Date: Sat, 13 Apr 2002 07:11:52 -0700
Reply-To: "Thomas D. Hanlon" <hanran@EARTHLINK.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: "Thomas D. Hanlon" <hanran@EARTHLINK.NET>
Subject: Re: Help - Red Hot Cat (meltdown?) !!!
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
Robert,
I had a similar incident, but from "natural" causes, and not from any repair
that I made or didn't make. The ceramics in the cat deteriorated,- fell apart,
collapsed- and plugged the exhaust. I had to take off the muffler and unplug the
cat by using a broom stick as a ram. The pieces fell out. New cat needed. I was
told that, somehow, raw gas had gotten into the cat and when the gas ignited,
the heat ruined the ceramics. Maybe when you were were repairing, you allowed
uningnited gas to collect in the cat.
Regards,
Tom Hanlon
Palm Springs, CA
84 Westfalia
Robert Steven Fish wrote:
> I have been trying to get my idleback to normal, after replacing all fuel
> lines, and cleaning air intake components and throttle.
>
> I found an air leak at the throttle gasket, fixed it, adjusted idle screw,
> idles nicely at around 800-850 rpm.
>
> so I let it idle 20 min while playing, and looking, and testing... I was
> curious as to when teh thermostat would open, so I wanted the engine to get
> hot. I reved it to 2000 rpm for about a minute straight, and then smelled
> some nasty stinking smoke.
>
> Looked at the engine compartment, and the cable housings for the tail light
> cables were beginning to melt!
>
> Turned off engine, looked underneath to the muffler area, and saw that the
> area where the Cat connects to the muffler, on the Cat it was RED HOT!
>
> It even was a bit indented on top, making me think that maybe it got to
> melting temperature, and began to collapse in on itself?.
>
> I need help to determine what this can be... I cannot drive with this, and I
> do not want to replace Cat and/or muffler, without knowing the cause, and
> have it happen again.
>
> The only "non-standard" thing I had done, was to replace the fuel lines with
> the steel reinforced kind... now that I look at it, I am not so excited
> about this, as the lines run dangerously close to the spark plug wires in a
> few places, and just the fact that they are now grounds running throughout
> the top area of the engine worries me a bit.
>
> PLEASE... can somebody with experience advise me!!! I would love to have
> this puppy running by monday!
>
> Thanks
>
> RSF
>
> <º)))>{ <º)))>{ <º)))>{ <º)))>{ <º)))>{ <º)))>{
>
> Robert S. Fish
> Salzburg, Austria
> 1987 Wolfsburg Vanagon 2.1 GL Weekender
> 1987 Golf Cabriolet
> 1991 Golf
| 
