In the beginning...

This is only the beginning. Come with myself (Jon), Morgan and Lucy (the collie) on our life's adventures and travels in our 1981 Volkswagen Vanagon Westfalia camper.

This is how she looked when we first met.

In early 2017 I came across a 1981 VW Westfalia in the back of a local mechanic's shop. It was almost hidden from the highway, but I was able to see just enough of the back and top to know it was a Vanagon Westfalia. So, I stopped in one day and asked the shop owner about it. He said, "It belongs to some old guy that wants to fix it." I thought damn, oh well. I gave the guy my number in case the "old guy" changed his mind.

A few months later (now late 2017) I just had to stop by and ask again. This time the shop owner said the "old guy is willing to sell". I got all excited hearing this news! I asked if he knew anything about the camper's engine. He replied; "yeah, the engine is toast. We did a compression test on it and it had very low compression on all four cylinders". Oh well, I can rebuild it, or maybe do a Subaru swap in it.

I asked if he knew what the guy was asking for the camper. The shop owner said he wanted $3,000 for it! Now, for a running Westy in this shape, maybe. But, $3,000 for a non-running air-cooled Vanagon seemed a bit high.
I told the shop owner that I had to think about it. And please pass on my info to the van's owner.

More time went by. The camper sat for another year while I took care of some financial things. I kinda forgot about the old van sitting there until one day I stopped by the shop once again. This time the shop owner handed me the Westy's owner's phone number.
I walked to the back of the shop, where the camper was and gave him a call. And after a long conversation (sitting in the unlocked camper) we came upon a agreed price. He still wanted $3,000 for the camper. But, I was thinking more around $2,000. We went back and forth a little bit and settled at $2,200.00. He was happy to see that the camper was going to someone that would fix it and enjoy it for years to come.

The fallowing day we met at the shop to seal the deal. He gave me the keys, Title and even the original owner's manual!

Now time to get this thing home! 
I called a local flatbed wrecker to make my life easier. For only $65.00, it was well worth it.



Here are a few more pics of the way I found her. Left in the back of the mechanic's shop for seven years!

Getting her home was a piece of cake with the flatbed. He backed in and placed my new pride and joy right in the driveway.

Home now, safe and sound. Time for a bath!

Before

After just a quick pressure wash you can see the diamond in the rough.

Those are not wires, they are vines that grew up into the grill.

Can really see the difference after a little rubbing compound. 

After doing a little cosmetic cleaning. I started to think about what I was going to do for an engine. Should I fix the air-cooled 2.0 liter type IV engine? Or, go ahead and do the Subaru conversion? 

The original engine could be repaired for about $1,000. But, that would still be the under powered stock 2.0. I was thinking bigger. Something that'll give me years of reliable service and about three times the horsepower. Yes, I know the Subaru engine needs a radiator and coolant lines. But guess what, the air-cooled Vanagons are already set up for radiators and coolant lines!

With all the new Subaru knowledge I received after hours and hours of internet research I decided to do the Subaru conversion. 

Yes, it'll cost more than just rebuilding the original engine. But I think in the long term, the Subaru will be the best way to go.

December 2018

I started looking around on Ebay and Craigslist for Subaru engines. I found several to choose from. And was kind of shocked the prices were actually not that bad. A few of the Ebay listings were even not far from where I live. 

On my way home from work I stopped in at a local junk yard and found four Subaru engines.    I decided on this one. A 2.5 liter EJ25 out of a 2004 Impreza. 

With the easy part done (finding an engine) I started to tackle the daunting task of the Subaru wiring harness modification. I could buy a harness already modified for $1,300.00. But, I found a unmodified Subaru harness on Ebay for $100.00 and figured I'd try to do the mod myself. If I messed it up, I'm only out $100.00. I can live with that if it saves me $1,200.

So far, so good. I haven't tested it yet, but it all seems to be there. Cross your fingers! 

Like I said at the beginning of this page, this is only the beginning. I plan to update this every time something noteworthy happens in our Westfalia camper life.

So stay tuned!