I bought "Scratch" off the previous owner in NC. She informed me that the previous owner to her had replaced the engine 3000 miles before she purchased the Vanagon. By the Carfax records my guess is that it was around 105,000 miles based on his driving pattern - she bought it in 2003. The van drove straight through from Asheville to Annapolis, MD with no issues at all. At some point the van was either taken somewhere very dusty and dirty or kept outside as there was dirt in every nook and cranny and especially under the storage rack, luckily for you I have removed all of it that I came across. Any installation I did that resulted in bare metal (bumpers as an example) I painted over the bare metal with several coats.
What Scratch still needs to be a top notch Westy like our other one/stuff I leave for you to decide on:- A good paint job, there was either a front doors back job done or someone used a harsh cleaner on the front of the van. I am no paint expert so I don't know...there is some rust just beginning on seams around the rear wheel - I took pictures, very minor.- The storage rack needs refurbished, I have the GoWesty kit to do it but if the van sells it may fall to you. - I still need to install the GoWesty South African mudflaps but if the van sells it may fall to you- At some point a previous owner put the metal cover that goes over the stove top down when the stove was too hot and burned the protective plastic. I got off as much as I could...see the one picture- previous owner told me the sink worked, I have not tried it myself
The good:Stove works, see picture.Very solid mechanically for a 26 year old vehicle, I wouldn't hesitate to drive it cross country.And I have done the following:Installed the GoWesty fridge vent plate and installed two cigarette lighter/charging spots for devices and hooked them to the second batteryReplaced all four speakers- Full detail inside and out with shampooed carpet, wax, etc.- Replaced screens for sliding Windows with GoWesty screens, one was missing and one had a hole- Removed stock fiberglass bumpers and replaced with GoWesty steel bumpers, rear has integrated hitch- rubber bumpers for pop top lifting mechanism- GoWesty Front and rear South African mud flaps - not installed yet but will be- Replaced wiper hardware for all three wipers with GoWesty kit- Removed rusty exhaust from Cat Converter to tailpipe with stainless steel set from GoWesty- Removed and replaced all skylight hardware with kit from GoWesty- Rear table missing so installed GoWesty rear table, original front table is still with the van- Installed 50AH GoWesty auxiliary battery under driver seat- Installed 20 AMP dual battery charger for when hooked to shore power, in bottom of cabinet- Installed 1100 Watt power converter to cabinet behind seat- Rubber floor mats throughout van- Replaced curtain hooks and hangers where missing, still has original curtains and rear hatch screen- Installed Fiamma F45S awning- Replaced rear hatch panel with gray GoWesty ABA panel using their deluxe clips- Replaced missing center hub caps for two wheels- Installed missing drivers side map pocket, fuse box cover, and rear w/w fluid cap- Installed rear heavy duty shock struts- Installed GoWesty 3 point seat belts for rear bench- installed GoWesty LED lighting kid for external turn signals, marker lights, brake, and back up lights- Installed LED lights in the automatic shifter- Purchased but have not installed LED lights for dash gauges, will convey with van. I did not install because the stock ones are surprisingly bright.- Replaced escutcheon trim around slider door- Installed GoWesty "Wasser-Stopper" Pop-Top rain fly- Had second key made from VW blank- Removed the fridge as it was not working and is a space hog using the GoWesty Fridge-B-Gone kit, still have it if you want it- Installed the GoWesty South African Grill and round Hella headlights with GoWesty headlight brackets, headlight protection, and new black front VW emblem- Removed and repainted faced rear VW emblem black
Complete mechanical run through by Dicks Autohaus who did the following:- I had a suspicion the P/S fluid was leaking, they confirmed and replaced the offending hose- Reinstalled driver side inboard arm rest - it needed a new pin and works perfectly now- rewired the radio and cigarette lighter to the fuse block as it was done poorly- fixed the exhaust I had installed so that it was on correctly (doh!)- removed and replaced old lp tank with one in far better condition (from my other Westy)- cleaned the idle motor and throttle switch and adjusted to fix a running rough on start up- charged the A/C and now it blows nice and cold- adjusted all engine settings
Have it for sale elsewhere as well. Sold as-is since it is an oldie but a goldie!