Date:         Sun, 5 Nov 2006 21:56:05 -0500
Reply-To:     craig cowan <phishman068@GMAIL.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         craig cowan <phishman068@GMAIL.COM>
Subject:      rear backing plate/distributor
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed

Hey. Well with the wheels off and working on the brakes, we discovered
the backing plate for the right rear has rusted through and has holes
in it. I know no one seems to have backing plates/splash guards up
front....are they important in the rear? If so, where can i get
one....and how do i go about taking off the big nut? It seems to be a
rather frightening task.

My vanagon is now officially more of a restoration project than
anything else. I'm a bit suprised, and the finacial aspect is crazy,
but i figure once i get these quarks worked out all will be good.
However, in the process of replacing the parking brake cables, a
variety of things went wrong. We discovered just how hard it is to put
the new cables on, as the new cables outside diameter is larger than
the internal diameter of the hole it mounts into.

As far as the distributor goes, my van died suddenly while driving
last week. The problem is suspected to be the distributor. It was very
loose, and had pulled out of the engine. At the bottom of th
distributor, the steel (?) "pins" that engage with the engine are very
worn. Is it possible to replace just this part, or must we purchase
the $200some rebuilt distributor from FLAPS?

Any help is always useful. This list is very very very handy. Big lifesaver.
Thanks

-Craig
'85 GL Sunroof.....restoration project