I am laying in my toasty warm Westy just north of New York City thanks to both Karl and my Propex heater… life is good! Oh yes, obviously I am typing so that means our wireless router is also working.
For the few remaining souls still bravely paying attention to my soap box rants and diatribes posted on my blog you may have noticed that Lisa and I have been on an upgrade Kaya mode as of late. First we had artist Ken Mitchell paint an amazing mural that keeps both of us and even Lucy smiling… not to mention almost everyone we pass. We even had a lady stop us in Pennsylvania to say that the world needs more vehicles like ours. Thanks KEN!
Then it was off to Mechanical Advantage in Connecticut and the wizardry of Fred Newmann to install the first set of upgrades and general maintenance. Fred is also an amazing VDUB mechanic and I mean absolutely no slight to him or his shop by this post. In fact, I wholeheartedly recommend him for every VDUB need.
Then it was off to Maryland and the land of mechanic Karl Mullendore. To simply imply that Karl is just a mechanic isn’t right. Maybe the prefix god-like or extra extraordinary should be added, or better yet perhaps the word mechanic itself is wrong. Perhaps describing Karl as a VDUB whisperer is better. A VDUB WHISPERER.
I have met many a mechanic since owning Kaya. Cut me some slack, I do not have the time in my life nor the inclination to grab a wrench in one hand and the Bentley manual in the other and attempt repair. I actually bought the Bentley with that intention. A real live do it yourselfer like the kind folks on the Samba. When the Bentley arrived I actually tried to read it – not once but twice. It was as undecipherable as ancient Egyptian hierogliphics to me. Perhaps it is better suited to those who are mechaincally minded. I can, however, translate 18th century French cookbooks and produce the ancient dishes in amazing clarity. Go ahead gearheads and try that!
So the Bentley sits in some cubby hole gathering dust under a stack of tools that have never seen combat. But Karl, on the other hand, actually committed 99% of the Bentley to memory. He once told me he only keeps a few pages in his glove compartment… you know the few that he didn’t yet memorize. I hope that fact astounds you as much as me.
Back to Karl. I saw vdub whisperer because the guy seems to understand vdubs like no one else. We brought him Kaya a few weeks ago with a laundry list of upgrades and then after seeing his synchro added the oh-my-gawd-I-need-that-too list. The oh-by-the-way-can-you-list was quickly dispensed by Karl as c’mon dude about ten thousand other dudes want work as well. Karl added a third battery and fixed the layout and wiring of the second battery installed by a popular VDUB company not based in Maryland. I could name them but most will know of whom I speak. I am not trying to bash them as I still occassionally buy parts and may even get service from them from time to time.
For the few remaining souls still bravely paying attention to my soap box rants and diatribes posted on my blog you may have noticed that Lisa and I have been on an upgrade Kaya mode as of late. First we had artist Ken Mitchell paint an amazing mural that keeps both of us and even Lucy smiling… not to mention almost everyone we pass. We even had a lady stop us in Pennsylvania to say that the world needs more vehicles like ours. Thanks KEN!
Then it was off to Mechanical Advantage in Connecticut and the wizardry of Fred Newmann to install the first set of upgrades and general maintenance. Fred is also an amazing VDUB mechanic and I mean absolutely no slight to him or his shop by this post. In fact, I wholeheartedly recommend him for every VDUB need.
Then it was off to Maryland and the land of mechanic Karl Mullendore. To simply imply that Karl is just a mechanic isn’t right. Maybe the prefix god-like or extra extraordinary should be added, or better yet perhaps the word mechanic itself is wrong. Perhaps describing Karl as a VDUB whisperer is better. A VDUB WHISPERER.
I have met many a mechanic since owning Kaya. Cut me some slack, I do not have the time in my life nor the inclination to grab a wrench in one hand and the Bentley manual in the other and attempt repair. I actually bought the Bentley with that intention. A real live do it yourselfer like the kind folks on the Samba. When the Bentley arrived I actually tried to read it – not once but twice. It was as undecipherable as ancient Egyptian hierogliphics to me. Perhaps it is better suited to those who are mechaincally minded. I can, however, translate 18th century French cookbooks and produce the ancient dishes in amazing clarity. Go ahead gearheads and try that!
So the Bentley sits in some cubby hole gathering dust under a stack of tools that have never seen combat. But Karl, on the other hand, actually committed 99% of the Bentley to memory. He once told me he only keeps a few pages in his glove compartment… you know the few that he didn’t yet memorize. I hope that fact astounds you as much as me.
Back to Karl. I saw vdub whisperer because the guy seems to understand vdubs like no one else. We brought him Kaya a few weeks ago with a laundry list of upgrades and then after seeing his synchro added the oh-my-gawd-I-need-that-too list. The oh-by-the-way-can-you-list was quickly dispensed by Karl as c’mon dude about ten thousand other dudes want work as well. Karl added a third battery and fixed the layout and wiring of the second battery installed by a popular VDUB company not based in Maryland. I could name them but most will know of whom I speak. I am not trying to bash them as I still occassionally buy parts and may even get service from them from time to time.
He also added a battery charger that charges both the second and third battery as well as a solar panel that also charges the aforementioned batteries. 
He put in one the electric fridges,
a few secret compartments, big brakes, taller springs, bigger tires 
and a new faucet my wife is absolutely in love with.
Not to mention the million other little things he fixed along the way. If I had a million dollars I would push the pile towards Karl and just say make Kaya betterer. Betterer? Sorry I started this post last night drunk on Burgundy wine on a remote mountain top in New York and am currently seated in MacNeill’s microbrew in Brattleboro, Vermont knocking back IPAs and hoping some fool is still reading.Karl is an amazing fellow. I shouldn’t slight him by suggesting that his only skill is fixing old buses. Everytime we talk he says he wants to venture off into other indevers… Lisa and I are still hoping that one day he will convert Kaya to a synchro and a bio-diesel… But really whatever Karl does in life we just wish him the best and send him the most positive vibrations that we are capable of.
I hope all of you have had as great a Thanksgiving as us… and we wish Karl a long and fulfilling life!
PEACE to the PEACEFUL!
ASWAH
