Cost of maintenance & Learning Curve Question...

So I've always heard that old VWs are cheap to maintain and easy to fix, I'm looking at getting an old Bus, a panel or a kombi.

Here's the situation, I have no experience with cars other than adding oil or transmission fluid and being able to figure out which belt on my 1992 Voyager is squeeking. I just bought a bunch of books from Amazon on fixing and maintaining VWs (How to Rebuild Your Volkswagen Air-Cooled Engine, Volkswagen Station Wagon/Bus: Official Serverice Manual, How to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive, VW Bus Custom Handbook, VW Beetle & Transporter: Guide to Purchase & DIY Restoration) and I'm technically inclined and willing to read manuals.

If I buy one in decent physical condition that runs well is a VW Bus something I can reasonably and quickly learn to maintain myself on a artist/student budget?

Or, would it be cheaper than taking my 92 Plymouth Voyager to the mechanic on a regular basis?

Any suggestions or comments would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Reply to
Matt Russell
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On Wed, 28 Jul 2004 00:14:05 GMT, Matt Russell scribbled this interesting note:

Do you have a set of good tools? Are you willing to part with what may seem like a great deal of money to you for a new engine every one to two hundred thousand miles? Are you prepared to work on your car every couple of months? At least? Do you mind having oil under your fingernails? Do you know how to not get oil under your fingernails?

If you are prepared to take the time and the money that is required to properly maintain an old car then you are qualified. These cars are not cheap to own. Dollar per mile it is far greater than your Chrysler product. Search google in the ramva archives for threads relating to dollar per mile expenses. Limit your search to one author-Veeduber. You will learn a great deal if you take the time to read what you find.

-- John Willis (Remove the Primes before e-mailing me)

Reply to
John Willis

There lies two problems here. One, VWs require ALOT more maintenance than that Plymouth and they are much older than that Plymouth exacerbating the problem.

Two, in most places the cost of these Buses is rising dramatically for a good example. A artist/student budget probably couldn't even obtain the vehicle!

The sad truth of it is that VWs are not particularly cheap to keep going and really are rapidly going into the history books as more of a vintage vehicle than a daily driver vehicle. I love my Beetle, but the realities are that I can't have it as a daily driver because parts are not something I can have on the same day if it breaks and I don't have the knowledge and ability to repair it myself. I am not saying that determination couldn't overcome some of these obstacles, but it would definitely pay to have a backup vehicle.

Reply to
Ben Boyle

----------------------------------------------------

I've always heard that redheads have hot tempers... :-)

One of the most interesting aspects of 'conventional wisdom' is that while based upon a kernel of truth, the resulting perception is almost always WRONG.

The concept of the Volkswagen design made it very easy to maintain... by the standards of the 1930's. In fact, an air cooled Volkswagen requires approximate TEN TIMES the maintenance man-hours of a modern vehicle and that maintenance must be based on a fairly high level of skill -- no Compleat Idiots allowed.

Perhaps the most dangerous aspect of the Volkswagen Myth is the need for the owner-operator to possess a healthy dose of common sense. With an antique Volkswagen the need for periodic maintenance is not determined by chronology nor distance but by the condititions under which the vehicle was operated. Dusty, rainy or wet, you need to change oil more frequently. Indeed, you may need to change the oil ONCE A DAY under worse-case conditions since the sump of the VW engine is open to the atmosphere. (All modern engines use shaft seals & filtered vents.) Rough roads and extremes of temperture dictate more frequent lubrication of the chassis. Ditto for adjusting the steering and wheel alignment. And the ignition timing. And the valve lash adjustment. And on and on and on...

It's all in the Owner's Manual. Change the oil every 3,000 "...or as required."

The tricky bit in the above is the ASSUMPTION that the owner-operator has the wisdom and experience to correctly determine when '...as required' applies. This newsgroup provides daily examples of VW owners -- of all ages -- who lack the experience or wisdom to properly maintain their antique ride.

-Bob Hoover

PS -- Track down the 'TULZ' series (type Google). Give it a read.

Reply to
Veeduber

Eh? No! Tell me the secret, please! :-)

Reply to
Shaggie

wear latex gloves.

Reply to
The Queen of Cans and Jars

The new non-allergenic blue nitrile gloves are better!

El Paso Bob

71 1776 Baja Lead admin Trauma II ER
Reply to
The Joneses

I'm still having trouble looking at a latex glove since I got back from my recent physical. There's gotta be a better way. :-)

Reply to
Shaggie

Take some Castrol with you to the Dr. next time.

Reply to
Michael Cecil

pay someone else to work on your car.

Reply to
The Queen of Cans and Jars

"I am the best mechanic I can afford." Scary, huh? :-)

Reply to
Shaggie

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Seriously, coat your hands with lotion before you start working on something. It works well. Massage it in around your fingernails really good. The idea is to fill all the cracks and crevices with *clean* grease (lotion) so that the dirty, black stuff has nowhere to go. Then the nasty stuff will wash off much easier.

Reply to
Scott H

I prefer the Purple nitrile's. They match my Baja.....*8-}

-- the Grokdoc Tom Malmevik all that groks is god

67 Baja "marti" Harborview Medical Center Seattle
Reply to
Thomas Malmevik

Won't that give you girly-man hands, though? :-)

Reply to
Shaggie

Geez, you say that like it's a *bad* thing.

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:-)

Reply to
Scott H

Washing in those nasty solvents afterwards takes care of that.

Reply to
Chris Richmond - MD6-FDC ~

Years ago, my grandfather was a mechanic and my mom told me they would "scratch" a bar of soap with their nails before working on cars, filling the area under the nail with just enough soap to block out the grit. Came time to wash up, soap easily came out. I still like the glove idea better but will be trying the lotion step soon. Hard to look really nice out to dinner with 30 year old grunge under your nails YUCK !!!!

Susan

74 Std Betty
Reply to
Susan S.

if you want manly-man hands, get some friggin' oil under your fingernails. sheez.

:P

Reply to
The Queen of Cans and Jars

I use latex gloves if I remember, until they rip, then I just get my hands dirty...

A.

Reply to
Antony Hutchison

On Tue, 27 Jul 2004 21:35:10 -0400, "Ben Boyle" scribbled this interesting note:

really are rapidly going into the history

Beetle, but the realities are that I can't

same day if it breaks and I don't have the

couldn't overcome some of these obstacles,

If you are going to own and drive antique vehicles, more than one is a necessity!:~)

-- John Willis (Remove the Primes before e-mailing me)

Reply to
John Willis

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