I'll have to admit that Gowesty does have some hard to find items and every
part that I have purchased from them has been OEM or comparable quality
.However,  I have always viewed their Westfalia sales operation as a rich,
ignorant urban outdoors man/part-time-stealth-hippie wannabe magnet. I also  believe
that a fool and his money are soon parted. There are great Westy's and  Syncro
Westy's out there that have been painstakingly restored and maintained  for
1/4-1/3 the money that Gowesty demands for their rigs. It was very
unprofessional and totally uncalled for to mention a previous owner by name as  they did.
When do you ever see any auto ad that mentions and slams the previous  owner
that way? Part of the joy of owning a Vanagon that most on this list
appreciate is the process of restoration while maintaining and occasionally  upgrading
a factory spec item on your van. I don't mind calling it as I see it  here as
Gowesty has shown their true colors . Sure, anyone can own a Westy and  that
idea fills me with joy. We do operate in a free market and anyone can  easily
understand that the worth of anything is exactly what some else will pay  for
it. I don't think that I'll ever be the Gowesty vehicle purchaser as I have
now owned 2 Westys and one Vanagon none commanded anything close to their
prices  and both were purchased in great shape. I maintain and restore my own
vehicles  and have taken my Westys to dozens of Grateful Dead shows, hundreds of
Bluegrass  festivals and all over the east coast camping and enjoying the
outdoors.Oh, and  my Westy is a daily driver with 264,000 miles on it. I drive it
daily simply  because I love my van.  My point? I don't think that anyone that
will pay  upwards of $75,000 for a Westy, even if it's a Syncro, is really
educated in  what qualifies as a great buy for one of these vehicles or would know
where to  buy it. Sorry if I have offended anyone that has purchased a
vehicle from  Gowesty. That is certainly not my intention here. I just can't see
their sales  lot as an example of there real value or selling price for a
Westfalia. I don't  see myself buying anything from them after seeing this gross lack
of  professionalism.

David Clarkson
90 Westy (with receipts that approach Gowesty restored treasure  prices)
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