Learn what to look for when buying a Vanagon or We

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Rocky Mountain Westy - Learn what to look for when buying a Vanagon or Westfalia camper,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych]
Hello all you Volkswagen Vanagon and Westfalia fans. We here at Rocky Mountain Westy have decided to start publishing articles that help answer questions we get from clients all the time. Common questions about what to look for when your in the market to purchase a Volkswagen Vanagon and Westfalia. Let's start there and we'll write more articles for all of you as we can.
As most of you know Volkswagen Vanagons have been manufacturered from 1980 through 1991. Different versions in the United States included the passenger style van, the Weekender camper,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], the Westfalia camper and Wolfsburg & Carat Editions. We'll break these models down further as we go on.
The models from 1980 to mid 1983 were air cooled versions of the T3 van. They lacked the lower grill that allows air to the radiator of the late 1983 thru 1991 US models. This is an easy way to know if the vanagon you're standing in front of is an air cooled model or not. The early models through 1985 also had round headlights. That's a dead give away if nobody has changed them. Many people will purchase a grill and headlamp system from a 1986 or newer vehicle to give their older Vanagon the appearance of being much newer. The square headlamp are brighter too.
Air cooled models of the Vanagon and Westfalia didn't produce very good heat for the interior of the van since there isn't any liquid cooling system to run coolant through a heater core like the newer versions. If you like a really warm heater,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], you may not want to buy one that is pre 1984.
The water cooled models or "Wasserboxer" arrived on the US market in late 1983 and sported a 1.9 liter engine with a Digijet or Digital Jet-Tronic fuel management system. This model also included some options including a nicer interior,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], tachometer,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], and better transmission. On the exterior the headlamps were now rectangular, plastic bumpers and alloy wheels were also options. The 1986 Vanagon also included a better optional air conditioning system that had an airliner style duct system running the length of the vehicle's ceiling, on the passenger models.