I'm not at all surprised. Those Type 2s ("buses") are rated at slightly
more than a 1 ton load capacity; depending on what equipment it carries
(seats, camper or cargo van). They really are built stoutly.
Too bad VW of America had it's corporate head stuck deep up it's rectum,
by 1980, or they could have OWNED the "mini-van" boom of the 80s & 90s.
They had far, far more useable space than any of the domestics, and were
way more comfortable and reliable. Unfortunately, VWofA chose to price
them uncompetitively and not offer more power, such as VW of South
Africa's Vanagon's 2.25 liter 5 cyl). To make matters worse,
replacement parts were priced far above ridiculous levels (typical VW
forced obsolescence).
Bud Osbourne
(2 Vanagons and a "bay window" panel van sitting in my garage)
-----Original Message-----
From: chuck [mailto:cciaffone@verizon.net]
Sent: Friday, March 23, 2007 11:16 AM
To: Bud Osbourne
Cc: 'William McLeod'; 'Linda Grunthaner'; 'spridgets net'
Subject: Re: 76 Midget trade on craigslist CT
My wife was driving our young son in our '77 porche-powered ;-)
VW Transporter Type II just outside of Woodstock NY back in the
late '70s. Young kid runs a stop sign and broadsides our bus,
throwing it head-on into a huge Buick wagon. The wife was fine.
Son had a minor concussion. Bus was repairable -- new bits on
the front and straighten passenger-side floor. The Buick was
totaled, totally collapsed in the front. The couple in the front
seats of the wagon were seriously hurt and spent weeks in
hospital. The kid lost his license, went to court, and his
insurance company paid out bundles.
I know which vehicle I think was safest, and it wasn't the huge
Umerican behemouth by a long shot.
chuck
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