Date: Mon, 3 Aug 2009 17:55:15 -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: stalling problem when van is running for about 5 minutes.
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All vacuum hoses must be intact and connected properly. Period.
Not hard to check, and can cause all sorts of symptoms. though not likely
yours here.
sounds like 'vanagon syndrome' to me.
that is ..............it runs, it looses power, you shut it off, it starts
up and is ok until it does it again.
IF ..........if everything is fully up to spec, and very dialed in, and you
have this going on ......
it could be genuine Vanagon Syndrome ( goggle it , or wikipedia ) .
there is an adapter harness that goes between the air flow meter and the
standard main EFI harness.
most 2.1 vanagons have on on them already.\
when you say this :
When I start it up and have it running for about 4 or 5 minutes, my van
> stalls. '
Do you mean DRIVING for 4 or 5 minutes, or do you mean sitting there and
idling 4 or 5 minutes.
I CAN NOT recommend enough against just letting it idle, ESPEICALLY to 'warm
up.'
! ! !
they warm up the fastest, and work the best, if you start it as gently as
you can, let it run 20 to 30 seonds or so, then drive gently under mild load
for a few minutes, then start to drive normally.
It can't warm up very well without a load on it ................it's bad for
the oil, it wastes fuel, can't say it enough, letting it idle to warm up is
a bad idea.
I even had a case of that myself the other day. Some vangon ( i was working
on some other system .............I remember now - a roachy 87 ......put a
clutch in it, van has a dozen write ups on it, but I did the clutch and
axles etc........it seemed a bit low on the battery charge, so I started it
up and let it idle for 5 or 10 minutes .....
part way through that it died, And would not restart . And I'm
like............sure don't need this..........it's pretty ragged throughout
anyway , sure don't want to get into this whole other area. I wait a while ,
it starts up .....and is ok after that.
but .......'just idling to warm it up '.............basically ........I
advise against doing that if you can possibly help it.
Fire it up, drive gently under light load for a few minutes, .....much
better for everything.
Saying it's like ' a vacuum hose' issue ......is like saying poor handling
could be a tire pressure issue - that is true, but checking vacuum hoses,
and a basic visual inspection is the first and most obvious thing to do. You
don't even have to know anything about cars to see a hose if off sometimes.
So defenitley check those.......
but those are like 'basics' ..........like full oil level, and easy to
inspect for too.
popular other factors are ...
grounds, and corrosion at them,
and ..the igniton switch, temp sensor II ........
I'd just inspect things carefully to start with, including vacuum hoses on
the engine.
and if 'warming it up'................they are not designed for that. It's
not good for them.
Starting a car is a mean thing to do to it .......
getting it from 'fired off' to half warmed up as quickly and gently as
possible, is important.
You accomplish that by gentle driving at first,
which might be what you are doing anyway.
But that's a car's worst mode - right after firing it up ..........lots of
fuel in there, rich mixture, acid in the exhaust .......lots of nasty things
happening .........oxygens sensor isn't in the loop yet, etc. ......you
want to get through that period as directly and easily as you can.
If it doesn't run right cold, it's not running right .......and things are
out of spec, or they are worn out.
Scott
----- Original Message -----
From: "Bart Prinsen" <bprinsen@GMAIL.COM>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Monday, August 03, 2009 4:44 PM
Subject: stalling problem when van is running for about 5 minutes.
>I am wondering if anyone can offer some help on this issue my vanagon has:
>
> When I start it up and have it running for about 4 or 5 minutes, my van
> stalls. It seems as if it is not getting fuel to the engine.
>
> when that happens I turn the engine off briefly, and restart it and it
> starts and runs fine after that. If I am driving, when I notice it start
> to
> studder I can just put it in neutral, turn the ignition off and restart it
> while still driving. It then will run fine until I stop and let it cool
> down, and then the same thing will happen.
>
> It does this consistently. It never becomes a bigger problem than that. It
> will always restart right away, and runs ok after that.
>
> Somone I spoke with thought it might be a vacuum hose. Does this sound
> logical? Is there anything else that this sounds like it could be?
>
> Any help would be appreciated.
>
> Bart.
>
> Vancouver, BC, Canada. 1988 Vanagon.
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