I was out and about this morning and the above ref van pulled up next to
mine. Real nice blue, bull bumpers, driving lights, the Go Westy 15"
mercedes look-alike wheels, BFG rubber, and most impressively, the Zetec
Inside sticker on the back hatch. He (John Stewart) opened it up for a
look-see. What a beautiful, simple, uncomplicated and open-space
installation. John put this in himself and added the turbo for a sweet 200
hp. He was over at SdM earlier this year and on one of the offroad trails,
hit the "shortened" oil pan on a rock. That is a 3/8" piece of stainless
... it scratched the paint, that's it. The guard design for that part of
the motor does dip below the bottom of the engine, and a simple piece of
steel attached there would eliminate that "vulnerability". This appears to
be a very durable and stout conversion. After seeing some pics of this
conversion recently on this list, of the van on grass, it was nice to see it
up close and personal. Plenty of clearance. I think this kind of conversion
works better with upgraded wheels, taller tires. Height and clearance of our
two vans side by side looked similar. Mine has the same wheels but in 16",
so it appears sort of jacked up some.

I have no personal interest in Zetec but wanted to pass on this information.

Bob Stevens
'87 Westy Syncro
"Passion Fruit"