Date: Wed, 28 Sep 2005 06:15:07 -0400
Reply-To: Dennis Haynes <dhaynes@OPTONLINE.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Dennis Haynes <dhaynes@OPTONLINE.NET>
Subject: Re: Losing power...update
In-Reply-To: <003a01c5c3f3$dded41b0$7502a8c0@EULaptop>
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Since disconnecting the O2 sensor did not change the symptoms, you most
likely have a bad ground or the coaxial cable for the sensor is shorted.
I don't recall the year, but many 87's and 88's have the O2 sensor
reference grounded at the base of the oil breather tower. Look to see if
you have a wire thee. If so, the plastic makes for a lousy connection.
Loosen/tighten that nut to at least get some contact with it. Best to
relocate that connection. One of the screws for the fuel pressure
regulator work fine. Make sure the wire is not starting to break at the
crimp.
Dennis
-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf
Of Eric Unrau
Sent: Wednesday, September 28, 2005 2:14 AM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Re: Losing power...update
Hi Ken and list. Thanks for the responses. I'm almost ready to give up
and
take the van to a mechanic...new baby, new house, renos, leaky roof, and
now
I'm overdue for a mandatory gov't pollution test which means I have to
solve
this prob ASAP. Anyway...
Do you think that blockage in the cat could be causing this problem?
I'd
think that a cat blockage would either be there or not, and didn't think
that it could cause an intermittent problem like this - especially one
that
disappears (temporarily) after restarting. I'm a novice at this stuff,
so
if you could explain I'd appreciate it.
Thanks
Eric
-----Original Message-----
From: Ken Lewis [mailto:kdlewis_wating_time@allvantage.com]
Sent: Tuesday, September 27, 2005 7:19 PM
To: Eric Unrau
Subject: Re: Re: [VANAGON] Losing power...update
Eric,
It certainly could.
Ken Lewis
http://neksiwel.20m.com/
----- Original Message -----
...So far I have tried the following:
1) disconnected O2 sensor and did test drive - power dropped off 5
minutes
into drive - restart engine - everything ok for 2-3 minutes - repeat...
2) removed distributor cap and rotor, wrapped electrical tape around
the
Hall sender's wires and connectors to eliminate any possibility of
shorting
- reassembled and test drove with same results as in attempt #1.
3) picked up a 22uF x 15V capacitor and installed in the AFM per
instructions on Harold and Nancy's website. Test drive - same symptoms.
So, I have a couple of questions:
1) does my O2 sensor test prove that it is not at fault?
2) any other thoughts on the cause of this problem?...
-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf
Of
Eric Unrau
Sent: Wednesday, September 21, 2005 10:33 AM
Hello all,
For the last week I have been experiencing a random loss of power in my
'89
Westy. Everything will seem normal as I am driving along, and then
suddenly
the power will drop off to about 40-50%. [edit: more like 25%]
The first time it happened, I pulled over the side of the road, shut the
engine off and checked all the connectors at the plugs, coil,
distributor,
Hall sender, etc. I didn't find anything that was noticeably loose but
when
I got back in the van it started up fine, so I though I might have
pushed a
wire into place that wasn't obviously loose.
I continued driving and 10 minutes later the power drops off again.
This
time I pulled over and left the engine running/sputtering; checked the
wires
again and when I gently jiggled the connector on the Hall sender (it
hangs
somewhat loosely off the side of the distributor) I heard a buzzing
sound
(short cct?) and the engine stalled. Started it up again, sounded fine
so I
drove off - again all seemed normal. This happened a couple more times
over
the next 30 minutes of driving (did I mention my unhappy passenger/wife
is 9
months + 2days pregnant?) and I continued to look for loose wires each
time
- and managed to stall the engine each time I wiggled the connection to
the
hall sender.
Assuming that the loose hall sender connection was the problem, the
following day I wrapped 14 gauge wire around the distributor to
immobilize
the hall sender connector and then took it out for a test drive. All
seemed
good for the first five minutes or so until the power dropped off -
apparently my brilliant fix wasn't so smart. This time I was rolling
along
on a quiet street an it dawned on me that normal power always seems to
be
there when the engine is started, so I gave it a try. I shut the
ignition
off for 2 seconds and restarted as I was rolling along the street and
sure
enough the engine seemed to be running normally again. As I continued
driving I experienced a couple more power loss cycles that were
corrected
immediately be turning the ignition off and restarting the engine.
Any and all suggestions on a diagnosis of this problem are welcome. The
Hall sender connector has been hanging off the side of the distributor
since
I purchased the van from the PO but has never caused this problem in the
past. Probably should replace it to eliminate it as a possibility, but
if
it is something else.
Thanks
Eric