WTB / NPC - Looking for a Nice Vanagon Front Air Dam, I know many here have Westies/Vanos! Options

[Tom_T]

Okay - I know it's a long shot - but I'm trying to find a very nice used or NOS VW Vanagon / Westy front Air Dam to finish up the resto of our `88 Westy.

These are now NLA & excellent condition ones are as rare as hens' teeth to find today (help Mikey!?), and Bus Depot sells a non-OE aftermarket resin one made by Westfalia - despite their online catalog listing it as OEM - it's not, as I found out $200 later! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif) - which will just crack &/or splinter into a gazillion pieces on the first hit or scrape!

OE ones were apparently only on USA & Canada market Vanagons from 1988-91 on the FG Bumper Vanagons, and are made in 5 sections - L & R side, L & R front & center front joiner pieces - & made out of a flexible black poly-something pebble-finish material.

Finding this part is driving me crazy for the past several months of fruitless searching!!!! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wacko.gif)

I know a lot of folks on here have Westies & Vanagons of various flavors, and maybe you've pulled off your OE flexible Air Dam to give yours a more off-roadie look or to add those hulking steel bumpers????

If you have anything, please send me some hi-rez pix & your price.

I don't want anything with the usual torn front corners that most have, as shown on ours in the pix below.

This is what I need to replace on our Westy -



.

But without the cracks, tweaks & damage at the L & R front corners shown below -





.

Anyone????
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[Mikey914]

looks like an ABS type plastic. It's possible to make these, tooling adds up as well as pricepoint. I'd need to sell at least 50 to break even on something like this. Even at $150-175. The multiple sections make it easier to form, but mean more individial parts to make.

[Tom_T]

looks like an ABS type plastic. It's possible to make these, tooling adds up as well as pricepoint. I'd need to sell at least 50 to break even on something like this. Even at $150-175. The multiple sections make it easier to form, but mean more individial parts to make.

Mark,

I thought ABS was a hard non-flexible plastic - but not sure. I'm thinking it might be a TPE or something similar to your repro 914 bumper tops & bumper guards/tits, but I'm not an expert. I can get you samples of the original if you want to go forward, & can hopefully find a decent set of parts from other ones in really good shape.

The side pieces have a female receiver cast into the backside, to receive the male end of the side pieces - so that could make it more complicated to make tooling & cast. However, breaking down the side & front into 4 larger + a small center joiner piece makes it easier & smaller/cheaper to ship. So I don't know which is the better route from your end?

I'd also suggest reinforcing the back of the L & R front corners, so that they don't crack at the corners when the bottom of the front scrapes & flexes backwards.

Since Bus Depot is selling the hard plastic resin ones for $200 - which will break/crack on any bottom scraping or impact then be trash - I think you're in the ballpark, if not a bit low - depending on how much of a margin the other suppliers need over your cost. It sounds like if your cost might be in the $150-175 range, then retail would be at least $250-300+.

I think that Bus Depot, Van Cafe & GoWesty might all go for it, and maybe some others too. And then you could advertise them in TheSamba yourself to sell out of 914Rubber in addition. So I think you could easily hit 50 within 6-12 months, if not sooner - perhaps even a full 50+ first run pre-sold.

I'd be in for one for sure, & am willing to help get you in with those vendors! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

I can check with the top retailers to see how much & how many they might take from you, & get back to you.

Call me when you have time to discuss it further - my cell was in the PM, if it's not still on your cell phone from calls before this on the 914 goodies.

Cheers! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/santa_smiley.gif)
Tom
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