Date: Sat, 24 Nov 2007 14:13:02 -0800
Reply-To: Michael Elliott <camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Michael Elliott <camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: What do I need?
In-Reply-To: <71d9cdf90711241258o18319bb7s35f35617c34955f1@mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
I was afraid you'd say that. He said that I could bring the van back in a
couple weeks for a checkup. I'll find the relevant page in Bentley's
regarding camber and ask him to do it.
--
Mike "Rocket J Squirrel" Elliott
71 Type 2: the Wonderbus
84 Westfalia: Mellow Yellow ("The Electrical Banana")
74 Utility Trailer. Ladybug Trailer, Inc., San Juan Capistrano
KG6RCR
On 11/24/2007 12:58 PM Jake de Villiers wrote:
> I'm hoping you meant they said the rear 'caster' was not adjustable
> Mike. The rear camber is adjustable and very important.
>
> Wishing you many happy miles to the gallon......
>
> On Nov 24, 2007 12:44 PM, Michael Elliott <camping.elliott@gmail.com
> <mailto:camping.elliott@gmail.com>> wrote:
>
> Hi Patti, welcome to a small club of Vanagon owners who are experiencing
> pretty darn poor mileage for no known reason. We feel your pain. My 1984
> Westy achieves a mighty 15.5 mpg on the highway, while others with the
> same vehicle type get two to three more miles per gallon. My city
> driving
> is more like 11 mpg. I get about 240 miles per tank on the highway.
>
> Many of the group's list contributors have offered suggestions for
> things
> I should consider (see
> http://camping.elliott.googlepages.com/poormileage
> for some of the things I've looked at). No explanation for the poor
> mileage has been found yet.
>
> But more than one list contributor has been pushing me to get my wheel
> alignment checked. I noticed uneven front tire wear last January, so bad
> that I had to take my van to a shop where the fellow spotted worn out
> upper ball joints, and swapped the unworn rear tires for the front so I
> could get home. But even after replacing the ball joints, the front
> tires
> started showing the same wear pattern, so I took the darn van to an
> alignment shop last week.
>
> Of the 14 measurements that their system made (caster, camber, toe, and
> others), my van was out of range on nine of them. So they adjusted
> everything -- everything except rear camber, said it's not adjustable.
>
> Given the tire wear, a certain percentage of engine power has been
> consumed scrubbing rubber off the tires. So next week I'm going on a
> trip
> on which the mileage has been previously measured. If the problem
> has been
> wheel alignment, I'll know it.
>
> Fingers crossed!
>
> Maybe there's something on my poor mileage page that will explain your
> fuel consumption. Pretty much everything that anyone has suggested
> is there.
>
> --
> Mike "Rocket J Squirrel" Elliott
> 71 Type 2: the Wonderbus
> 84 Westfalia: Mellow Yellow ("The Electrical Banana")
> 74 Utility Trailer. Ladybug Trailer, Inc., San Juan Capistrano
> KG6RCR
>
>
>
> On 11/24/2007 12:18 PM PB wrote:
>
> > Would I need new shocks, a wheel upgrade to 16" or both? I have
> to SLOWLY
> > creep out of my normal driveway into the street, as if I'm
> driving on
> > eggshells in order to avoid hitting the street with my front
> bumper. This
> > is not a steep driveway at all.
> >
> > Another question: with local driving - no freeway, I have a
> range of 169
> > miles on a tankful of gas. That seems extremely low. With
> freeway driving,
> > my range increases to 189 - 200 miles. Since I live only 3 miles
> from my
> > job, I don't do much freeway driving. What's this all about?
> >
> > Thanks
> > Patti
> > Still very much a newbie
> > 90 Westy automatic
>
>
>
>
> --
> Jake
> 1984 Vanagon GL
> 1986 Westy Weekender "Dixie"
> Crescent Beach, BC
> www.crescentbeachguitar.com <http://www.crescentbeachguitar.com>
> http://subyjake.googlepages.com/
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