Expert: William Forster - 6/24/2007

Question
Hi, I have a 1973 vw camper bus that I am going to go get some quotes on fixing (since it's $60,000-80,000 for a new class B).  It has a damaged drivers side rear corner panel just under the air vent as well as dings and rust on the foot wells and bottom edges of doors.  It also needs rear bumper, window seals, full paint job, engine and tranny.  Any advice before I shop around?  I'm pretty handy and have a car trailer.  What experience have you had with these older vw's.  Thank you.  Sincerely,     Chris

Answer
Hello Chris! Find someone who specializes in VW restorations. We did one when I was a kid back in the middle 80's, and man, I hated that thing. It had at least 3 paint jobs on it already, and was rotted so far back that some patch panels didn't reach above the rust line! tHAT MEANT PATCHING BEFORE i COULD PATCH! Sorry, caps lock. Anyhow, these things were horribly prone to rust, so get a professional opinion on the validity of restoring this van. I say you are looking at a MINIMUM of 15,000.00, and no less than a year of work. No body shop turns over cars as fast as they do on TV. Blasting facilities are usually booked up, parts are always late or wrong, there are always other customer vehicles that need done. Jobs like this are a filler job, usually only worked on when things are slow. The big money is in the smaller stuff, like collision work, repairing small rust spots, easy little gravy money jobs come first. Jobs like your van are generally reviled by the guys they are given to, due to the amount of horrible, dirty, rusty work that needs done. I wouldn't shed a tear if I never did a rust bucket again. Lots of labor, very little pay. That is why you need a specialist. I love GTO's, and wouldn't mind doing one of those. I like them, I know what to expect when I fix one. You need someone like me, but likes VW busses. Bill