id say you already know-
<<mechanically it sucked but the layout was wonderful.

my girlfriend and i are travelling through mexico in an 86- the lp gas valve is busted (no fridge or stove now), and we're on our second unexpected weeklong stay waiting for parts to be mailed from the u.s. course, if youre into that kinda enforced serendipity, id say gobble up a westy.
durn near every mechanical part has had to be replaced on this beast, and they're really finicky and oddly laid out, and their computer setup is totally different from anything else, if you are a mechanic, befriend yerself with a vw specialist.
apart from the under the hood quirkyness, they're designed with such economy of space and the turning radius/wheel placement makes for the easiest parking and tight street turnarounds.
even though my old westy went up in a cloud of irritating smoke, i was (somewhat) sad to see it go.

theres a reason westy owners wave at eachother in passing....

Go for the air cooled but not the water cooled. My Water Cooled broke down so fast, it has opposing metals in it. My air cooled - I drove into the ground and honestly, if I had the money I would have replaced the engine like I should have and taken better care of it. I miss that van so damn much.

Good luck,
Woodstock

Hi Tim,

I would also recommend checking out the "Adventurewagen". They were a company in Northern California that did conversions in the 60's, 70's and 80's on VW vans. I had a '87 Adventurewagen, and I liked the layout much, much better than the Westfalia. They are easily recognisable by the tall hard-top, vs. the Westies expanding top.

Check out the original brochure:

fierycd.net/AW/AWBrochure/Page1.html

I loved this thing when parked. It was great at music festivals. And I lived in it for a year. But, it did suffer the same mechanical faults as all the rest of the VW's. Cracked heads, head gaskets, transmission, blah, blah. And although I sold it a few years back, I really miss it. It was fun to drive, fun to wave to other VW's on the road, fun to pull off the road and have a fridge, stove, fresh purified water, a stove and a potty all available.

My adventurewagen was oak inside, and I believe Teak was available too, so it felt like a little sailboat inside.

Hope this helps.

Hey Tim,
I've owned SEVERAL Westfalia's over the years. From mid to late 70's up to and including my current "ride" Priscilla, Queen of THE FU$&ING Desert ( so named because she made it across Death Valley in the mid day heat without a hiccup) Priscilla is a 1982 air-cooled Westfalia.
The good: Great utilization of interior space, fuel economy (who else can claim that their RV gets 20+MPG?) Fairly easy to maintain and service, parts avaliability, "Coolness" factor. "stealth" factor
The bad: top speed, very poor acceleration, Finding a good mechanic, cranky heater, SOME essential parts are becoming harder and harder to find,
Each model year has it's advantages/dis-advantages. As pointed out the Westfalia layout can be pretty nice. Air vs water cooled is a WHOLE other can of worms and you can read TONS of opinions regarding the virtues and downfalls of each.
Generally, the air-cooled Westys are under-powered and when you get into the later model "pancake" or "typeIV" engines there's not a whole lot you can do for performance without sacraficing longevity. The main problem is getting rid of the heat from the engine. Higher performance=more heat=shorter lifespan. This is what I've gleaned from personal experience and from the experts over the years, they ALL say the SAME thing, the more heat you produce, the shorter the lifespan.Air-cooleds can only go so far before you get to a point of diminishing returns. If you're happy with the performance of a well-built SLIGHTLY tweaked air cooled, go for it ! Don't be tempted to go for "SUPER High performance" or a "cheapie" rebuild on an air-cooled, they HAVE to be done RIGHT if you want it to last! Expect to pay around $3000 for a typeIV from someone like Boston Engine. What ever you do check the rebuilder out BEFORE you send $$! (expen$ive per$onal le$$on)

Water-cooling gives you better heat dissapation, a few more options AND a better heater!
Lately there are more and more engine conversions being done on the trusty ole Westy IE, VW turbo diesel, VW inline 4 gas engines , Subaru flat 4 and 6 cylinder gas engines, Ford engines heck, you can even get a "kit" and throw a Porsche engine in there!
The conversions are one way to get a few more "ponies" under the hood, a more reliable engine than the original AND better mileage.
My suggestion: go for a later model water-cooled with a "blown" engine but otherwise in great shape, and go the conversion route. A turbo diesel could be a good choice if you want to go "veggie" or "bio" diesel down the road.
Good place to start looking www.thesamba.com It'll give you a good idea of what they're going for, and check out the forums, they're a good source for all kinds of info.

hope this helps

Jim Sweet

Hey, me too! I've been looking on thesamba.com and also ebaymotors (ugh) and I love the older 70s era buses but I'm going for something in the early to mid 80s for practical purposes. I talk to everyone I see coming out of a westie and have gotten so many varying opinions especially on air vs. water cooled engines. Leaves me in a bit of a quandry... what is better for massive road trips, festivals, and our beautiful black rock city!?

I would recommend a Mitsubishi Delica Van.