Date: Sat, 20 Sep 2003 16:14:41 -0400
Reply-To: lauterba <lauterba@BELLSOUTH.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: lauterba <lauterba@BELLSOUTH.NET>
Subject: Re: Red hot catalytic converter
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Robert, thank you for your reply.
Please send me the correct order as they go around the distributor cap.
Firing order is 1-4-3-2, correct. I know this was dumb, but I didn't start
taking pictures until I got the spark plug wires off. Is there a picture in
the microfiche version of Bentley?
John
----- Original Message -----
From: "Robert Steven Fish" <fish@SALZBURG.CO.AT>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Saturday, September 20, 2003 3:34 PM
Subject: Re: Red hot catalytic converter
> The symptoms you describe lead me to believe that you switched the
sparkplug
> wires on one side of the engine.
>
> This would explain the bad performance, and would also explain the red hot
> cat.
>
> I had this happen to me, and was so busy troubleshooting the crappy
> acceleration, that I barely noticed that the insulation for the taillight
> wiring harness was smoking and that the rear was hot as hell.
>
> Then I looked at the cat, and yes, it was red.
>
> So double check those spark plug wires, and hopefully you have not fried
the
> cat completely. Mine was okay afterwards.
>
> See ya on the list,.
>
> RSF
>
> PS. Don't buy a new cat until your CO levels are indicating that the cat
is
> not working... it is an expensive creature to just replace for the hell of
> it, and usually requires some exhaust pipe cutting and welding and a new
> oxygen sensor etc.
>
> IMPORTANT!!! In order to reply to me, you must have the word "FISH"
> somewhere in the subject line of the email. Otherwise it goes directly in
> the trash.
>
> <º)))>{ <º)))>{ <º)))>{ <º)))>{ <º)))>{ <º)))>{
>
> Robert S. Fish
> Salzburg, Austria
> 1987 Wolfsburg Vanagon 2.1 GL Weekender
> 1987 Golf Cabriolet
> 1991 Golf
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "lauterba" <lauterba@BELLSOUTH.NET>
> To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
> Sent: Saturday, September 20, 2003 3:08 AM
> Subject: Red hot catalytic converter
>
>
> I think that I have a clogged catalytic converter, but I would like to get
> the wisdom of the list before ordering a new one.
>
> I have about 30 miles on my rebuilt 1.9L WBX. Just about everything is
new
> on the engine except for the ECU. Grounds are clean and tight. I had it
> out tonight near dusk and drove abut 15 miles. New engine has had a great
> deal of difficulty getting up to speed, no pep, etc. When I got home I
> found that the muffler end of the catalytic converter was red hot along
with
> part of the muffler.
>
> The catalytic converter was out of the van for about five weeks while I
was
> doing the engine transplant. No problems before I took it out.
>
> John Lauterbach
> Macon, GA
> '84 7-passenger
>
|