Date:         Wed, 30 Aug 2006 21:15:58 -0700
Reply-To:     Charles McGehee <chasm@ELLTEL.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Charles McGehee <chasm@ELLTEL.NET>
Subject:      Re: Did the mechanic do something?
Comments: To: Hans Achter <hansachter@hotmail.com>
In-Reply-To:  <BAY115-DAV16EA0A9F18240D000C80D6D23E0@phx.gbl>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed

Good question, Hans. I'll ask him, though he'll probably skin me alive.

At 02:05 PM 8/30/2006, Hans Achter wrote:
>How did he refill the transmission and check the fluid level without
>opening the engine compartment hatch?
>
>----- Original Message ----- From: "Charles McGehee" <chasm@ELLTEL.NET>
>To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
>Sent: Wednesday, August 30, 2006 1:43 PM
>Subject: Did the mechanic do something?
>
>
>>Hi all,
>>
>>Here's the problem:  My '85 Westy has been running like a champ.  Had
>>a leaky AT, however, and a loud muffler.  So I took it to my mechanic
>>to have the AT resealed and the muffler replaced.  OK.
>>
>>Get the thing back and, although it starts alright, won't make it
>>through an intersection even; it lacks low power.  Exhaust black like
>>it's rich. Smells richt, too.  Worse, the red coolant-level light
>>won't stop blinking.
>>
>>When I let it cool off, though, it starts right up, red light stops
>>blinking in a few seconds like it should, and it runs fine -- until
>>it warms up and then it starts getting sluggish when starting from a
>>dead stop.  Further -- and get this -- when I turn the engine off and
>>re-start it the light blinks and won't stop until I let it cool off again.
>>
>>I took it back to him and he swore up and down that he didn't do
>>anything (he has an attitude problem anyway.)  Says he didn't even
>>open the engine compartment.  All he could think to do was to test
>>the sensor on the coolant reservoir by pulling it off and short it to
>>see if the light would stop blinking (it kept on blinking.)  He
>>wiggled the O2 sensor wire, too, but on the surface nothing was amiss.
>>
>>Still, the thing was running fine until I took it in, and now it's
>>not.  I would judge that the choke/mixture gizmo has somehow been
>>affected, but how, I can't imagine.  And how the coolant light is
>>involved, is even more mysterious.
>>
>>Any thoughts about what could have happened between Time 1 and Time
>>2?  Would be most grateful for your insight.
>>
>>Charles
>>'85 Westy
>