Date:         Mon, 30 Apr 2007 21:48:40 -0700
Reply-To:     Old Volks Home <oldvolkshome@GMAIL.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Old Volks Home <oldvolkshome@GMAIL.COM>
Subject:      Re: Had to get towed last night
In-Reply-To:  <46366BB0.8000007@cox.net>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed

Gregor -

Mark Drillock has kit the nail right on the head with this one.  I'm
currently on the road from So Cal to Sevierville, Tennesee for the Circle
Yer Wagens show this coming weekend.

Saturday morning, just 22 miles into my trip, the engine just quits, no
immediate re-start whatsoever.  Bad omen, some might say.  But after driving
& living full-time in my Westy for the past 8 years it has been drilled into
my head that certain electrical group areas have be tackled by the process
of elimination.  While I usually have most everything in the way of spares
from a water pump to coil, distributor, AFM, starter, ignition module,
ECU (that came in handy on last year's trip - went out in Texas),
alternator, belt, relays, filters, fuel pump, master cylinder, etc., I
usually look for the usual culprit - a wire connection that's loose
or disconnected.  And I was right - the connector to the Temp II Sensor
(Coolant) had fallen off.  The thin u-shaped-square wire clip had somehow
vanished so the connector just slipped and slided off.  It may sound crazy,
but I have a small baggy of those in the tool box, so it was quickly fixed
and I've been on my way ever since.

Check ALL of the connections, both power and ground throughout the engine
compartment.  Sounds like something that is too loosely connected, making
contact when it wants to.

Coming to you live from a campground wi-fi (a very slow one) in Elk City, OK
tonight.
--
Jim Thompson
"On The Road To Circle Yer Wagons"
May 4, 5 & 6, 2007
84 GL 1.9 "Gloria"
84 Westfalia 2.1 "Ole Putt"
73 K Ghia Coupe "Denise"
72 411 Station Wagon "Pug"
oldvolkshome@gmail.com
http://www.oldvolkshome.com
***********************************
On 4/30/07, Mark Drillock <mdrillock@cox.net> wrote:
>
> The tach instantly dropping to zero and coming back is a clear
> electrical problem. It has NOTHING to do with the fuel, fuel pump, fuel
> filter, plugs, plug wires, cap, or rotor. If the shop thinks it does,
> you might need to go elsewhere. It is important to make note of the
> symptoms each time things are going wrong as there can be more than one
> problem. Was the tach going dead every time the cutting out occurred and
> while the vehicle was till moving in gear? Do you have a manual or auto
> tranny?
>
> Unless the problem occurs constantly, a shop may either give up or use
> the shotgun approach of replacing everything they can think off at your
> expense until the problem is gone or you are gone.
>
> As recent list traffic shows, some problems arise that are not easily
> identified. Some turn out to be cheap to fix and others a little more
> costly. The trick is finding it without buying too many needless new
> parts. The main thing is to follow a set of tests, not that any will
> point right away to exactly what is wrong. The tests should be designed
> to divide the possibilities into groups, then eliminate whole groups to
> quickly narrow the remaining possible causes down to where parts
> replacement is not so open ended.
>
>
> Mark
>
>
>
> Gregor Brandt wrote:
>
> > '86 Westy
> >
> > Well, after pulling the van apart and putting it back together again,
> > electircally, it was running smoothly.  So I risked the trip from
> > Winnipeg to Calgary (1400km).  First 100 km went fine, then the
> > engine started die-ing again.  Tach going to zero, then coming right
> > back up (read previous posts).  Turned around and got 40 km before it
> > was happening all the time.  Van would start, then die immediately.
> > My wife was not a happy woman.
> >
> > So, its towed and in the shop, whatever the problem is, I can't find
> > it or fix it.   We'll see what the shop says.
> >
> > Gregor
>