Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2010 09:57:50 -0800
Reply-To: Mark Tuovinen <aksyncronaut@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Mark Tuovinen <aksyncronaut@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: One more %^$ part...
In-Reply-To: <AANLkTi=23xKDvRXug_FjjTWGy9eJEgJDUGhh9qUoNEWw@mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
Low on coolant and running hot will do the same. We just returned from our
annual 10 day excursion and had a similar situation. We went from Anchorage
to Whitehorse then to Skagway. From there we took the ferry to Haines then
back to Haines Junction and turned for home, roughly 1600 miles total. On
our way out we stopped at aptly named Destruction Bay on Kluane Lake for
fuel where I noticed coolant leaking from the left bank. I could not see a
specific leak as it was all over the end of the head and surrounding parts.
We nursed it to Whitehorse home of John's Auto a Vanagon friendly shop for
advice and or repairs. The van was running ok other than having to add
coolant and the annoying habit of the engine would act fuel starved but
revive for a short time by cycling the ignition switch. It eventually
dawned on me that this was telling me we were getting low on coolant and the
temp sensor was not reading correctly. When topped off it was fine but low
coolant gave the same symptoms. As pulling a head on the road was not on
our list of things to do and we were not leaking much after talking to the
tech's at John's we decided to nurse the van home and just keep adding
water. On our return passage through Destruction Bay we stopped for food
and fuel. While there I checked out the engine and finally found the true
source of our problem. It was the preformed hose from the upper left rear
cyl. head to the rail around the hatch opening. I just happened to be
looking at the one spot you can see the hose under the A/C compressor while
I revved the engine and saw water squirt out. It would not leak at idle
only under pressure from the pump did it appear. The leak was just passed
the water outlet and right before where the hose does a 90 degree turn and
reduces down in size. I used duct tape and clamps to try and slow it down
as we were roughly 570 miles from home. This worked for 210 miles but it
finally failed completely 30 miles outside of Tok at 10PM that evening. My
wife thumbed a ride into Tok and got in touch wth a friend of ours whom
happens to be the Food and Beverage Manager for a hotel there. He set us up
with a room the n drove her back out to pick up our two kids and the Great
Dane. I stayed with the van until the tow truck arrived and rode in with
it. The next morning(Sunday) I called the owner of Arctic Import a Vanagon
friendly shop in Anchorage and though he was out of stock on the house he
had a downed van that he pulled one from and a friend of ours drove it the
330 miles to Tok. It pays to know the right people and have their personal
cell numbers at times!
Mark in AK
On Thu, Aug 26, 2010 at 6:27 AM, Jeff Lincoln <magikvw@gmail.com> wrote:
> On Wed, Aug 25, 2010 at 10:56 PM, Robert Fisher <garciasghostvw@gmail.com
> >wrote:
>
> > Yup... 30 seconds = O2 sensor. It should engraved on the dash. BTDT.
> >
>
> Not always Robert - I had this same issue with my '90 Carat when we first
> got the engine installed years ago and there was no O2 sensor to be causing
> a problem. It turned out to be the Temp II sensor.
>
> Still I gree that O2 is certainly one of, if not the first, thing I would
> check int his scenario.
>
>
>
> --
> Thanks,
>
> Jeff
> '85 GL (Gertie)
> '90 Carat (Grover - the noble parts donor)
> '86 (We call this one Scrap)
> '78 Bus (Melissa) Patty's Bus
>
| 
