Date:         Tue, 7 Feb 2006 15:03:15 -0800
Reply-To:     Pensioner <al_knoll@PACBELL.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Pensioner <al_knoll@PACBELL.NET>
Subject:      Re: running hot....any ideas, caveats?
In-Reply-To:  <200602072047.k17Klqka010980@flpvm04.prodigy.net>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"

There is one other small issue but only if you have drastically changed your
vanagon.  I was plagued with a bad overheating situation after SmallCar
installed a a $12000 conversion in my syncro.  SmallCar was baffled but
threw smoke and mirrors at the problem.  The guage would read quite high and
the F111A version of WFO cooling fan would astonish the locals far too
often.  Airconditioning was out of the question.  Not to bad for Canada but
Sacramento...106F.

So the problem was solved by Stephan White of Stephans Autohaus and some
clever sleuthing by Seth Hatfield at H&R.

The installer had routed the cooling tubes backwards to the radiator.  This
caused the fan to run virtually all the time as the sensor was in the hot
coolant before the radiator.  Needless to say the fan suffered premature
failure and had to be replaced.  During an oil seal replacement at <2000
miles after the $12000 conversion, Seth Hatfield noticed that the subaru
sender was not a good electrical match for the vanagon guage and replaced it
along with the aftermarket POS oil seals.  He also noticed that some pieces
of rubber hose were inside the cooling system blocking flow.  After removal
and refitting the van ran MUCH cooler in fact TOO cool which is not way
cool.  Turns out the installer had used an aftermarket POS thermostat.  This
t-stat opened too quickly and never allowed the engine to properly maintain
operating temperature on long lovely downhills along the foggy coast.
Replacing the Thermostat with a pukka factory part solved that problem.

All the while SmallCar had claimed the radiator was at fault.  Never
bothering to actually analyze the problem or admit to any fault in the
matter.

Stephan White helped analyze the cooling issue and also noticed an air leak
in the tubing.  Repairs were made but in the process it was noticed that a
considerable amount of sand was found inside the tubing.  Sabotage?
perhaps.  Not likely but then who knows.  Most likely poor preparation in
the original installation.

If others have worked on your car check the hose routing.  Make sure the
thermostat opens properly and not just at the extremes of open and close.
Verify that the guage you have works with a new sender roughly the same as
it does with your installed sender.  Eliminates the sender perhaps.  Burnish
the connectors so that the resistance in the circuit is not biased by
corrosion.  Check for air leaks.  Use an infrared sensor to measure the
temperatures of various components.  Inexpensive at Radio Shack.

Stay cool...