Date: Fri, 23 Sep 2011 19:45:24 -0700
Reply-To: Don Hanson <dhanson928@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Don Hanson <dhanson928@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: flashing coolant light purpose (Friday non-sequitur and long)
In-Reply-To: <CD0D37B9-ED9F-4964-B8EC-792030B9C544@gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
On Fri, Sep 23, 2011 at 8:59 AM, BenT Syncro <syncro@gmail.com> wrote:
> Don,
>
> I take it you weren't happy with all the blinkin' lights in your 928. Mine
> was a gray market import. Still had instruments German. Imagine my shock
> driving it the first time a huge orange triangle with a proportionately
> large exclamation point flashed in the center of the instrument pod saying
> something like:
>
> Scheibenwaschwasser
>
> Panic ensued. The Central Warning Computer was telling me there is some
> sort of water problem... I knew what 'wasser' meant. This was my first
> water-cooled Porsche having only owned 911's at that point. Exclamation with
> something water sounded dangerous. Windshield Washer Fluid. Hmmm...
>
No didn't much care for the electrical part of those vehicles...., both
the 928s I had were pretty much electrical nightmares (as they all
were)...at least I thought so....and I guess the general public did too,
eventually, because they are cheaper now than a westie....
They were perfect, from the factory, for a wealthy dentist or doctor's
wife....Absolutely everything was automatic in them....mine had over 80
relays, just in the fuse panel....which they conveniently put in the
driver's side footwell, behind a board and under the AC radiator...and one
of the heater cores... The workshop manual(s)... eighteen volumes...there
were 3 whole books just on the electrical system alone.... I would guess
that most of these "flagships of the Porsche line" logged more flatbed miles
than they did on their own tires..and they probably spent more time in the
dealers shop than in the owners garage....until the dealers began to refuse
to work on them....then they became Kid Kars or 'enthusiast's cars'....you
hadda like em to own em....
Mine, the first one, I flew to Long Beach and picked it up, headed north,
stylin' along.......by Ventura, there was a blinking readout in the center
of the 'display' saying "Toothed-Belt!" It was really cool, with this
little rotating gear picture...animated and everything!.....I had no idea
what the heck that was and no manual so I motored on....hitting 150mph a few
times in the outback of Oregon on deserted straight roads.... I found out
later that was a timing belt warning...which those cars are notorious for
tossing off and the warning system is notoriously faulty..... I did, later
in my 928 years, lose a timing belt at Road America after hauling my racecar
all the way out there and making 1/2 a 20 minute practice session....It bent
21 of 32 valves...at $90 per valve...but it didn't wreck the pistons or bend
the titanium rods and I was back on the racetrack the following week...
I took well over a thousand pounds of crap out of that car...it went from
3700lbs to 2700lbs and that is with a substantial full roll cage and a fuel
cell and an on board fire system....
Once I got over the trauma of using a saws-all on "The flagship of the
Porsche line" it was actually fun to 'get even" with all the systems that
had screwed me up when I was using it as a Grand Touring car.....
When everything worked...it was a marvelous GT vehicle, capable of cruising
all day in comfort at 150mph....Which I did a few time in Nevada....
Friday....
Don Hanson
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