, and when my now Ex left, she drove off with it. I got the house and kids. I had some old cars from my youth stashed away, and used one to get my present Vanagon Westy. My kids are so completely stoked that I have been able to pick up the pieces and make their lives back into the fun we used to have. It would be a real problem and even a thorn in your life for your kids to blame you for doing that to them.

Here is what has happened to me, thus far in my VW owning situation: when I have been so poor as to need to consider selling, instead, I have taken my title in to the bank, and said I would put that down as collateral for a loan. Worked twice for the Westy and once for the Ghia. Find a good place to store it, if you can't put it in your driveway.

Kids will remember for you, a LOT longer than you want them to, if you let it go.

-bobby
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'87 Westy 'Flossie','86 Westy 'R1','86 tintop GL - Subi2.2 'J2','83.5 stock tintop L 'ZoomBus','74 Karmann Ghia, '63 Notch

[r39o]

Sell it, hate yourself. Keep it, hate yourself.

The purely practical thing is to drive the Subaru.

A Vanagon should not be the only car a normal person has. Even well maintained Vanagons will have longer down times than a more modern car. My first Vanagon was a nightmare even though I had every resource a Vanagon owner could want ( German Car Repair was our family business and ready access to several Vanagon experts along with better parts access then.) It was not until my second one that the light bulb lit realizing that the old tech was the root problem. My solution is everything new, or rebuilt, upgraded and an engine swap. This is not a practical path for you.

A window van is not special enough to hold on to at the expense of your valuable time (sanity.) You do not have the time to own a Vanagon.

You will miss it but at this time it has the status of toy.

Further, my old adage needs stating again that “Vanagons are not for people on budgets.”

Get another when you can afford it.

Realize also the Subaru will want service too. ( Use it as an engine donor in the future..... )

Point is to let logic guide you. The Subaru will tick off more “keep” boxes.
_________________
"Use the SEARCH, Luke" But first visit the Vanagon FAQ!

1990 Multivan EJ 22, Rancho trans 0.82 4th, Small Car front AC, CLKs w/ 215/65-16, homemade big brakes 303mm, Konis, Recaros, etc....

Click to see my ads for Cup holders, Subaru clutch fix and CLK wheels (no wheels currently)

[E1]

Mailman was a looker...
_________________
1984 Westfailure/2.1 Digijet/5.43 Ring & Pinion/Peloquin/D-rated BFG KO2s
AI has spoken to further illiteracy, to steal, to cheat, and to replace humans

"Adding power makes you faster on the straights.
Subtracting weight makes you faster everywhere." — Colin Chapman

[Wildthings]

I got my first Bus when my kids were in diapers. It was a junker rescued from a wrecking yard. Two months later we drove it coast to coast, even though it was far from ready, in fact when we left for the trip, it was only the second time we had ever driven it. It got a "new" used engine a month or two later, and new seals for the tranny and axle shafts whenever there was time and money available. For four years it was our only vehicle and the kids of course loved it. Over the years it went coast to coast 5 or 6 round trips and took a many month long trip into Mexico. When they kids went off the college it went coast to coast, 3000 miles, in 2 1/2 days.

If you don't panic when something goes wrong, then your kids will probably learn not to panic either. We lost a fuel pump in Tobermory, Ontario once and got to spend a nice weekend doing touristy things like taking a tour boat and renting kayaks while we waited for a new pump to arrive by bus, and we broke down in Medford, OR once and the kids got to spend the morning in Medford's incredible library, and had a breakdown once in El Bañito, SLP, Mexico where the kids got to hang out in a naturally heated swimming pool for several days, so breakdowns can be the starts of great adventures.