Date: Sun, 19 Aug 2007 22:28:40 -0700
Reply-To: Loren Busch <starwagen@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Loren Busch <starwagen@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Help Needed in BC, Westy With Running Problems in Prince George
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
Attn: The BC contingent
Gal from Seattle has her Westy stranded in Prince George. Below is a
composite of info from messages she has posted.
Is Dave Marshall still in Quesnel?
Problem description follows:
Some of you know that my 81 Westy is stuck up in Prince George, BC. That's
565 miles from Seattle! I need some help getting her home - flat bed,
trailer towing, whatever is safe and effective (sounds like birth control
but maybe that's just Vanagon withdrawal delirium setting in). Plus, if
you've ever towed your rig and have any advice on what works best, please be
geneous with your feedback.
I'm willing to PAYand/or go up there with the person(s) to go get
her. Maybe someone could help me get her from PG to White Rock/Blaine and
someone else from White RockBlaine to Seattle???
The problem specifically is that she is not running on full power. It feels
like I'm only firing on 3 cylinders and the poor girl only wants to run 45
mph max on straightaways. Hills are plain old scary and there was no way I
could drive home through the Fraser River Canyon. On the first half of the
trip, she did great. Yeah, sometimes I had to downshift to 3rd gear and
sometimes I dropped down to 40-45 mph on the steeper hills but, overall, I
was pleased. I had tested her out by driving over Snoqualmie Pass a couple
of times and had been satisfied with her performance and felt secure enough
to take the trip.
I had four different mechanics look at the situation (and paid each one of
them!). The sparks and wires were ok, fuel filter was changed, air filter
is fine, compression was *low*. One guy said each cylinder was equal at 100
lbs. each but the VW dealer in PG had different readings ranging from 95 -
125 on each cylinder. The VW dealer guy was unhappy with the fact that two
of the spark plugs looked cleaner than the other two. That made him think
that there might be a cam shaft problem. My mechanic, George at Porbug, had
recently changed some of the lifters and I asked him whether he'd seen any
signs of cam shaft issues and he said no. George has been working on this
van for years with the previous owner. He suggested they check the fuel
volume and not just the fuel pressure but these dudes have sensitive egos
and are not open to suggestions from ignorant down-south stateside folks!
Then, one guy up there wanted to change my timing belt. I had to show him
the diagrams from my manual to convince him I did not have one!!
Contact Sha'ari at gongwoman1@yahoo.com
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