Vanagon, VW T25, Westafalia – all names for one great budget bus
Buying a VW T25
The Vanagon is a good first camper if you’re on a tight budget, and they’re often restored to cutomised designs. They’re great for summer festivals and enjoying economical camping holidays.The VW T25 is larger than the earlier VW campers and can be bought cheaply and were made over ten years from 1980 to 1990.
Look out for this model if you want to try out a camper or your budget is tight.These are old campers, though, so you will need to do more maintenance than with a modern vehicle.
Do Your Research
They are quite straighforward to restore – both the mechanics and the interior. You do need to look at a number of VW 25 campers before buying. Do your research. If you get more information and learn about the model, you can spot vehicles that will cause problems.
Ask the owners what they’ve used the camper for and find out about its background. What you don’t want is something that’s been off the road for long periods and is a low-quality amateur conversion that could hide something nasty.
Check the Bodywork
Take some time to really have a good look around. Look over the gutters and the roof and the pop-up mechanism. Ask for a demonstration.
Bumps and waves along the sides can be a sign of damage and filler. Most rust will start between the Vanagon body panels, can be serious and needs to be checked thoroughly.
The battery tray can hise problems and also the steps – carefully look over both the front and back steps. Look at the dip on the top of the fuel tank for signs of rust!
Look at the tires. Are they all the same? What condition is the spare in? Make sure the tires are proper van tires not ordinary car tires. Low profile tyres are a problem as they will be for a car not a van.
Engine Checks
Listen to the engine and check how it starts. You don’t want smoke from the exhaust and oil over the engine. Are there any smells of petrol or diesel that could indicate the tank is rusty? You need to know what the engine is, how old it is and what mileage it has done. Ask about maintenance, oil changes and other service history.
Does the engine start straightaway or does the starter motor struggle? They can pack up without warning. They were fitted with several different engine models. 1980 to 1982 were air-cooled. The smaller engines lack power, but are easy to work on. 1982 onwards both dieslel and petrol engine were available, replacing the air-cooled engine.
OK – now it’s decision time. Is this a great budget bus, a good Vanagon, VW t25 camper – or will you be letting yourself in for a lot of hard work and heartache?
