Statement of Purpose of this Group

21
Les,

Sorry to hear that you are tightening the rules on this forum.
I have always been interested in other options especially as VWAG isn't much help. N/A rings a bell ?
I wonder where I stand in all this with my LPG conversion definitely not approved by VW. Or my 8691V ECU Monitor soldered in.
My drive shaft starts playing up - where do I go for repair ??  One from Hardy Spicer might be the answer.
The car jack was mentioned the other day, two years ago I was quoted $450!!  For less than halve I can buy a decent high lift-jack.

By the way the SUBARUVANAGON site is a different kettle of fish. Purposely build only for subaru engine transplant, they don't want
to be side tracked by query about noisy bearing, rattling doors, faulty air flow meter etc.etc.

I for one, hope you keep an open mind on our technical aspirations.

Belated birthday greetings, I also need to fit a reversing camera one day.

Cheers

Theo





At 01:48 PM 9/05/2013, you wrote:
 

Ben,

In this, I am treading a very fine line. 

I am aware that some owners, when faced with a terminally ill MV engine, will see a Subaru transplant as a viable alternative.  A number of members have done this and have achieved satisfactory results, you amongst them.

Yes, the intent of the group is to offer technical support for owners of the standard T3 Syncro.  My view of alternative engines is still much the same – if a transplant is the only viable option, I can’t condemn it.  Beyond that, where does one stop? 

Les
 From: Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com [ mailto:Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Ben
Sent: 08 May 2013 21:39
To: Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [Syncro_T3_Australia] Re: Statement of Purpose of this Group

Les, I wish you a speedy recovery.
You replied and said something along the lines of that it was going to be great information for the members on this forum to keep these old vehicles on the road, which was your intended purpose.So I did a thread of my install and downloaded photos.Now you say this sort of information is not welcome????
Surely I am not the only one who is interested in reading about any maintenance or modifications to these old Kombi's that we all love.
Regards
BenC



22

Theo,

I am not ‘tightening’ anything and the purpose of this group is certainly not to support the usurious spare parts pricing policy of Volkswagen.  In fact, it would appear that their policy is specifically designed to drive away their most loyal customers.

Asking $450 for a jack is like Coles pricing a loaf of bread at $20 and milk $10 per litre.  Using a Hardy Spicer universal joint of equal quality to an original but 15% of the VW price is basic commonsense.  If petrol prices were the same as they were in 1989, no-one would need to go to LPG but this isn’t 1989

Where is the commonsense dividing line?  Do we use only genuine parts, even when they cost 1000% more than a reliable substitute? 

Then there is the matter of modifications.  Do we stay with the original design intent of the Syncro or do we think that fitting a Porsche Carrera engine, gearbox and drivetrain is close enough to the original design intention?  Should I fit that 6.0 litre supercharged V8 Gen 4 engine sitting in the shed? 

The last time that I looked, Yahoo listed over 30 Syncro and Syncro related groups.  The US Syncro group has over 2000 members.  It would appear that every possible Syncro avenue is already covered.  Is there a need to change the direction of this group from its original intention nine years ago?

Les

From: Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com [mailto:Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Theo Weiss
Sent: 12 May 2013 18:22
To: Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com
Subject: RE: [Syncro_T3_Australia] Re: Statement of Purpose of this Group

 

Les,

Sorry to hear that you are tightening the rules on this forum.

23
Hey Les I like that Porsche conversion Idea. GT3 cup car would be my choice,,,,,,,,,,,Pete


On Sun, May 12, 2013 at 9:30 PM, Les Harris <leslieharris@optusnet.com.au> wrote:

Theo,

I am not ‘tightening’ anything and the purpose of this group is certainly not to support the usurious spare parts pricing policy of Volkswagen. In fact, it would appear that their policy is specifically designed to drive away their most loyal customers.

Asking $450 for a jack is like Coles pricing a loaf of bread at $20 and milk $10 per litre. Using a Hardy Spicer universal joint of equal quality to an original but 15% of the VW price is basic commonsense. If petrol prices were the same as they were in 1989, no-one would need to go to LPG but this isn’t 1989

Where is the commonsense dividing line? Do we use only genuine parts, even when they cost 1000% more than a reliable substitute?

Then there is the matter of modifications. Do we stay with the original design intent of the Syncro or do we think that fitting a Porsche Carrera engine, gearbox and drivetrain is close enough to the original design intention? Should I fit that 6.0 litre supercharged V8 Gen 4 engine sitting in the shed?

The last time that I looked, Yahoo listed over 30 Syncro and Syncro related groups. The US Syncro group has over 2000 members. It would appear that every possible Syncro avenue is already covered. Is there a need to change the direction of this group from its original intention nine years ago?

Les

From: Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com [mailto:Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Theo Weiss
Sent: 12 May 2013 18:22
To: Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com
Subject: RE: [Syncro_T3_Australia] Re: Statement of Purpose of this Group

Les,


Sorry to hear that you are tightening the rules on this forum.


24

Happy burfday Les    Bob

 

From: Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com [mailto:Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Les Harris
Sent: Friday, 10 May 2013 12:37 PM
To: Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com
Subject: RE: [Syncro_T3_Australia] Statement of Purpose of this Group

 

 

Ken,

Thanks for finding that and posting it.  I was beginning to think that I was being draconian but I see that I am complete wimp by comparison!!

When I acquired my Syncro in December 2003, I spent a lot of time on the Internet accumulating information.   It soon became evident that there was no Syncro representation in Australia apart from Phill’s excellent website and a very occasional mention on the Kombi forum. The big US Syncro Yahoo group had a register, so I pulled out the Australian addresses and began sending out a newsletter; from memory, this was Feb 2004. 

The original intention was just to put Australian Syncro owners in touch with each other but it became clear that there was a need for a dedicated web group so I set up the Syncro_T3_Australia Yahoo website and put it on the Internet on, from memory, 4 August 2004.

At that point, it didn’t have any purpose other than establishing contact but a purpose quickly evolved over the next few years and it became a much needed technical support and advice resource.

It thrived and we acquired members aplenty but I had made a fundamental error by leaving membership open to all without any form of vetting.  About four years ago, it got well out of hand and the open membership had drawn not a few very unsavoury types, from hairy trolls to convicted crims, all anonymous. 

I pulled the plug on the entire membership and required everyone to re-register and provide full personal bona fides.  This got rid of the trolls, crims and dead wood overnight; the group, whilst a lot smaller, was much enhanced and considerably stronger as a result.

The technical resource aspect appears to have worked well and we will enter our tenth year in August.  As you often mention, the number of Syncros will only ever diminish.  Given that most people want to keep their Syncros in good running order and in original configuration, a need is being filled by this group.

I turned eighty a few days ago and I won’t be around forever but the need for the support that this group provides to Australian Syncro owners will, if anything increase.  It certainly won’t decrease.  I think that the current formula is serving this purpose well and I intend to maintain it as it is.

Les

From: Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com [mailto:Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Ken Garratt
Sent: 09 May 2013 23:33
To: _T3_Australia forum Syncro
Subject: RE: [Syncro_T3_Australia] Statement of Purpose of this Group

 

CONTRIBUTIONS/BEHAVIOR: Discussion is LIMITED to the topic of putting Subaru engines into vanagon type vehicles only. Do not post about other engines, other vw vehicles, tires, or general vanagon restoration. General Vanagon discussions with no Subaru content, while valuable, belong on other Vanagon sites!
This Group is strictly moderated. Only post questions and responses that will benefit the Group at large. "Chat type" conversations between individual members and off-topic, or non-informative posts will be deleted at the discretion of the moderator. NO flames will be tolerated.

 

Les I'm thinking you're good to go and revise your own home page purpose statement ... match fire with fire! HA!

Cheers.

Ken