Date: Wed, 24 Aug 2005 20:32:05 -0500
Reply-To: Stan Wilder <wilden1-1@SBCGLOBAL.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Stan Wilder <wilden1-1@SBCGLOBAL.NET>
Subject: Re: Vanagon & Eurovan - community helping community
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
You can always put an interesting twist on people's motives or lack of
motivation.
I'm motivated to be of assistance when I see someone in trouble.
I've helped Black people, Hispanic people and the general population of
Caucasian throughout my life as a motorist.
I've never made any distinction of what kind of car / truck / motorcycle
they drove or their race.
My overall approach might lead to question but I always drive well past the
crippled vehicle and walk back because I've had several friends that lost
time for injuries or lost vehicles by leading a string of cars off the road
with them.
I no longer provide fire extinguishers when I see a car on fire but I stop
to render assistance and of course watch the blaze while I discuss the need
for full coverage insurance with the poor victim.
I can only speculate that owners of Bus, Vanagon and other aged VW have
pretty well been there in speaking of roadside "Downside".
I always feel sympathy for anyone stuck with a broke down car because I know
how strangers and mechanics can really take you to the cleaners if you're
not pretty keen on mechanical knowledge yourself.
I find that most VW folks on the list pretty well have an idea of what
things cost and many have extensive mechanical experience and could be of
great assistance if encouraged in some matter.
I'm going in reverse with the EuroVan crowd and think they buy most of their
repairs at excessive prices because they just don't get down and dirty with
their EVs like the bus and vanagon folks do.
I don't know an EV owner personally but I've bough old VW Busses from
several that thought they had hit major gold when they got their new EVs and
were liquidating the old stable stock to poor unsuspecting country boys like
myself and some other list members.
I just somehow don't think they're turned on by mechanical things and they
just as well drive on by so other people passing don't think that two EVs
broke down on the same road, on the same day, at the same time, going the
same direction and heaven forbid both being the same color.
Stan Wilder
Engine Ceramics
214-352-4931
www.engineceramics.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "Larry Chase" <roadguy@roadhaus.com>
To: <ev_update@yahoogroups.com>; <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
Cc: "wetwesties@yahoogroups." <wetwesties@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Wednesday, August 24, 2005 7:10 PM
Subject: Vanagon & Eurovan - community helping community
Cross list post ... Vanagon.com & EV_update
To: EV-Update folks,
I recently posted a "distress call" for a stranded "Eurovan Traveller"
to the Vanagon & EV lists.
Several responses and offers of help came back from Vanagon folks, but
very little from EV folks.
I was a surprised and disappointed at the lack of help for one of your
own.
BTW .... current list membership count is:
Vanagon.com = 904 members
ev_update = 3627 members
Those results prompted a discussion thread on the Vanagon list as to why
EV owners don't seem to feel the same sense of Community (helping ea other)
as perhaps Bus & Vanagon owners do.
I don't intent this as a flame or put down to EV owners.
I would like to understand your perspective.
Why do you think EuroVan owners don't seem to be as motivated as other vw
bus/van
folks to help one another.
Or am I off base and drawing the wrong conclusion?
To me ... A VW VAN IS A VW VAN IS A VW VAN.
I don't care if its air cooled, water cooled or beer cooled.
We are all stuck with beautiful, but problematic vehicles.
If someone is in need I'll try and help.
I "clipped" a few of the comments from the vanagon group's discussion.
- - -
Personally I will help a "camper" regardless if splittie, bay, vanagon, or
euro. However I have found that the vast majority of the euro crowd looks
upon us all as "other" people.
- - -
To hell with those people, Larry. They won't even help one of their own, yet
they act like a Vanagon was the result of a drunken night spent with a
hooker
from the wharfs.
- - -
I think the split is a result of the change in design philosophy. The
Vanagon
was still the same basic design from '80-- it was the last of the
"traditional"
Volkswagen designs. The EuroVan was just another minivan. It just doesn't
have
that same "thinking outside the box" look or feel that came with the old
rear
engine VWs, so it doesn't attract the same class of nuts.
- - -
Several of us approached the EV folks and started a general VW oriented
conversation. They were not the least friendly. Would I help one of them if
they had a problem? Yes. Would any of them help a Vanagon, Splittie or Bay
bus
owner in trouble? I seriously doubt they'd give us a second look or thought.
- - -
The average EVC owner/driver doesn't see themselves as part of the
tradition,
history or lineage that the Bus and Vanagon driver/owner/caretaker does.
They
just don't connect their EVC with the past history of VW campers or
vehicles.
I have to think that it is their loss, not ours. The sense of community
among
those driving Vanagons and Buses is lost to most of the EVC crowd.
- - -
I've met vanagon & bus folks like this too and I've met people in Ford
campers
who were nice folks. It's the people and not the van.
- - -
good road, good adventure
larry chase
www.roadhaus.com
www.roadhaus.com/shops.html
www.roadhaus.com/tires.html
