If it's not broken, don't fix it?  invite opinions from the collective
wisdom of the group.

Looking at two things, my odometer which was malfunctioning and my CV joints
which are OK but 140,000 miles old.

My CV joints are not a problem. No bumps or noises, just boots without
clamps at the small end on the tranny side. After 140,000 miles they
probably could benefit from a replacement. But, considering the old adage
"If it aint broken, don't fix it" I wonder if this improvement is worth
doing at this time. Looking at $200 or so in parts if I do it myself and
$240 extra in labor at my VW dealer if I hire them, the question is this:
"Is there any real benefit from CV replacement now?" I invite your advice.

As for my malfunctioning odometer which caused me to think my MPG had gone
from about 15 MPG mixed driving to 11 then to 6 on my last calculations
after installing Bosch quad plugs which I thought was the culprit, I found
the solution. Even the 15 MPG could have been incorrect if the odometer was
starting to fail.

Thanks to the help of Stan Wilder, Mark Drillock and Ben McCafferty among
others and a search on the archives I tracked down the problem to the round
gear which interfaces the screw type gear near the 30 on the dial. I pushed
it in on its shaft about 1/32 to 1/16 inch to fit the screw gear better. I
guess over 140,000 miles the gear edges wore down just enough to become
unreliable when off from original positions.

The odometer is working like a charm now. I am eager to see if this was the
cause of inaccurate mileage recorded and thus wrong MPG calculations.

So the odometer was "broken" and I fixed it with the help of this list and
the archives. My CV joints are not a problem (yet) but they have 140,000
miles on them. Should I just replace them now or wait until problems dictate
needed repairs. I plan to keep the vehicle. The "needle fix" may give them
more life, but what to do to be wise and prudent? So let me know your
opinions please.

William Polowniak
http://members.home.net/holisticdream/vanagon1989.htm