T3: Re: Trip to Mexico

[<DILLARDP@edu-suu-lifac.li.suu.edu>]

>From J.L.M.:

> Are you suggesting there is a place where the "do" have t3 parts?

Well, it's not just the parts situation.  No one there is familiar with
the Type III, and I found that gasoline station attendants did not even
recognize the vehicle as being a Volkswagen.  I would pull up to a pump
and the attendant would be immediately trying to yank up the FRONT hood
to check the oil, water, and gin (in the generator, of course).

Evan an authorized VW dealership that I stopped at had never seen a T3.

And even the most ubiquitous T3 components were absent.  A story:

I was pulling a long steep hill, made one of my Indy 500 down shifts, and...
whop!..the clutch pedal fell to the floor.  Broken cable.  Did I, by dint 
of crafty foresight and intelligent planning, have a spare?  Of course not!

As I sat by the side of the road, the Green Angels came by, stopped, and informed
me that "un mechanico" lived in the little village some 20 miles back.  So,
with clutch pedal resting on the floor, I drove back to the village.  This was
on a Saturday mid-afternoon, mind you.  I found the mechanic's home, knocked 
on the door, and asked for help.  He jacked up the Fastback right there on
main street (a dirt road) and crawled under.  The T1 cable which he had did
not fit, of course, so he improvised something or another.  (I didn't see what
he did because I had repaired to a restaurant/bar across the street and was
practicing my entire Spanish vocabulary, which consists of: No hay Bohemia?)
In two hours he had something rigged.  His charge for working 2 hours on a
Saturday afternoon?  About US $8.00.  (Try that with your Cadillac at an
American dealership!)  Anyway, the fix worked to get us back home to the states.

The typical Mexican auto garage in a village is a three-sided open air
shed with a dirt floor.  Mexican mechanics have earned, and rightly so, a reputation 
for working wonders with inadequate parts and tools.  I learned from my 
experience to carry some extra tools to give in appreciation for service
well rendered.  A socket set or vise grip pliers might mean much more to a
village mechanic than to you or me.

For those of you who have not journeyed through Mexico in a Type III (or any
vehicle), I must tell you that you are missing one of the great experiences in
life.  

When does the Caravan form?

Phil
dillard@suu.edu

"Why is it called tourist season if we can't shoot at them?"