Date:         Sat, 31 Jan 2009 20:52:09 -0500
Reply-To:     Greg Potts <greg@POTTSFAMILY.CA>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Greg Potts <greg@POTTSFAMILY.CA>
Subject:      "Watch out where the Huskies go"... (long and plaintive)
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed

..."And don't you eat that yellow snow".  Except in my case, it's green
snow.

The story starts back on January 13th. At the time, it was frikkin
stupid cold up here in Soviet Canuckistan. Single digit temps on either
side of Zero Fahrenheit, before the windchill.

My Vanagon has been blessed with good heat even in that extreme of
weather; no cab divider is necessary and once the engine warms up I can
crank up the rear blower and the whole van is toasty in no time.

But then came the day where everything changed...

On January 12th I noticed that the wheel bearings were getting loud, and
in those temps there was just no way I was gonna do them myself. So I
booked an appointment for the following morning at my local
Vanagon-friendly auto clinic. I got up early and had to boost the van to
get it running (no surprise there; the battery is somewhat marginal on a
good day) and set off to the shop, about 20 minutes from home. I got
about 5 minutes from home and was a little surprised that there was
still no heat. Check the gauge, it's reading high. Uh-oh; high guauge
plus cold van usually means trouble. It continues to rise as I drive,
then suddenly it starts coming down again.... but that's when I noticed
the coolant light starting to flash. And there's steam coming out the
back, too. Sigh... Better pull over ASAP.

Long story shortened slightly: blew a coolant hose off the thermostat.
Split that puppy wide open like an over-ripe banana. Had it towed the
rest of the way to the shop, and being as it was so cold out the tow
truck was more than 2 hrs getting there. Thank goodness for CAA.

When it hit the shop, it was too late for the spindle; some may recall
my pleas for assistance locating one. Well, I found one within driving
distance and my Dad volunteered for the trip and picked it up the next
day. It was installed on the following Monday; but I didn't see it until
the week after that as I was in northern Alberta on a business trip. And
when I got home from that trip I barely had time to do some laundry and
repack before I was out on another run, this time to Lake Geneva WI. I
finally got home from that trip on Thusday night.

Yesterday I drove the van to the office, it seems to be running well but
I did smell coolant when I shut it off. Maybe not too surprising; I
spewed plenty on the engine when that hose popped; I figure that's the
cause. On the trip home I check the reservoir and it's full.

This morning I decide that I might get better traction if I rotate my
tires. The rears are temporary; soon to be spares once I have the funds
for a new set. The fronts are Vanco's, borrowed from Dad's baywindow
westy. The Vancos are newer than the rears, so I figure they might be
better on the back. Wishful thinking, but I have an air wrench and it's
not gonna cost anything so I bundle up and head out to the driveway.

The first not-so-happy surprise was that the mechanic who replaced the
front spindle put the wheel back on using two bolts with different
diameter heads from what I originally had. And I was even less happy
when I discovered that he torqued them down to stupid-tight torque; such
that I bent a piece of 1" electrical conduit when I used it as a torque
multiplier on my ratchet handle. To solve that last issue I put an
impact socket on each stuck bolt head and swatted it a few times with a
hammer; the impact loosened them enough that I was able to break them
loose with the long-handled ratchet.

Going back to the rear of the bus to swap the front tire onto the back
was where I found the colorful snow. I started the van and watched
closely; there is a steady drip coming from both heads.

So this afternoon I picked up a bottle of Bars stop-leak. Hopefully that
will keep the antifreeze inside the engine for a few more months until I
have time to sort out and prep the spare 1.9 I bought back in November.
I know the spare has very good compression, but it still needs a lot of
cleaning up and it has the 1.9 cooling and FI systems on it rather than
the 2.1 system that are on my current engine. I'd rather stick with the
later plumbing and electrical if possible.

I really like this van, but it sure seems to be putting me through the
wringer this year. Since purchase I've dealt with tires, brakes,
bearings, exhaust leaks, headlight switch, speedo, and transmission
issues and now the heads are dripping. I've been around VW vans for many
years now; I know that the first year can be tough. But this is getting
ridiculous. And for all of that I *know* that this vehicle is a viable
option, if I could just get caught up on all the little stuff.

If I had the $$$ for a Bostig conversion I would be on that in a
heartbeat. But I think I will have to coax another year or two out of
the WBX before I can make that happen.

Advise, encouragements, and insight on how to bridge the gap would be
greatly appreciated.


Happy Trails,

Greg Potts
1973/74/79 Westfakia "Bob the Tomato"
1987 Wolfsburg Weekender Hardtop
www.busesofthecorn.com
www.pottsfamily.ca