Date:         Mon, 30 Apr 2001 10:45:37 -0400
Reply-To:     Bill Knight <bill.knight@usa.net>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Bill Knight <bill.knight@usa.net>
Subject:      Re: New Engine - No Power - Getting Better!
In-Reply-To:  <F289fTVSxzW234xOjIL000057cc@hotmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"

Sounds quite similar to an engine I got from Boston
Engine a few years ago.  Bob insisted that the problem
was a clogged cat, but it ran just as poorly with the
cat removed.  (It was a 1.9 liter, so the oxy sensor
isn't part of the cat).  After spending several hours of
diagnosis time (and dollars) at the local VW specialist,
it was determined that the cam timing was wrong, or the
cam was incorrect.  It was frustrating because I had
sent the engine back to Boston three times due to
problems.  The first time he left a shop rag in the
crankcase.  The second time it had very low compression.
And the third, the cam timing was wrong.  I finally
rebuilt my own engine using my old core and took the
heads, pistons and cylinders from the Boston Engine.  I
sent the bottom end back to Bob so he could dis-assemble
it to see the cam timing himself (I didn't take apart
his crankcase so he didn't have to take my word about
the cam timing).  To make a long story short, he got the
engine back and claims that the cam timing was correct
when he opened it up!  And then decides not to refund
any money to me!  In shipping costs alone, I spent over
600 dollars!

For my own sake and sanity, however, I was smart enough
to video tape the engine, on the floor of my garage.
With the valve covers off, I first showed top dead
center, then proceeded to rotate the crankshaft to where
the valves closed on cylinder one.  When you see where
the timing mark is on the pulley, it is obvious that it
is way out of time.

Anyway, about 2500 bucks poorer, I post my bad
experience.... Your mileage may vary!

Bill

-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List
[mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com]On Behalf
Of Mike Finkbiner
Sent: Saturday, April 28, 2001 11:10 PM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Re: New Engine - No Power - Getting Better!


I posted that my new Boston Bob engine was producing no
power a couple days
after the install, and asked if there was anything other
than the cat to
check.

Several people wrote to say that it was indeed most
likely a clogged cat.
Bob Donalds even called me at home this morning to
suggest the same thing
and see how things were going!

They were right.

I was planning on taking it to a local tire/muffler shop
to check the cat,
because they are open on Saturdays, but this morning
when I tried to drive
over there, I couldn't even back out of my driveway!  It
didn't want to rev
up, and died when I let the clutch in.

So, I called Randy, my mechanic, at home to see if he
recommended having AAA
towing it to the muffler shop, or just waiting until
Monday when he could
look at it.  He surprised the heck out of me by
volunteering to drive over
and take a look! (There are a lot of advantages to
having a long-term
relationship with a good mechanic)

When he tapped on the converter, it rattled, so we towed
the beast (maybe I
should name her the Blue Beast?) around the corner to
his shop and he
torched off the bolts.

The muffler had quite a few chunks of honeycomb up in
the pipe, and the
remaining pieces in the converter were plugged solid.
He rodded it out, put
it back together so I could run this weekend, and we
will get a new
converter early next week or when I get back from
Vancouver.

Any recommendations for a good one at a good price?

But - there's more!  One of the fun things about
electronic engine controls
is that they always have room to annoy you.

He test drove the van, and it seemed OK, still a bit of
hesitation off the
line, but driveable.

I took my son to work.  About a mile down the road, the
beast started
loosing power, and sort of surging.  That went on
intermittantly until I got
back to Randy's shop.  He was still there, and poked
around for awhile.

Digitool readings looked normal - Temp II .11 or less.
AFM an even rise and
fall as the throttle was advanced.  O2 sensor, bouncing
around from .02 to
.7

A couple of times we heard a strange noise, sort of like
someone blowing a
raspberry with their lips, but we couldn't see any
splits or cracks in any
of the rubber lines.

Finally, we disconnected the O2 sensor, figuring I could
test it that way,
and get back to it on Monday.  (I can't complain -
that's a lot more than
other mechanics would have done!)

I took it for a drive and it ran OK.  Back home, I
re-connected the O2
sensor, and went out, assuming it would act up again.
Nope, it ran about
the same!

I drove about twenty miles on the highway after that
with no real problems.
It still seems that it's a little sluggish, and I might
be getting little
surges and bucks as I go down the road, but it's hard to
filter out the road
bumps and wind gusts to be sure.

Don't you love intermittant problems like this!

Bob thinks the valves and lifters are good, Randy swears
the timing is
right.  The plugged cat was the big problem, but is that
all?  Perhaps we
cleaned a connection by plugging and unplugging it?

Unfortunately, Randy's CO sensor is not working.  I
wonder if I should get
another mechanic to check and adjust that before I head
out on the highway
next week.

There's always something!

Thanks to everyone on the list for all of your help and
support!

- Mike Finkbiner
'87 Westy (which needs a new catalytic converter)
Moscow, Idaho




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