Date: Tue, 24 Jul 2007 09:30:54 -0500
Reply-To: John Rodgers <inua@CHARTER.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: John Rodgers <inua@CHARTER.NET>
Subject: Re: Help Needed, On the Road
In-Reply-To: <55369.54865.qm@web33304.mail.mud.yahoo.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
Dear Mad,
My ignition problem experience has not been with the blue temp sensor -
never there - but with the O2 sensor and the Idle Stabilizer System.
Dennis Haynes has said more than once that it is a rare thing for there
to be problems with that sensor.( but not impossible.) Therefore, You
might try these steps to see if they are involved in your troubles.
O2 sensor - just disconnect it right there in the engine bay. Follow
the wire from the sensor to it's connector in the engine bay and simply
disconnect it. Then drive a while and see if the problem is still there
or goes away. The engine will run just fine with the O2 sensor
disconnected. The system is designed that way just to ensure you can get
home for repairs in the event of a failure on th road. You will suffer a
small fuel economy loss while running disconnected, but it is of small
consequence short term. Enjoy your trip, then fix it.
Idle Stabilizer Valve/Control - sometimes this system goes bad and will
cause the engine to run funny. It can be either the vale or the control
box that goes bad, or both. Usually when one gailes the other follows.
Crank the engine, warm it up, shut it down, disconnect the clip at the
end of the valve - the valve being that little round cylindrical device
that sits right on top of the 2.1L engine with a tube going to the AFM.
With the clip disconnected, start the engine and run on the highway for
a while. Won't hurt a thing. See how your engine performs. At idle you
may need to turn off your AC, because the Idle Stabilizer System kicks
up your engine speed to ensure the AC load doesn't stall your engine at
idle. Same is true for the Power Steering. If you turn from lock to lock
on the steering the load on the pump may stall the engine when the Idle
Stabilizer System is disabled.
I would drive a good distance in either of these configurations to be
sure and give the engine time to displays it's faults. In each case, if
the faults don't display, then you have isolated the problem to the
system involved and can easily remedy it.
Good luck. Enjoy your trip.
Regards,
John Rodgers
mad madeline wrote:
> We launched a trip from Phoenix to No. Calif.
> At 450 miles into the trip our 87 engine, that has been running really good for the last 3K miles, began to stumble. We've been using Chevron all along the way, the problem started 100 miles after a fill up with Chevron. Talked to our mechanic... but not being at the shop we haven't come up with an answer.
>
> The symptoms are that it feels like it is cutting out intermittently. We don't know if its ignition or fuel. At first the cutting out was radical and we hardly made to our destination. Then at our mechanic's advice, we checked the blue plug connecton that goes to the thermostat housing and wiggled the spark plug wires to see if they were loose... this may have helped it some... not sure, but afterward it seemed to not be as radical. We can actually drive it at high speed now and it cuts out only once in awhile. Doesn't seem like it will die and we'll get there, just a bit obnoxious!
>
> Sometimes it caughs several times, sometimes only once. The tach drops each time, but not all the way to 0. The fuel pump does not sound loud. We had a new ox sys 2K ago and everything else was replaced within the last 3K. We don't find it related to hills or high temp or low. No overheating issues. No head leaking.
>
> We are in Carpenteria right now. Tomorrow heading up 101 toward SLO and then San Jose. Any ideas would be much appreciated... or a shop along the way that would pay to stop at. I don't look forward to this for another two thousand miles. Mad Madeline
>
>
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