1982 Volkswagen Bus/Vanagon

Westfalia full camper Westy camper mini van

upgraded 2110 cc 4 cyl air cooled

4 speed manual

WV2ZA0255CH078116

Clear

Gasoline

When I bought this Westy a couple years ago there were so many things that needed attention I decided to focus first on the mechanical stuff. We worked on the front end with replacement of ball joints, sway link bars, control arm bushings and other items to make it safe to drive and to stop. The shift linkage was rebuilt with a new coupler at the transmission and new bushings up front. The speedometer cable was broken so we replaced it so we could see how fast we were going (it wasn’t too fast) with the original engine. The engine was replaced by Midwest Auto Savers out of Cary IL. Darby Milnor is one of the best vintage VW guys in the area. We put in a GEX 2110 cc performance engine (rebuilt air cooled VW) with big valve heads, new 44mm dual solex carburetors with electric chokes, new header exhaust and new battery at the 191,879 miles on the odometer. It is much faster now! As mentioned, the speedometer did not work when I bought the van so we have no idea what the real mileage is on the van. The headlights have been upgraded with a high intensity H4 kit from Bus Depot. The light over the sink and the one over the driver seat both work. The radio is a combination cassette player and there is a special cassette that is a hook up to an MP3 player. A D/C outlet was installed on the dash to run your electronics. The fiberglass top is in good condition except one exterior patch near the center where an exhaust fan could go. Whatever it was it is not noticeable from the inside. The pop top tent was torn so we removed the top and replaced the canvass with one of the nice three window tents which makes for great ventilation. The pop top gaskets have been replaced. The two sliding window screens are in good shape. The curtains are all there but showing their age, a couple of snaps missing. There is a screen for the back door and for the sliding door. Both are in pretty good shape. The two tables are there but the front table holder pipe is missing. The back table is only in fair condition as shown in the photos. The cabinets are in good shape and the drawer and cabinet doors work fine. There is still a mirror on the closet door. The upholstery is in good to fair shape needing some cleaning. The carpet is faded out in the kitchen area. In one of the photos you will see the outside arm rests for the two front seats. I think they could be reinstalled. This VW model was one of the higher end finishes with the arm rests, etc. The van came with air conditioning but the compressor has been removed. The rest of the parts seem to be there and it might be repairable. We sand blasted and coated the propane tank and replaced the gas valves on the propane tank and the stove works fine. We replaced the water pump and the sink also works fine. The drain has been diverted into a bucket under the sink as we no longer dump grey water on the ground! Not sure about the refrigerator, have not gotten it started yet. When we acquired the van there was a wooden 4 X 4 as the rear bumper. There was also a bent up rear bumper which we attached to the 4 x 4 until we could find the proper bumper. It is still waiting to be done. When we got it, it had that common rust through on the driver’s side behind the refrigerator. We had that repaired some dents taken out and repainted and it looks very good. There are still a couple of dents by the driver’s door and the sliding door which you can see in the photos. The front grill took a hit from a rock and you will see a small section is open. Included are photographs of the underside. Although there is some surface rust, it seems in remarkably good shape for a van of this vintage. You will also see that the spare tire is in its front end mount. Like nearly every Westy of this age, the wallpaper on the inside has lost its adhesion and most has been removed. You will see this in the photos. We drove the van to Bliss Fest in Harbor Springs Michigan last July (about 1,000 mi with the side trips) with no problems. You could drive this Vanagon / Westfalia home if you become the next owner. I have invested more than I think I will ever get out of this Westy but I found a new love (another Westy) so I am ready to say goodbye.