Find or Sell Used Cars, Trucks, and SUVs in USA

Nice 1985 Vw Vanagon Westfalia Pop-top Camper Van on 2040-cars

Year:1985 Mileage:78450
Location:

Edwardsville, Illinois, United States

Edwardsville, Illinois, United States

1985 VW Wesfalia Pop-top camper in very good condition.  My wife and I bought this a little over a year ago thinking we'd use it for some weekend camping trips, but just haven't done it, so it needs to go.  We’ve ended up buying a cabin on the river instead of having this more mobile option, simply a better fit for us.  We have had some real fun bombing around the countryside just for drives here and there... Gets lots of looks and "thumbs up" from folks!

The pictures are those from the listing in April 2013… the prior owner was a lot more adept at digital photography than I am!  But the van has been garaged ever since then, and I doubt we’ve put more than 600 miles on it since we bought it (including the 340 mile drive from Dayton, OH to our farm), so it’s all the same.

Speaking of mileage, the odometer is broken at 62,450 miles, but prior to buying it I did a little investigating regarding that, and here’s what I can tell you:

I believe we are the 5th owners.  The prior owners were a middle-aged couple who owned two prior Westfalias before this one, and knew the vans well.  From what the wife told me, her husband was really meticulous about his vans, but unfortunately a short time after buying this one he passed away (heart attack), and they never really used it… I think she said they’d been out in it twice.  She kept it for about two years after he died, and had a friend drive it every month or so, kept it serviced, etc.

Because her husband had been the “van guy” and she didn’t know a lot of the particulars, she put me in touch with the owner prior to them, a nice gentleman in Colorado.  He was very helpful over a couple of email exchanges, and answered several questions about the van.  Here is what he wrote to me about the mileage:

Me: How long did you own it (approx time and miles)?

Him: We purchased the van in Feb/Mar 2010. I posted a want ad on Craigslist in Denver and a lady responded with photos of a van she used once a year for a camping trip approx 500 miles round trip. The van had 72,XXX miles on it and everything in tact. (Odometer working) She bought from the original owner and kept it in great shape.  We drove the van from Colorado to California - Washington - back across to Ohio. 

Dayton, OH is where we picked up the van.  So take 72,xxx miles, add in the trip described above (4000-4500 miles?) plus a couple hundred miles for the owners prior to me, less than 600 since we bought it last year, and the actual mileage is probably pretty close to 78,000.  I know this is open to speculation since the odometer isn’t working, but all I can tell you is that the third owner seemed like a very reasonable person to me, and since he didn’t own the van anymore at that point, had nothing to gain by making things up.  One other thing I’ll mention is that the odometer is actually currently stuck at 62,450, not “72,xxx,” so if the third owner had a mistype in his email to me, or misremembered the mileage when he bought it by an even 10K, it could actually have 10,000 miles less on it.  Again, don’t know, just giving you data points to consider.

Other details:  The fridge needs a new gasket on the door.  We never tried any of the appliances, i.e. fridge, stove, sink, because we’ve never really used it other than to drive around, but the prior owner told us her husband had.  The pop-top works great, and the canvas is in reasonably good shape.  Very good tires.  This van runs great!  I’d drive it cross-country tomorrow.

The week we picked it up the prior owner had it checked out at her regular mechanic’s.  They put in a new battery, new belts, and changed the fluids.  As soon as we got it home I took it to our mechanic (of nearly 20 years) to have them take a thorough look at it in case it needed anything, and everyone at the shop was amazed at what great shape it was in for a 1985 vehicle… the manager said they were all fighting over who got to work on it!  I’d be happy to put you in touch with him if you have any questions that a mechanic could answer, and if you are truly interested, happy to take it back up there for them to look at anything in particular you want to know about mechanically.

I also have $1100+ dollars worth of goodies I bought from GoWesty to put on this, but just never did.  I can forward you the email detailing that order… everything from new “Westfalia” sticker for the pop-top, stuff to clean and freshen the top, a new hook-up package (water, electric, water tank filler), new lights, sound deadening material for the floors and door, just lots of stuff I bought wanting to really spiff it up.  It’s all included with the sale price.  I also put in a nice new stereo and speakers.

Bottom line is that this was one of those “boys and their toys” moments that just didn’t pan out for me.  So time to let her go.

Email or call with any questions.  By the way, I have 54 pictures total in a DropBox folder that I can send you access to.  Just email me.


On Jul-13-14 at 14:26:45 PDT, seller added the following information:

Powered By uShip

SAVE MONEY
ON SHIPPING!

uShip is the first and largest auction style
marketplace for shipping and transportation
services.

Learn More
eBay Compatible Application
SHIPPING PRICE ESTIMATOR

Auto Services in Illinois

Zeigler Fiat ★★★★★

New Car Dealers
Address: 208 W Golf Rd, Schaumburg
Phone: (847) 623-7673

Wagner`s Auto Svc ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service
Address: 1701 E Wilson St, Batavia
Phone: (630) 761-2995

US AUTO PARTS ★★★★★

Automobile Parts & Supplies, Auto Body Parts
Address: 1221 S Cicero Ave, Chicago
Phone: (708) 652-3900

Triple D Automotive INC ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service
Address: 310 Westmore Meyers Rd, Oak-Brk-Mall
Phone: (630) 627-3377

Terry`s Ford of Peotone ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service, New Car Dealers, Used Car Dealers
Address: 363 N Harlem Ave, Beecher
Phone: (708) 258-9200

Rx Auto Care ★★★★★

Auto Repair & Service, Automobile Body Repairing & Painting, Automobile Parts & Supplies
Address: 2S781 State Route 59, Batavia
Phone: (630) 503-6803

Auto blog

Lexus tops JD Power Vehicle Dependability Study again, Buick bests Toyota

Wed, Feb 25 2015

It shouldn't surprise anyone, but Lexus has once again taken the top spot in JD Power's Vehicle Dependability Study. That'd be the Japanese luxury brand's fourth straight year at the top of table. The big news, though, is the rise of Buick. General Motor's near-premium brand beat out Toyota to take second place, with 110 problems per 100 vehicles compared to Toyota's 111 problems. Lexus owners only reported 89 problems per 100 vehicles. Besides Buick's three-position jump, Scion enjoyed a major improvement, jumping 13 positions from 2014. Ram and Mitsubishi made big gains, as well, moving up 11 and 10 positions, respectively. In terms of individual segments, GM and Toyota both excelled, taking home seven segment awards each. The study wasn't good news for all involved, though. A number of popular automakers finished below the industry average of 147 problems per 100 vehicles, including Subaru, (157PP100), Volkswagen (165PP100), Ford/Hyundai (188PP100 each) and Mini (193PP100). The biggest losers (by a tremendous margin, we might add) were Land Rover and Fiat, recording 258 and 273 problems per 100 vehicles. The next closest brand was Jeep, with 197PP100. While the Vehicle Dependability Study uses the same measurement system as the Initial Quality Survey, the two metrics analyze very different things. The VDS looks at problems experienced by original owners of model year 2012 vehicles over the past 12 months, while the oft-quoted IQS focuses on problems in the first 90 days of new-vehicle ownership. Like the IQS, though, the VDS has a rather broad definition of what a problem is. Because of that, a low score from JD Power is no guarantee of extreme unreliability, so much as just poor design. In this most recent study, the two most reported problems focused on Bluetooth connectivity and the voice-command systems. The former leaves plenty of room for user error due to poor design (particularly true of the Bluetooth systems on the low-scoring Fords, Volkswagens and Subarus), while the second is something JD Power has already confirmed as being universally terrible. That makes means that while these studies are important, they shouldn't be taken as gospel when it comes to automotive reliability. News Source: JD PowerImage Credit: Copyright 2015 Jeremy Korzeniewski / AOL Buick Fiat Ford GM Hyundai Jeep Land Rover Lexus MINI Mitsubishi RAM Scion Subaru Toyota Volkswagen Auto Repair Ownership study

Recharge Wrap-up: meet the '66 ZelectricBug, DOE announces home-scale H2 refueling competition

Thu, Oct 30 2014

The US Department of Energy has launched the $1 million H2 Refuel H-Prize competition to create small- to medium-scale hydrogen refueling systems. The systems could be home-scale systems that produce hydrogen using utilities at home for refueling, or medium-scale systems to supply locations such as retail centers, apartment complexes or small fleets. The DOE sees hydrogen fueling infrastructure as the biggest obstacle to fuel-cell vehicle adoption and putting the production and refueling in the hands of the consumer could be a way around that obstacle. Read more at Energy.gov and at Green Car Congress. Hyundai has announced a new six-speed automatic transmission with integrated electric motor for new hybrid models. The new configuration puts most of the hybrid powertrain components within the transmission, and the torque converter has been eliminated. The new engine clutch reduces drag with fewer clutch discs, and the mechanical oil pump has been replaced with an electric one. The result is fewer energy losses, improved efficiency and greater mileage. Read more at Hybrid Cars in Reuters or in the press release from Hyundai below. Zelectric Motors has completed its electric 1966 Volkswagen Beetle rebuild, and has put it up for sale. The '66 ZelectricBug, as it's called, is powered by a 50-kW electric motor and 20-kWh battery pack, and offers 120 pound-feet of torque. It has a range of 80 miles, and is capable of at least 100 mph. The stock transmission has been rebuilt. It also has some new goodies like high-performance sway bars, custom shocks, and LED lighting. The '66 ZelectricBug is priced at $45,000. Check it out in the video below and read more at Hybrid Cars. A startup called Alevo says it will build a billion-dollar factory in North Carolina to make longer-lasting lithium iron phosphate batteries. Alevo has purchased an old cigarette factory in Concord for $68.5 million, but it's unclear whether or not the company has secured the $1 billion investment to begin producing batteries. The company plans to create 2,500 to 6,000 jobs and produce several gigawatts worth of batteries per year, which is a tall order for a relatively unknown company. Read more at Gigaom, or in Alevo's press release below. Tesla owners in Shanghai will be exempt from the city's $12,000 registration fee. About 400 people have already received the free license plates in Shanghai, where the government wants to encourage alternative fuel vehicles.

How VW's hyper-efficient XL1 will influence the next Golf

Mon, 18 Aug 2014

In 2007, the European Union mandated fleet average CO2 emissions of 158.7 g/km. For 2015, that figure will drop to 130 g/km, and the target for 2020 is an ambitions 95 g/km. Thanks to some German politicking, that target will be phased in from 2020 to 2024, but it will still apply to 80 percent of passenger cars in that first year. In US miles per gallon, that's the equivalent of going from about 35 mpg to 42 mpg to 57 mpg. The current Volkswagen Golf is rated from 85 g/km of CO2 to 190 g/km depending on model - and zero for the e-Golf, so for the next-generation MkVIII hatch due in 2019, to meet the goal, Volkswagen engineers will need to introduce a bunch of new tricks. According to a report in Autocar, VW be mining its hyper-efficient XL1 for some of them.
Predictions for the next Golf include a variable-compression engine, an electric flywheel and an electric turbo, along with taking greater advantage of coasting. Volkswagen could be getting help from Audi with the electric turbo and variable-compression engine and electric turbo, with Audi already having shown off the former and brand technical boss Ulrich Hackenberg confirming the VW Group is working on the latter. It's possible the flywheel system could also have the mark of The Four Rings: Autocar mentions a British system that Volvo is testing, but the R18 e-tron Quattro racer has been using one for years.
The need for such features is because the company won't be able to net enough future gains from just aerodynamic improvements and advanced materials. As price will be a factor (the regulations are expected to "add hundreds of euros to the cost of building a car"), adding much more aluminum or carbon fiber is an unlikely option. We're told the next generation won't be longer or wider than the current car, and being Europe's most popular model, VW doesn't want to make a big bet on futuristic aero, but the report says the MkVIII will "likely" have "the most aerodynamic treatment yet seen on a production vehicle," the area where lessons learned from the XL1 will truly be seen.