Date: Tue, 4 Sep 2001 10:30:40 -0400
Reply-To: Maynard Southard <echomhs@GIS.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Maynard Southard <echomhs@GIS.NET>
Subject: Reinhardt Lives!! (well, almost ...) {Longish}
For those of you who might remember, Reinhardt, my '82 Diesel Westy, died 26
months ago when the #2 prechamber insert loosened and did a nice tap dance on
top of the piston. Thanks to a few used parts (especially the used piston from
Hayden and the used head from Charles) and the confidence and encouragement
gleaned from these two incredibly helpful VW lists, (oh, and did I mention the
amazing patience of my wife?), I finally got everything buttoned together on
Labor Day.
I know most of you might find it hard to believe that it took me so long to get
to this point, but I was cursed by my own second guessing and the luxury of a
third (and fourth) vehicle. Throw in the time constraints inherent in having 4
kids and a small business, and I just couldn't keep the momentum going.
Beside, every time I unbolted some component, some other problem seemed to
appear. I finally realized I was losing out on some major camping fun. So I
hunkered down this past weekend with a goal - fire him up! Connected all the
hoses, set the timing, primed the oil pump, checked the glow plug circuit,
filled cooling system (with water only - smart move you will see later),
charged the battery and then ... started cleaning up the garage!
Hey, what's going on here? I can't really explain the trepidation I felt at
this point. I was actually avoiding turning the key! It's as if I didn't want
to risk the possibility of failure (or success) after such a long time of
indecision and uncertainty. I know I'm a procrastinator, but this was crazy.
Fortunately, I realized this (or should I say my son did) and I finally took
the driver's seat and turned the key.
It worked!
Well, almost. Actually, the engine sputtered to life after only three cranks
of the starter (amazing - the fuel was 26 month old). I hopped back to the
engine bay, listened for bad sounds, watched the exhaust, looked for fuel and
oil leaks ... everything seemed fine. Noticed that the coolant (water) level
was dropping quick, which I expected since I hadn't yet bled the air out. I
added water, then added more, then added more, then noticed water on the
ground! Dropped down and saw water leaking like crazy from the pipes running
to the front radiator. These pipes did not leak before, but they had caught my
eye because they looked awfully rusty and one had been shortened by the PO.
Water was coming from at least two locations (one above the fuel tank) and I
could not tell which pipe. Anyway, I just kept topping up the water until I
was satisfied the engine was up to temp and running ok. Finally shut down and
proceeded to do the retorque of the head bolts and adjust the valves.
So now, I must repair the pipes. I'm thinking about going the route of the
large truck heater hoses, instead of the electrical conduit. Can anyone direct
me to a write-up of this procedure or give me a few tips? I also need to
replace ALL of my brake lines (two split during minor braking in the garage and
they all look terribly rusty.) Should I drop the fuel tank to make these two
jobs easier? Does dropping the fuel tank just open another big can of worms?
I really want to get Reinhardt on the road in order to make it to the
Transporter Fest at the Auto Museum in Brookline, MA on Sept 30. Any
encouragement will be greatly appreciated!
Maynard Southard OvO '79
'82 Westy Diesel "Reinhardt"
'82 Vanagon GL Diesel
'93 EV GL "Klinger"
'00 Golf GLS TDI "WooHoo"
'84 Jetta GL TD "Donor"
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