James >> Our bags were packed early in anticipation of finally leaving Copiapó. Around midday we dropped them at the van and again confirmed 4 o'clock with the Mechanic. After a few hours of aimless wandering through Copiapó, we bought some spare fuses (they the blew when gear stick was welded and we used all the spares), a tow rope (just in case), a door mat of sorts (for when its dusty) and some silver nail polish (to make the VW logo on the front silver again). Then we spent some time sitting in the park anxiously waiting for 4 o'clock to roll around.
We ended up arriving back at the mechanic 15 mins early. Things didn't look good. I've seen this type of thing before, three mechanics staring at the engine, talking but doing nothing. Then they seemed to be fiddling with the timing belt. They worked without even acknowledging us for about an hour. Then the guy who spoke English came over to me and told me he needed another day. He said because the compression had increased the cam shaft was damaged, but he assured me this would not cost any more. We made sure he knew that it must be complete tomorrow because every day costs us money for accommodation. He seemed to understand.
We booked yet another hotel (the 4th now in Copiapó) and made our way there. Tonight though we made a decision to use the nearby San Francisco boarder crossing and make our way to Argentina, where we hope things will be less... Chilean. I purchased insurance on-line for Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, Uruguay, Brazil and Paraguay (it's an all or none sort of thing) for about $40US.