Date: Fri, 2 Dec 2011 02:59:35 -0500
Reply-To: Dennis Haynes <d23haynes57@HOTMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Dennis Haynes <d23haynes57@HOTMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: Head problems? was <no subject>
In-Reply-To: <4ed45102.4a16340a.09c4.ffff9ec8@mx.google.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Loose heads-failed studs can also give these symptoms. Try checking the
torque first. What happens is that under load the heads get lifted slightly
and the combustion gasses get into the coolant.
Dennis
-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of
David Beierl
Sent: Monday, November 28, 2011 10:27 PM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Head problems? was <no subject>
Just re-posting with a subject...
At 10:21 PM 11/28/2011, Evan Mac Donald wrote:
Ok list, I need some help. I need somebody to tell me the symptoms my poor
'85 1.9 WBXer is suffering from are not from a cracked head. Lie to me if
you must. So, to explain. My van
(Butternut) has always self-bled her cooling system very quickly, and
easily. No fights, no real fussing, just a couple of top-offs after a couple
of careful hot-and-cold cycles, and Viola!
Done. This is from several waterpumps, hose replacements, damage repairs,
etc. Always bleeds fast, after the damage is gone. The last run we made in
beasty was at the end of September, to Busses by the Beach Bus Boo, in
western Michigan.
Lots o' fun. I live in eastern Michigan, so the trip is only about 180
miles. No big deal. Done the trip LOTS of times, and in much worse weather.
This time, about 5 miles from being home, the heater stops working, and the
temp gage maxes out. Quickly. And the coolant level light blinks. The
weather at the time was about mid 50's, in °F. UH-oh. not good. I stop, and
the light stops blinking, and the gage returns to normal. Huh? Check the
tanks, and both are full of air. Now, my reservoir tank never has bubbles,
after bleeding. So , I fill the tanks, and start home again. Cycle repeats.
First I have heat, then none, and the gage does its dance. It is the old
style gage, that maxes out the temp needle, if the low-level alert light
comes on. I have tried several times, over the intervening time, to get the
bubbles to go away, and my heat to return. I completely emptied and refilled
the entire system, with a pressure flush in between.
I even unhooked the belt from the water pump, and spun it with an angle
grinder, to get things moving around, without actually running the engine,
and risking further damage. This will really only clear the heater cicuit,
but that is a big section of the problem, all on its own. No joy. My thought
is that I have cracked a head, into a coolant passage. I do not want to do a
head if that's not whats wrong, but I do not see any other solutions for
this problem. My question
is: are there any other likely causes of this? Or am I going to have to
replace a head? TIA, and I hope everybody is over their tryptophan
overdose... Evan Mac Donald "...in the absence of facts, myth rushes in,
the kudzu of history." -Stacy Schiff
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