The New Westy

We purchased our 1982 Diesel Vanagon Campmobile (or Westfalia) from a very nice gentleman just outside of Washington, DC on June 27, 2009. It has 195,000 miles on it, with only 2 previous owners. The most recent owner had it for 25 years, and had seen much of Europe as well as his own kids growing up. In fact, it was kind of a sad moment when we were about to pull away from his house, many of his neighbors came out to say goodbye to the "Goose," as it was a popular camping spot for their kids growing up as well. Nonetheless, I drove the Goose home, with Emily in the lead in her Speed3, agonizingly keeping her foot off the gas as not to ditch me too soon along I-95. After we felt it was safe, she took off, and I joined her at home an hour after she got back.

Immediately, I started making a list of the maintenance issues that needed to be addressed. Thankfully, the previous owner kept detailed records, so I stuck with the obvious ones, mostly cosmetic at this point. He installed a rebuilt 1.6L engine only 12,000 miles ago, so that is a load off. VW engines are prone to typical failures at old ages, so this will buy us some time until we decide to upgrade to a bigger turbo diesel to increase efficiency and not have to get off the interstate at the top of a hill (you can imagine 48 HP won't pull 5000+lbs up a hill very fast). That said, it's hard to argue with 28mpg.

Here is a list of the repairs I've done so far, with more to come:

Added 4 3-LED lights above stove (with 10W resistor and switch)
Replaced return fuel line at tank (6" of 0.25" ID)
Replaced fuel line from tank to fuel filter (0.25" ID)
Installed JVC CD player and front speakers
Repaired mildew canvas, installed screen
Applied No Mess Locktite glue to cracked pop-top
WD-40 sliding door joints
Replaced propane regulator and filled (Lowe's & Carolane Propane)
Starter shot: replaced with Bosch rebuilt (PartsGeek, 2-yr Bosch warranty roadside asst)
Replaced coolant pipes from engine to radiator (Bus Depot SS pipes)
Drained and replaced coolant
Replaced back door struts (BusDepot)
Replaced antenna (BusDepot)
Replaced alternator V-belt
Replaced water pump belt
Changed oil and filter
Patched rusted out hole in front end by riveting galv plates and POR-15
Replaced stuck thermostat
Replaced bumper end caps and bumper pad clips
Repainted poptop and luggage rack (Pre-Kote, Premium Yacht Enamel)
Replaced rusted poptop hardware (GoWesty)
Replaced seals on Poptop and luggage rack (GoWesty)
Repaired hole in driver side wheel well, POR-15 and galv plate
Fabricated a pillow board for the upstairs bed (now my feet don’t hang off)
Installed an auxiliary battery (charging with ingition) with inverter, plus 110V outlet
Polished and waxed exterior

After all of that, the Goose has been on a couple of climbing trips so far with little hiccups.