Date: Thu, 17 Jul 2008 22:13:43 -0700
Reply-To: Scott Daniel - Turbovans <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Scott Daniel - Turbovans <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Subject: Re: Replaced auto tranny doesn't work. Advice needed!
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yep, been there done this.
I bought a used vanagon auto trans once........
they guy said he had driven that very trans about a year ago and knew it was
good.
it did just what you are discribing, extreme resistance or binding in
reverse.
they also like to leak ATF into the differential portion - had that too.
the next used auto trans I got was OK.
Even if your auto shop teacher was a VW technician........I would be so
concered that they didn't understand one portion of it takes gear oil, the
other ATF, or that the CV joint screws aren't tight enough. Can't tell you
the dumb things I've seen !
don't mean to go on, but honestly, upwards of 75 % of work I see done, even
by pro shops, on vanagons is in some way not right, or sloppy, or something
just not done well. Or grossly wrong too. I've seen a vw air-cooled engine
assembled by an auto shop class and it was so wrong it was hilarious.
There are things that can't sit on the shelf for a long time, if they are
someone tired in the first place, then work fine later - particularily
things that have fluids moving around in many small passagess .........like
a diesel injection pumps, or a Vanagon automatic transmissions.
As for what to check........linkage pops to mind - but I doubt that's it.
you could also drop the ATF pan and see what it looks like in there. ( you
personally checked the ATF level yourself right ?
Van level, engine running. OVERfull is very bad. I wouldn't even begin to
assume that they got the fluid type and level right.........so check that
yourself. )
< can't tell you the # of times I've heard people say 'oh it must be right,
I just had the dealer , or whomever, work on it" - very funny.
When it's been worked on by anyone........that's when you suspect they were
careless or sloppy........it's silly to assume that someone did correct work
on anything, regardless of how much you pay or anything. I hear those words
, and it's a red flag.>
oh by the way - when you do get one working right ........Royal Purple
synthetic ATF.
I swapped out just 3 qts of my ATF with Royal Purple and the van went
noticably better - perhaps at least 5 % better.
I've had three auto trans cars repsond very very favorably to that fluid.
The left over auto trans has pretty hgih core value btw.
good luck !
scott
www.turbovans.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "Ken Taylor" <kenandjean@COMCAST.NET>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Thursday, July 17, 2008 8:14 PM
Subject: Replaced auto tranny doesn't work. Advice needed!
> After my 1990 Vanagon Multivan sat unused for about a year because of an
> automatic transmission failure, I finally found someone in my area with a
> used auto tranny from an '86 Westy for sale. The auto shop at the high
> school where I teach installed it for me under the guidance of the auto
> shop instructor, who is a former VW mechanic.
>
> Sadly, it's still not usable. Now, when I put it in reverse, it feels as
> if I'm trying to back over an enormous speed bump. It backs up very
> slightly, but stops, seemingly as if it's trying to back over something
> far too steep. Yet, if I put it in reverse and don't apply pressure on
> the gas pedal, it will roll backward slowly but freely.
>
> The former owner of the transmission, who has since moved out of the area
> (meaning that I'm on my own with this problem), seemed like an honest
> young man who claimed that it came from a Vanagon that he owned and that
> it had worked fine when he removed it.
>
> Could there be another explanation other than the transmission not working
> correctly when I purchased it? What would be a next step in diagnosing
> the problem?
>
> Thanks in advance for any help and suggestions.
>
> Ken
> Western Washington
