Date: Sun, 2 Dec 2007 17:15:57 -0800
Reply-To: Scott Daniel - Shazam <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Scott Daniel - Shazam <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Subject: Re: New thermostat funky?
In-Reply-To: <vanagon%2007120219273761@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"
Why did they switch over to liquid cooling from air-cooled ? it would be
good to hear their logic.
There is only one significant mass produced engine that stayed air-cooled
for a long time - the porsche 911. Other than that one engine, that I can
think of right now anyway .....all engines went over to Liquid cooling - it
gives better thermal stability to the engine, and thus fewer oil leaks, you
can have a 'real heater' that is not associated with poisonous exhaust gases
in any way, it's a quieter engine by far......many reasons. Emissions and
fuel economy, always.
The zipper bra is a great idea, as you say, far more elegant that cardboard.
Who remembers that volvo 444's and perhaps 544's had a chain you pull out of
the dash, and it pulled a regular Venetian shade blind up in front of the
radiator ? Mighta seen that on a 122 also, on a few.
And the reason they made the cooling system so over-sized is that they knew
with 135 separate cooling system parts and clamps ...................
( I defy anyone to come with an actual count of every last little cooling
system hose in a syncro vanagon with rear heater, or in a 86 and later 2WD
vanagon with auto trans and rear heater .....and actual 'real count' of how
many hoses that really is .....it's like 48 or something, even more )
- with 135 or so plastic parts, clamps all over the place, distribution
boxes and what not from one end to the other, and it being 'automatically
self-unbleeding' if there is any tiny air leak, they figured they'd at least
better make it really over-sized and over-cooling capacity to help make up
for those inherent weaknesses.
Scott
Turbovans.com
-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of
Geza Polony
Sent: Sunday, December 02, 2007 4:20 PM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Re: New thermostat funky?
Mike,
My impression, pretty much without basis in fact, is that the VW engineers
with their now-famous 30 days to come with a WBX, decided to install an
oversized cooling system and be done with the overheating complaints. After
all, that was why they went to the WBX in the first place, no? And with only
30 days, better safe than sorry...wouldn't they have felt like fools to come
up with a water-cooled version that overheated?
Anyway, the Vanagon cooling system with its huge capacity assures that
unless something is seriously wrong, you aren't going to overheat in a
Sonora Desert traffic jam in August. Maybe the fan will go on, but that's
it. Pretty good.
Now here is a solution to the overcooling problem. Buy a bra for an
AIRCOOLED Vanagon of C. 1982 vintage. Take it down to your local seamstress
lady. Have her cut out the area around the radiator inlet, three sides only,
and sew in a heavy-duty zipper. In summer, tuck it down and under; in winter
when you just can't heat up the engine, zip it back up. Far more elegant
than cardboard. Whatcha think of that? And imagine the seamstress's reaction
when you say you want a zipper in a big bra. Worth it for that alone.
Geza
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