Date: Thu, 27 Dec 2001 10:14:26 -0500
Reply-To: Mike Hugill <mike@EVERGREENGROUPINC.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Mike Hugill <mike@EVERGREENGROUPINC.COM>
Organization: Evergreen Group, Inc.
Subject: Re: Temperature guage reading wrong?
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Hi Brian,
As I understand, the warning light on the water temp guage actually signals
low fluid level in the coolant reservoir tank. I am not sure what the
connection with going up or down hill may be, but if you are loosing coolant
through expansion tank overflow, you might have a leaking head gasket.
I had a leaking head and it caused many bizzar symptoms. Once air (exhaust
gases) get into the cooling system through the head leak, often times the
fluid ceases to flow from the radiator through the engine block. One of the
results is that your water pump burns up b/c there is no fluid flowing
through it (I think it takes a long time for the pump to be damaged). Also,
the fluid that is stranded in the block gets very hot. Perhaps when your
van hits a hill, the coolant shifts due to gravity (rather than being
pumped) and you get the funny readings of the super cool air that has been
sitting in the radiator for 5 or 10 minutes swapping with the super hot
fluid that has been stranded in the block?
If you have a clear section of coolant hosing you can actually see an air
bubble as it passes throught the system.
Hope that helps and that you don't have a head leak
Mike
Mike Hugill
Principal Recruiter
Evergreen Group, Inc.
P.O. Box 536
Garrett Park, MD. 20896
(301) 942-8168
mike@evergreengroupinc.com
www.evergreengroupinc.com
YahooIM: evergreengroupinc
----- Original Message -----
From: "Brian Atkins" <briandeanatkins@NETSCAPE.NET>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Thursday, December 27, 2001 9:58 AM
Subject: Temperature guage reading wrong?
> I was driving back along the OH/PA turnpike yesterday and noticed that I
am getting some strange readings on the temperature guage on my '85 GL. On
the longer hills, the guage (which normally seems to run just a hair over
the small white line above the low mark) would begin to show lower temps.
After a few minutes (10 or so) of climbing, the idiot light (as it seems to
be appropriately titled) betgan to flash. I immediately backed off the RPMs
and the light quickly ceased. This happened twice.
>
> When I finally got home I noticed the faint smell of coolant around the
driver-side rear of the van. I crawled under, but couldn't find any
indication of leaks. I assume that the smell was from the hot coolant in
the overflow bottle in the engine compartment.
>
> I assume that I have a bad sensor, but, when I dug into the Bently manual
(which I am still having trouble deciphering) I noticed that there seem to
be several temperature sensors. Which one controls the guage?
>
> Brian
> --
>
>
>
>
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