Date:         Mon, 5 Jan 2009 11:44:26 -0600
Reply-To:     Max Wellhouse <dimwittedmoose@CFU.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Max Wellhouse <dimwittedmoose@CFU.NET>
Subject:      Shade tree wiring of a cold start valve on a 2.1?
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed

Friends:  I have installed a cold start valve circa 2.0 aircooled
Vanagon motor(new one bought on ebay cheap) but never wired it in on
my 90 GL 2.1 L motor.    It seems to be the simple solution to
getting the Vanagon to start below 10 degreees F now, since playing
with the aftermarket Haltech ECU cold prime map is going to be a
guessing game at best.

  Got the idea from a Rabbit owner either on this list or Samba.  I
guess I could've wired in the thermo time switch(also from ebay) and
let the switch decide when to squirt or not to squirt, but the Rabbit
guy got tired of replacing TTS's and simply wired his CSV to a
momentary on switch on his dash so he controlled when the cold start
valve kicked in.  He sad it's worked like a champ.

I guess I could wire the TTS up and avoid having to run a wire from
the engine up to the dash(a bigger job than the Rabbit owner had),
but I don't see a suitable place to screw it into in the engine.  I
guess I could ground it to the motor somehow and let it read ambient
temp, or maybe stick it in the air cleaner somehow.  The simpler
route might be to do the temporary on switch on the dash and run a
ground wire the length of the van and have the circuit completed by
the temporary on switch by having the other terminal from the switch
go to ground up front somewhere.  Then tap +12V off an "ignition on"
source perhaps by  running a wire from the CSV to the black side of
the coil. .Bentley shows CSV testing by jumping to the coil, so I'm
assuming that the CSV gets 12V, and not some lesser voltage. Would
need to fuse that run, but not sure how big a fuse to stick in the
line.. I have a factory connector like the fuel injector connectors
that fits right over the CSV I'm not crazy about sticking a fuse back
in the engine compartment, but do have 2 extra terminals for fuses on
the ECU's fuse block that should be protected from most of the
elements.  Wouldn't use this set up in the summer, just November through March.

To summarize,

1. TTS or temporary on switch; which is better?
2. If I wire it to the coil for power, how big or little of a fuse do I need?
3. Are the wires to the CSV dedicated positive and negative or does
it matter which goes where?


thanks for any help you can come up with.

DM&FS