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Date:         Sat, 8 Jan 2000 00:13:38 EST
Reply-To:     KENWILFY@AOL.COM
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         KENWILFY@AOL.COM
Subject:      Re: Alive! (or New Year in Georgia)
Comments: To: harald_nancy@earthlink.net
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

Harold, my van is a '91 and had 166k miles on the original heads and gaskets. When I bought it, I drove it for a whole year and added no coolant at all. About a year ago it started needing coolant, but only a little. I guess this was the only warning sign that I had. The head gaskets looked fine externally until the one blew. It blew catastrophically so no amount of "Bars Leak", etc. would have done any good. Upon removing both gaskets and heads they were both in failure mode as both were very dry rotted and cracked up on the top in one spot and in the bottom in another spot and the heads were very pitted. I had actually been saving up for a rebuilt motor from Boston Engine that I was going to try to have ready to go in at my leisure within the next few months (have to start saving all over again).

So if I had it to do all over again I would have installed the rebuilt motor before my trip and actually saved alot of hassel (of course I wouldn't have had an adventure either :). I think if you have a 2.1l engine with over 150k miles on it that you better start saving up for a rebuild and do it before 175k miles because that seems to be the average time for a 2.1l to throw a rod. I mean now I have a motor with two new heads and gaskets but the bottom end is still as tired as ever. I am still looking to replace the motor before this summer and before one of the rods get claustraphobic :) 1.9l motors have a stronger bottom end so at 150k miles I would feel comfortable replacing gaskets and heads and running her another 50k miles or so (untill she starts loosing compression) without worrying about catastrophic failure (have you ever heard of a 1.9l throwing a rod? Not common like it is with the 2.1l).

So before this trip I would have said the same thing. "If it ain't broke don't fix it". However after this trip I would have rather done the PM on my terms and when I wanted to rather than 800 miles away from home in the middle of my "vacation".

Hope this helps, Ken Wilford http://www.vanagain.com John 3:16 Office (856)-765-1583 Shop (856)-327-0027 Fax (856)-327-2242


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