Tour of our 1987 Vanagon Westfalia! A complete walk through of the exterior and interior.
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- Опубліковано 25 чер 2024
- Links from video below.
After much request, here is the walk through video of our 1987 Westy! We cover the exterior mods, the suspension, wheels, tires and brakes. Then we move on to the engine that powers our adventures and why we chose what we did. After that, we move to the inside to look at our battery system, heater and interior systems.
Parts that are covered in the video:
These are Amazon affiliate links. We earn a small commission when you buy from this link and it really helps us out. Very much appreciated :)
Rancho 9000 front shocks:
amzn.to/3oH7OYx
Bilstein rear shocks:
amzn.to/3bPSzHn
Moog Front Springs:
amzn.to/3vrQQ2E
Flowmaster Muffler:
amzn.to/3uf9r0z
Flame King refill adapter:
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1lb bottle adapter:
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Regulator for 1lb bottle:
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0:00 Vanagon Westfalia Van Tour
0:37 Exterior
4:11 Suspension Wheels Tires Brakes
8:02 Engine and Exhaust
11:19 Interior
#vanagon #t3 #westfalia
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This makes me happy 😊 my parents had one when I was younger and we used to go on road trips all summer every year.
My parents passed away in 2002 ( my mom of cancer and my dad of a broken heart) so seeing this brings me wonderful memories. Ty!!❤
Awesome story! I hope our kids remember fondly all of the trips Westy has taken us on. Such great memories!
nate
I know you put a lot of sweat into it, glad you're enjoying it so much kid. Love y'all.
Yes we did and probably will continue to do that!
Thanks for watching dad!
nate
A year ago we almost bought a renovated '89 T3 California (european version of your Westi, as we live in Denmark) but as non of us are into fixing cars, we ended up buying a brand new in stead. It's not as charming, but it works every day. I really love yours, so please keep it and keep making videos.
Thanks!!! Lots more videos coming!
Nate
Thanks for the comprehensive info on upgrades, very useful, Ta!
Thanks!
Nate
ENVY!! Damn, I miss my '85 Vanagon Westfalia every frickin' day! (RIP Prudence)
Dropped over $1000 for a muffler assembly that fell off in MD at the very start of Phish tour. Outrageous!!
Time for another Vanagon! That's way too much to spend on a muffler assembly 😁
nate
This is the best van ever i,ve seen so far, great on and off road and efficient but also kept as functional and simple as possible, I absolutely love it
🙏🏻 thank you very much for the kind words.
Nate
I’m starting the long adventure of reclaiming mine that I let disintegrate for 16 years, you have put some wind in my sails, thank you for inspiration
Love this! Glad you are going to get the old van back on the road. That is where it belongs!
nate
One of the best westfalia I have seen so far ! It looks pretty much stock but you have so many great upgrades. I like that you preserved VW engine and it’s now much better then the original one! I have 87 as well, thank you for sharing and good tips.
Thanks, we appreciate the kind words
nate
@@ThatBaldwinLife Hello....How does one climb up to top bed / tent area? Did VW have an OEM hook ladder or was it customers job to buy a step ladder? .....
Thanks for the walkthrough Nate, I like that it’s simple but has what you need
Thanks John. I've always liked the OEM+ look for vehicles. Like it is something the factory would have produced. Not stock but subtle enough mods that only a true enthusiasts would see.
nate
What a fantastic walk through guys.
Love following you guys 👍👍
Really appreciate the nice words Stephen. It was a fun video to make
nate
This is so awesome, what a labor of love - all the improvements you've made. Having the mechanical know how and inclination saved loads of money and then you know it's done right. The more I watch these the more I want a camper van! :D
Yeah we really enjoy the process of upgrading where needed. I have been working on VW's for 30 years so I have learned a thing or two!
nate
Thanks for the tour. You certainly know your mechanics is what I learned! Good one👍
Thanks Chris, I've been working on watercooled VW's for 30 years now. Appreciate you checking out the video.
nate
Aww yeah! Been waiting for a van tour from you both!
Glad you enjoyed it!
nate
will definitely be applying some things ive seen on this video. nice job and thanks for sharing!
Glad it was helpful!
That’s a very cool upgrade for the heater controller it tucks up nice on the shelf. You’ve given me an idea for a location when I do my heater upgrade. Great channel guys! Enjoying watching your travels from over the pond👍🏼🇬🇧
Glad you enjoyed it! Appreciate the kind words on the videos.
nate
Love your channel! I’ve got a similar VW 1991 westy . I’ve had it almost a year . We live near gowesty and it was rebuilt and restored by go westy AND LOVE IT . Hope to run into you and your wife one day on our travels .
Great build and love how you found options that work really well for your budget and your westy .
Thanks! Sounds like you have a great van and I am glad you are getting out there to enjoy it. We will be at Descend on Lost Sierra in May down in Portola Cali if you plan on attending the event.
nate
Great van guys! Looks awesome.
Thanks!
Nate
Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for watching!
Looking good!
thanks Anthony! you know how much work goes into cars :)
nate
Beautifu Van Guys.
Thanks Aaron, appreciate you watching the video.
nate
Sweet tour! Looking forward to seeing you in Portola.
Thanks Dave, we are super excited to see you guys as well
nate
I would like to switch the propane to a bottle system myself. Most propane places don't care to lay on the ground for filling stock tank. Also I would feel better about the safety.
Thanks for the walk thru -- I appreciate all your videos & am glad I found you, too bad it wasn't while i still lived in the PNW! Hahaha
Yeah we had some issues with people not wanting to fill ours due to the location and with the leaks, we decided to just move to this system. There are plenty of threads on theSamba on how to do it but it involves just a few simple to source parts.
We really appreciate the kind words and if you're ever back this way, give us a shout.
nate
That Propane tank is SWEET !!! ... also love your shock setup. Been looking to replace mine and prob gonna follow your lead.
Thanks, it does make refilling for us easier as we just use a big 20 gallon tank we have at home. The small tank lasts a few weeks if we use it everyday so it works for us. All of the shocks have gone up in price recently but these are still a good value right now.
nate
Thanks
I LIKE! VERY, VERY NICE!!!
👍🏻👍🏻👏🏻👏🏻👌🏻🇧🇷
Thank you! Cheers!
nate
this breaks my heart. I have had 2 of these, none this nice. At 72 my camping days are over but i still must look.
Thanks! glad you got to enjoy them when you did though!
Never say never! There was a guy at 80 hiking the JMT. Although a vanagon is not as comfortable as you bed at home, it's a great way to see the US/Canada.
Looks very nice! For less sway you might consider adding the T3 25mm anti-sway bar and HD links.
on the sheets. I took two twin sheets and sewed a box by stitching the bottom together and up the side about a foot. keeps your feet from sticking out the end of the bed.
Thanks Gary. The T3 bar is on our "want" list along with better headlights, cruise control, etc...... :)
nate
Thank you for sharing. You have a very nice Westy. I have a '88 white GL daily driver with 360k on it. It's been a warhorse. It's nowhere near as pretty but it's still a Westy!
For sure! Bet that is a lot of adventures in those 360K miles.
nate
wonder if you could put a flat 100-watt solar panel on top of the pop-top. That would really give you extra battery power especially if you were using the heat overnight. The new panels will give some charging even on a cloudy day. Another benefit would be they could charge the two camper batteries as you drive, taking some load off the alternator. Just my thoughts. Oh, also you could use a flexible 100-watt panel I believe they are much lighter for putting on top of the Pop Top. As always I really enjoy your videos....safe travels!
We almost pulled the trigger on solar a few times but would probably get a suitcase style so we could park in the shade and have the panels in the sun. Honestly now I want to push these old AGM's to see how much they can take before we move to lithium and probably solar. We run the ARB all day/night and the heater with no issues but I don't think we could do that for several days without a charge.
nate
Great series, thanks for putting it out there. I'm a 90 westy 2wd with a Rocky Jennings 2.3 (love it) and RMW stainless exhaust. Exhaust noise is the issue and the small exhaust they include is, as you know, way loud. Have you stuck with the upgrade 18" exhaust or have you any ideas about quieting down the exhaust?
We tried everything we could to quiet the exhaust and keep it from leaking at the clamps. In the end, we took it off in favor of a GoWesty stainless exhaust. It’s too bad as we lost a bit of pep by switching but know it will be more reliable in the future
Nate
Well done. I’d love to see some of my products in your van. ;-)
Thanks! We’re you at Syncrofest with Jed?
Nate
@@ThatBaldwinLife We were there again this year. Already looking forward to #syncrofest2024!!
Thanks,great video. Could u share the heater again?
It is an Espar B1L gasoline (petrol) heater.
nate
Vw all the way. Yes. you can build the hp you want with a vw. No Sub junk
We wouldn’t mind a bit more HP but our WBX does jus fine. We are not in a hurry when we are in our Westy
Nate
You walk through video was super informative and my head is spinning on all "the things". I just bought a 1987 Westy a few days ago and am excited about connecting with others in the Portland area and to figure out what upgrades are best based on the condition of my westy. Who do you recommend in the Portland area to help me create a list of upgrades? Thanks a bunch!
Hi Kristina, so excited you were able to pick up a Westy! if you head over to thesamba.com and go to the Vanagon section there is a wealth of knowledge regarding must do's (fuel lines) and other nice to haves. You can also hit me up by email at thatbaldwinlife@gmail and I can help you get started as well. Thanks so much for watching the video!
nate
Thanks for the tour. It is always great to see what other Westy owners have done. Took particular note of the heater and springs. We still have the stock somewhat dysfunctional fridge. Which fridge do you use?
We use an ARB fridge as our stock fridge was also dysfunctional.
thanks for tuning in
nate
Sorry I asked that same question in one of your other videos. Cheers.
Haha, no problem. We should have covered that in the video!
nate
Sorry, I am new. What is an arb fridge? And where is it?
@@steve2468 a brand. The Samba.com and Facebook Groups have a lot of information.
Never can have too much spare. Wine
So true!
nate
Your van is superb. Way way more 'improved' than ours. We were interested in your heater. In America 'gas' means petrol and gas! I'm sure you said it was gas powered but which - petrol or propane? Also - what is a Gator? We're quite ignorant when it comes to North America! Here in the UK if you change your vehicle in any way the insurance companies are all over you - they really don't like you to change a thing. Even wheel upgrades will raise your premium. Biggest upgrade for us recently was new mirrors - stock not truck-style. No rubberised paint on the lower section either - we need to be able to see the rust coming and deal with it instantly! 'Liked' as usual.
Thanks for the kind words about our van. Yes I should have been more clear for the international audience but yes the Espar is gasoline (petrol) and not propane. A Gator is a ATV vehicle that was made by the tractor company John Deere.
www.deere.com/en/gator-utility-vehicles/
The insurance rules there seem pretty nuts but glad you got to get some new mirrors! I won't tell the insurance company :)
nate
Hey Nate, can you make a diy video on how you converted your propane tank.
That's not a bad idea, I will see what I can do!!
nate
I would like to know more or your rear shocks. Thanks part numbers and your thoughts. Will be doing my front and rear shocks in the next month.
A lot of the parts I talked about are all linked in the description but here is the Bilstein shocks:
amzn.to/3bPSzHn
They seem to have gone up in price since I bought them (Like a lot of things!) and we really like them. Great control when loaded and no fading on dirt roads.
nate
Hey Nate thanks again for this thorough walk through. Wondering how you are liking the Powerflex bushings. About to drop the equivalent of a small island nation’s GDP on some.
Yes just because there are no good OEM options for rubber bushings. If I could buy those I would. Urethane always is a bit harsher for suspension than rubber.
Nate
@@ThatBaldwinLife Thanks for getting back. That seems to be the consensus from what I could dig up. It’s only money?
Great job on the details. I have a 1987 Westy in San Diego and am interested in your heater, what can you tell me about the manufacturer and efficiency?
Hey Tim, we have an Espar gasoline heater and did a product review of it on our page. It is called Espar Gasoline Heater Review if you wanna check it out
Thanks!
nate
Nice, my love for my westy has wained a little bit in the last few years with it not really being reliable (I should have done a full rebuild when I had the motor out instead of the refresh) but I'm just now finally getting it back to either making it work or prepping it to sell (Delta have the heart for that). I'm really interested in that little heater any chance you could send the link or do you have a video about it?
We have a video on our Espar heater in our channel
Nate
That's a great van. Looks pretty stock from the outside, and the upgrades are very subtle. We have a 90 Westy and we're going to be switching from our stock 14" to the GW 16". I've searched and researched any possibility to keep our 16" spare in the clamshell, but nothing is really feasible -yet. With your rear spare tire carrier, how much weight does it add to the rear. I heard they're pretty heavy. Can you tell there's added weight?
Thanks!
I am not sure how much the tire carrier weighs but the tire and carrier both did lower the rear drivers side a bit. I added a small spacer on top of the spring to make up the difference.
Love the up grades. What percentage tint did you use on your windows? The same all around or different?
Thanks! I believe we have 30% all around (or somewhere near that %)
nate
Sorry can you write down where did you source the higher and stiffer front springs from? Thanks!
I put a lot of the parts links in the description. Here are the front springs:
Moog Front Springs:
amzn.to/3vrQQ2E
nate
Say, do you ever use the swing out table inside the van? You didn't talk about it.
Hey Teresa, we really do not use it much. In fact we take it out for some trips so we can access the storage compartments easier. It is nice at times for meal prep or laptop work though. Thanks so much for tuning in!
nate
Happy Holidays! wondering if you have pictures or a video of how your rear bumper is made? i'm looking for ideas to build my own bumper with a hitch that can tow up to 1500#. Thank You!
No I don't have any pics/vids of the bumper. It was something I did over a weekend a few years ago. Sorry!
nate
@@ThatBaldwinLife understood. I'll come up with something. 🙂
Thanks for Sharing! I want to lift my 82 diesel camper (not a westy) with 16s and was wondering, with your springs/shock combo, what measurement you have from center hub to fender? Need the ride height since we are planning to explore the west coast like what you are doing after i'm done with repairs. Thanks again!
We are about 17.5” from fender to hub. Glad you’re gonna get out there, road trips are the best
Nate
@@ThatBaldwinLife Thank You! we'll see you out there!
Hi nice video/ I am looking at a 1987 your model this week/ up,in your area/ Beaverton any idea we’re I could take it to get it checked out before I buy it? thx David
Dave at D&M Automotive in Beaverton is VW/ Vanagon guy but I’m not sure he does pre purchase inspections. You might give him a call and see what he can do. Very knowledgeable. Good luck!!
Nate
OLÁ FAMÍLIA !
PASSANDO PARA DESEJAR-LHES PAZ, SAÚDE & PROSPERIDADE.
SEMPRE QUE ME LEMBRO DE VOCÊS ASSOCIO O PENSAMENTO À VAN. REVEJO OS DETALHES DA CONSTRUÇÃO OBSERVO AS IDEIAS E OS RECURSOS APLICADOS AO BOM FUNCIONAMENTO DESTE VEÍCULO.
PARABÉNS PELO “RACIOCÍNIO” E AS POSSÍVEIS SOLUÇÕES 👌🏻. SE EU FOSSE ADQUIRIR “UMA” TERIA QUE SER IDÊNTICA À ESTA 👆🏻COM TODOS OS ÍTENS DE SEGURANÇA E FUNCIONALIDADE APLICADOS. ENFIM, “DE ILUSÃO TAMBÉM SE VIVE”!
Kkkkk 😄
você é muito gentil!! obrigado pelas palavras gentis e por assistir!!
Saudações
Hope this translates well!! 😁😁
nate
We have that year and model. Where is your dry goods/ food and what do you use for a fridge now? I see your water tap is different than ours, did you change that? As well, how about toilets?
We have changed things up a bit as we now have a TF65 cabinet fridge in the left cabinet (See TF65 Install video) and we use the smaller right side cabinet and the cubbies by the water tank for dry goods and non fridge food. Our faucet is a Sureflo unit that is a common replacement for the factory one that is prone to failure. We god ours from GoWesty.
For toilets we usually disperse camp without campgrounds and just dig a hole. If on the road, we use gas stations and public restrooms.
Thanks for watching!!
nate
Greetings from Lake Tahoe. Regarding the the tire load rating. You mentioned you have a 102 load and said do not put a 90 or 92 load rated tire on your vanagon. I just purchased a vanagon that has the black steel wheel and Michelin 16” tire combo package from gowesty. They are only a year or so old. I looked up the load rating on a chart and they are load rating 95. Do you think this is acceptable or should I be changing them out? I would really like your opinion And I’m learning a lot on your channel. Just found it. Thank you.
Yes our Nokian's were a 102 and now our BFG AT KO2's are a 103 load rating. GoWesty has been selling that Michelin 95 load rated tire for a long time and they feel it has a high enough load rating and I do not know of any issues any of their customers have had with it. Is yours a tin top Vanagon? If so, they are quite a bit lighter than a full Westy.
I guess I wouldn't run out and buy new tires but next time you are tire shopping, keep the load rating in mind. There are some great threads on theSamba about it.
Thanks for watching!
nate
I bought the same wheels. Where did you purchase the VW center cap stickers and what size is it?
We purchased them from eBay and they are around 64mm in diameter. They have a sticky foam backing but we scuffed the center caps and added some epoxy to assure they do not come off. There seem to be a lot of VW stickers like that on eBay.
nate
The suspension upgrades, bushings, brakes, callipers, brake booster, lift kit, tires…. how much did those upgrades cost (excluding the motor rebuild)?
I don’t have a number for you. I do all of my own work so labor is free. You’d just have to add up the cost of all the parts to get an idea. And it was done over a number of years.
Nate
I notice that your headlights high beams are amber color? I upgraded my headlights and no longer have bulbs in the old slots and was thinking of using them with amber fog lights. Can you telling how you did yours and what bulbs you went with? Great Westy BTW!
Hey Joe, the amber lights are just yellow tint I purchased from eBay but is headlight specific tint.
Nate
The original 1997 dual headlights are now available as LEDs, and the engine package is a remove and replace form fit function thing. Pricy, at about $500, but the best upgrade to my 1987-1/2 Weekender which I bought new.
Is that a diesel heater? All I can find is the diesel heaters online. I was hoping for gas so I could tap off the fuel tank possibly.
No it is a gasoline Espar heater and it is awesome. We did a video about it here: ua-cam.com/video/Ga9S0htJ4eY/v-deo.html
nate
Hi there, what is your heater system ? I didn’t really understand ( sorry for my bad English)
We do a full review of our heater system in this video:
ua-cam.com/video/Ga9S0htJ4eY/v-deo.html
Thanks for watching!
nate
Espar is the brand.
What is the part number for that John Deer Gator heater? Been looking the Espar kits, but they are super expensive.
Try a Chinese diesel heater! Very cost effective and diesel is not nearly as dangerous if it leaks. Fuel tank fits behind the passenger tail light nicely.
Man I don't know what the John Deere number was but the heater is an Espar B1L I believe. They are really hard to find now.
nate
Agreed. If we hadn't stumbled upon this heater we would have a diesel heater in our van as well.
nate
Where do you store your food? We have a 1980 westfalia and I’m going to be getting it organized for camping next weekend. Ours is just like yours except we have the refrigerator but it doesn’t work
Hi Abby. When we had the ARB fridge on the floor, we stored most of our food in the cabinet where the stock fridge was. Now that we have put the Truckfridge in that place, most of our food is stored in the cubbies above the water tank. Our pots and pans, cups, french press, etc are stored in the cabinet to the right of the stock fridge location.
thanks
nate
@@ThatBaldwinLife thanks you so much for responding! Our first festival in our 1980 Westy was a success and I can’t wait to do some of the same modifications in your videos! Thanks so much!
Good to hear! What festival did you attend?
nate
@@ThatBaldwinLife we go every year to the Suwannee Roots Revival in Live Oak, Fl. It’s a bluegrass festival. So much fun!
Did you upgrade the refrigerator?
Hey David, we forgot to mention in the video that we use an ARB fridge now instead of the stock unit. We just take it out when we are not camping.
nate
What do you use for a refrigerator?
We use an ARB fridge
nate
is it for sale?
Joli
Great build! If you happen to have a lot of spare time, I would really like to hear more about the Rocky Mountain Tire carrier install and hear how it works out overall. I carry a smaller spare in the front location because a steel bumper plus carrier is just too many Ramen. Also, you are hereby mandated to do thorough walkthrough of the propane conversion cause that’s just really cool. I’ve seen the 1lbs bottles setup in the cabinet but I never liked the idea of additional condensation in there. Lastly, how the heck did you make that heater work? Sounds much better than the diesel go-to equivalent . One more: I have the AT which works well except for fun to drive factor and highway. I see you take your MT on pretty steep grades and off the beaten path: would you prefer an AT? I’m considering changing mine to MT for the more comfortable highway cruising… and fun to drive factors asking before I commit to a swap.
We love the spare tire carrier. It is a good deal for the amount of engineering that went into it and how well it is made.
I was thinking of doing a short video on the propane conversion so thanks for the extra push!
Our Espar heater is just plumed into the fuel line just before the filter and the pump pulls gas from the tank. It is wired to the house battery and when we set a temp, it fires up and holds that temp till you turn it off.
Our tires are considered an All Terrain and we have been very happy with the road manners and the grip we get in off road situations. We may go with something a bit more aggressive after these wear out but we have no complaints for these Nokians.
Thanks so much for watching!
nate
@@ThatBaldwinLife thanks for the feedback! I meant AT as auto trans and MT as manual trans, my bad.
That makes sense too! :). We love our manual and would not trade it for an auto any day.
nate
@@ThatBaldwinLife thanks Nate. My auto trans is good, just not a lot of fun and I wish it would run a lower rpms at 65-70. There are freeway gears (well the final drive) out there but very costly to install and purchase too, with mixed results from users.. Looking for more info that heater, looks like there are a couple of models. Have a great summer!
What did you do for a fridge, I might have missed that...
No you didn't miss it, we did a poor job in explaining that! We use an ARB fridge that we only keep in the van during trips. It works very well.
nate
@@ThatBaldwinLife How much amperage does it take? What was the cost?
It draws about 1.5 amps/hour on average (more when the compressor is on, nothing when sitting) and this is the 82 quart version and costs about $1200 (though we bought our used for half of that).
arbusa.com/portable-fridge-freezers/classic-sii-range-fridge-freezers/
nate
What kind of tinted window you got on there?
Not sure? Had a local shop do them. I think it is a 3M material
Nate
@@ThatBaldwinLife ty
@@ThatBaldwinLife What about the mountain logo at the rear? And how do you deal with the summer heat since you have no AC? Thanks
The mountain logo is an image of the Teton mountains that we picked up from a store in the park. They are one of our favorite places to explore. With no AC, we just roll down the windows and deal with it. We use spray bottles of water to mist ourselves as we drive and as it evaporates, it cools us down. We both grew up with cars that had no AC so we are a bit used to it.
nate
@@ThatBaldwinLife thanks for the info!
No fridge!?
We state in the video we used an ARB fridge when we travel. We now have a built in 65qt Truckfridge.
Nate
@@ThatBaldwinLife - Sweet! 👌👍😘
Where do you put all the other food
????? Mason family
Just the fridge and cabinet! We shop every few days. Thanks Mason's! :)
nate
It's an engine, not a motor...
Great video though, thanks!
says you
e storage was always the worst thing about the Vanagons... Toyota Chinook is a better option, all told. Nice job thip!
Storage can be tricky for sure depending on how long you're on the road and how efficient you are. With just Nancy and I, we do pretty good expect for we need a better system for packing multiple types of clothes depending on weather.
I love Chinooks but we are Volkswagen people at heart!
Thanks!
nate