Date:         Thu, 28 Aug 2003 17:12:35 -0700
Reply-To:     Joel Cort <joel_cort@YAHOO.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Joel Cort <joel_cort@YAHOO.COM>
Subject:      Help Needed: 88 Westy running rich and missing
Comments: To: Syncro List <syncro@yahoogroups.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii

HELP List experts,

I was trying to help out a fellow Westy owner here in Rochester and was not able.

This is an 88 westy with 75K miles.  On the NY thruway heading for Roachester this poor guy had what I perceived as the Vanagon Syndrome.... but not.
He started missing, spitting coughing and running very rich.
He got off the thruway and limped home at 10 mph. I went over last night to try and bail him out with my wisdom and spare parts.

He stopped at a shop and got new plugs, wires, distributor cap, rotor replaced thinking it was the problem.

He also replaced the temp2 sensor and his O2 sensor is about 7 month old.
He also has cleaned up and rewired all the ground connections.

With all that in mind, I was convinced that the AFM was faulty.  We swapped out the AFM with a spare good spare one that I have.  The symptoms still remained or running very rich with thick black smoke and very poor reving spitting and coughing without a load on the engine.  With a load there is no power to move.

Ok so then we tried swapping the ECU out with my spare ECU connected to "the DIGITOOL".  Once connected, it did not run any better and the digitool readings all looked OK except for the O2 sensor readings.  I was concerned that the AFM signals were not communicating.... but they were.  I unplugged the O2 sensor green wire and it ran a little worse but not by much.

SO at this point my VW Vanagon expertise is dried up.  I am perplexed and told him to take it to one of the local shops (which none really have Vanagon and Vanagon Syndrome type of experience).

Any help from the list experts or insights on where to seek the problem would be great and I could regain dominance on these wasserbrainteasers.

Thanks,
Joel
89 Syncro Westy
Rochester NY


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