Yeah, the split-window Type 2s were never designed, nor intended for
highway use. Period. They were designed to be strong, reliable,
hard-working utility vehicles for delivering people and "stuff" around
town, in EUROPE. That they did so well in the US market is just
amazing.
But, really, that '67 of yours had (originally) a 1500cc engine to move
a gross weight of close to 4000#. That's asking way too much of 1500cc.
I remember driving home from college, at Christmas, and coming upon a
trail of books, luggage and dazed college students, with a split-window
VW bus lying on it's side at the end of the trail. This was in the
middle of the night, on the PA Turnpike. That vehicle (which was
near-new at the time) had NO business being out there at all.
Now, on my trips to Import Carlisle, in my Vanagon, on that same
Turnpike, I was seldom passed and hills were not really a big deal.
Bud Osbourne
-----Original Message-----
From: rrengineer@dslextreme.com [mailto:rrengineer@dslextreme.com]
Sent: Friday, March 23, 2007 2:14 PM
To: chuck
Cc: Bud Osbourne; 'William McLeod'; 'Linda Grunthaner'; 'spridgets net'
Subject: Re: 76 Midget trade on craigslist CT
My only experience with a VW van was back in 1972. I bought a 67 split
window with a camper conversion in it for $700. A bed, a sink and a
refer! Well, all that comfort came at a cost. That bus did not have
enough power to get out of it's own way. ANY grade and the bus slowed.
The one time I took it on the road was from Los Angeles to the Colorado
River on the Arizona side. Every time the road started to incline up, I
had to pull over the side of the road to let all other traffic pass by.
I
could not get it to go over 60-65 MPH. That would be downhill with a
tailwind. You just could not be in a hurry and drive one of these
somewhere. I sold it after only six months of ownership and bought a
1959
TR3 for $350. Another mistake, I got broadsided in the TR by a 57
Oldsmobile while I was making a left turn. Spun me around 3 times and
bent the car beyond my limited skills to repair. I felt safer in the
TR.
The TR had just been painted and the motor rebuilt. I still owned my
original 59 Bugeye during all of this, it just wasn't running.
Mike MacLean
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