Date:         Fri, 1 Mar 2002 16:40:40 -0500
Reply-To:     "G. Matthew Bulley" <gmbulley@BULLEY-HEWLETT.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         "G. Matthew Bulley" <gmbulley@BULLEY-HEWLETT.COM>
Organization: Bulley-Hewlett
Subject:      Re: Never Under Estimate Your Ground Straps!
In-Reply-To:  <NBBBLKPACPEEKLBIBDMMMEAHDPAA.lsmith@cogeco.ca>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"

Similar probs fixed on a kindred Porsche 914 by cleaning/replacing
ground straps.


Developing business and guiding change since 1996,

G. Matthew Bulley 
Bulley-Hewlett
Corporate Communications 
Business: www.bulley-hewlett.com         
Alliance: www.ntara.com 
Call tollfree: +1.877.658.1278 


-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM] On Behalf
Of Laurence Smith
Sent: Friday, March 01, 2002 4:36 PM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Re: Never Under Estimate Your Ground Straps!

I too have fixed Digifant problems by throroughly reviewing the ground
wires and fixing them where needed.

Laurence Smith
Hamilton, ON
90 Westy (fanumbos)


> -----Original Message-----
> From: Vanagon Mailing List
> [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com]On Behalf
> Of Robert Steven Fish
> Sent: Friday, March 01, 2002 4:11 PM
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> Subject: Never Under Estimate Your Ground Straps!
>
>
> Hi all,
>
> I posted a week or so ago about my '87 2.1 lliter GL,
> having all kinds of
> trouble with the idle.  It would race and then would be
> "cured" for a few
> days by simply turning the car off.  Then it went nuts, and
> ran at high RPM
> on the highway... when my foot was off the pedal.  Then
> just always 3000
> RPM... no solution except to start disconnecting
> components, and see if that
> helped a bit.
>
> Anyway... I went a bit bonkers and found some GREAT deals
> on eBay for the
> Idle Stabilizer Valve, the Idle Stabilizer Control Unit,
> and the Air Flow
> Meter... I bought them all, seperately, and replaced the 15 year old
> originals.... I then started her up, and guess what...
>
> Still idled crazy, fast, then slow... then steady fast...
> same old, same
> old.
>
> I decided to take a detour on my idle solving project,
> because I really did
> not want to get into what I though would be the next
> component to replace,
> the throttle switch.  My detour was to completely remove my
> beautiful air
> conditioning system.. I was sick of it just sitting there
> for years, and not
> working... and here in Salzburg, there are about 17 days a
> year where one
> would maybe be thankful for air.  So I carefully disected
> the entire unit,
> and all related wires, tubes, relays, etc., took photos to
> document it (in
> case I find someone around here who wants to take the whole
> system off my
> hands) and washed that A/C outta my hair.
>
> Long story short... Once I got the compressor out of the
> engine compartment,
> I was able to get a clear look at my engine block to
> chassis ground strap
> which attaches DIRECTLY UNDERNEATH the compressor.  It was
> so green and
> corroded under the compressor that when I touched it to see
> how solid it
> was.. it just evaporated into thin air.
>
> I tried something, which maybe the list members will have
> opinions on.. but
> I tried it anyway.  I bought a 2 foot length of the fattest
> "Monster Cable"
> I could find, for audio speakers, and spliced on some nice
> ring ends, and
> hooked it up as a new ground strap. The cable is made of
> very soft fluffy
> copper strands, so I figured it would be just fine for a
> ground... it is
> insulated, but we will just have to see if this melts or
> what. (incidently,
> I also replaced the transmission to frame ground, with an
> OEM one while I
> was at it... the battery ground was of course in perfect condition).
>
> I then started the car, and WOW!  idle was perfect.. and
> stayed perfect... I
> let it idle for like 20 minutes because I was so amazed.
> Then shut it off,
> and started it again... perfect idle. Happiness.
>
> So... I assume that the ECU was just going a bit cukoo
> receiving scrambled
> signals, and threw the craziest info back.  I just wanted
> to post this, in
> case anyone else out there has not taken a good look at
> their ground straps
> lately! They are a real easy, and cheap replacement... and
> seem to make a
> big difference when they are trashed!
>
> RSF
>
> <º)))>{   <º)))>{   <º)))>{   <º)))>{   <º)))>{   <º)))>{
>
> Robert S. Fish
> Salzburg, Austria
> 1987 Wolfsburg Vanagon 2.1 GL Weekender
> 1987 Golf Cabriolet
> 1991 Golf