Date: Fri, 2 May 2008 08:31:31 -0700
Reply-To: neil N <musomuso@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: neil N <musomuso@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: lurching engine
In-Reply-To: <67c433720805011415l223770f1v6482c75153593bb3@mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
I don't own a WBX, but from what I've read on the list......
Check grounds and connections/plugs to all the engine peripherals in engine bay.
Check fuel filter.
Cheers,
Neil.
On Thu, May 1, 2008 at 2:15 PM, John Drew <john.p.drew@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi All:Border Stories has made it out of Texas, through New Mexico and into
> Arizona, but there are now some concerns about our vanagon's ability to
> reach California without a total and potentially dangerous breakdown (we
> might be passing through some "rough" areas on the Mexican side).
>
> The reasons for concern are the following:
>
> After driving 150 miles or so (yesterday), we reached a slightly higher
> altitude along the southern state line between N. Mexico and Arizona (at one
> point I think we nearly hit 6000 feet), the car started to occasionally
> lurch, as if it were running out of gas (the tank was full and there were no
> gas leaks however). At first I noticed that this only happened going down
> hills in the highest gear (4th), but after a bit it actually happened going
> up hill too and eventually, in all gears. Fortunately, our gradual ascent
> leveled off and for the most part, the lurching went away but my feeling is
> that after another long drive and any more significant descents or ascents,
> it will come back. Any idea what might be causing this and how we might be
> able to fix it?
>
> In addition to this lurching phenomenon, we also experienced a scare this
> morning when I noticed that the temp gauge had risen above the light in the
> dashboard. I stopped before the light went on and checked the coolant tank
> to see what was happening. Sure enough, coolant was coming out the side of
> it (but not the top where the cap sits). It did not look as if the tank had
> pulled any coolant over from the reserve tank though because the coolant
> level in there was where it should be. I made sure the screws that appear to
> keep the top half of the tank fastened to the bottom half were secure and
> then started driving again, watching the gauge carefully. I also turned on
> the heater, as stop-gap measure. As it turns out, the gauge never rose above
> the light bulb again and we were able to reach the southeast corner of the
> Arizona/Mexico border safely and without losing anymore coolant from the
> tank or reserve tank. The only thing I can think of is that I might have
> driven out of last night's camping spot in a low gear, pushing the rpms a
> bit, but other than that, the car seemed normal until I noticed the temp.
> gauge going up a few miles down the highway. We had not driven for more than
> 5 miles when this happened but the problem did not come back after we
> settled into highway driving at 50 mph with the heater on.
>
> My rather naive opinion is that these two incidents are not related, and may
> not transpire again, assuming we stick to level terrain and I regularly
> watch the gauge. Given the fact that some of our next border stories are
> going to be shot in some remote, hot and potentially dangerous areas, I
> thought I would send these concerns out to the group for feedback however.
>
> Thanks in advance for your input-
> the borderstories team
> www.borderstories.org
>
--
Neil Nicholson. 1981 Air Cooled Westfalia - "Jaco"
http://web.mac.com/tubaneil
http://tubaneil.googlepages.com/
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