Date: Mon, 19 May 2014 16:21:23 +0200
Reply-To: Raimund Feussner <ray@V6BUS.DE>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Raimund Feussner <ray@V6BUS.DE>
Subject: Re: Intermittent no start problem solved
In-Reply-To: <974D1263-F020-4A22-963D-5C09D3ADCB02@shaw.ca>
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My no start problem only appeared when engine hot.
Found out that the ground cable from battery to chassis had bad contact.
Cold: all fine,
Hot: only 9 to 10.5V wiggling on the Voltmter.
I have the starter battery under the rear bench and also a V6 exhaust
underneath.
Cleaned all sheet metal, used new bolts...done.
Regards
Raimund
Am 18.05.2014 20:40, schrieb Alistair Bell:
> Relating this tale in part to illustrate how blind to the obvious one can be sometimes.
>
> Over the winter I noticed the van took more turns with the starter to run. Back then I did do the electrical tests outlined in Bentley to see if some sensor or something was awry. But everything was in spec.
>
> B me over the last few weeks the van would sometimes take quite a few tries with the starter to fire up. I couldn't make out any real pattern, sometimes it would fire right up, sometimes I would have to crank and crank.
>
> If I was forced, I would say it happened more often with the engine warm.
>
> Once started the van ran normally, good power etc. I wasn't happy with the idle though, seemed rougher than normal.
>
> So the last few days were spent tracking the problem down. I checked fuel pressure and all tests passed. I checked spark plugs and replaced 2 year old plugs with new. Checked distributor rotor and hall sensor. Checked the D15 connection at fuse panel ( I had fixed that a while back). Lucky I did pull the fuse panel as I found a very iffy connection at my low beam relay.
>
> Then I went at the connection box in the engine compartment, left hand side. My van had the bbw46 heater installed. I had pulled the nonfunctional heater unit and plumbing but the wiring was still in place. The heater system has two fuses and a big relay in that box which made the box even more of a rats nest than normal. I checked the connections, black wires, that feed the coil, idle system heater, and ecu relay. The wiring to the connections was hard and the connections didn't look good. I cut back and replaced the spades.
>
> All of the above did not fix the problem. Of course at that point I was cursing myself for not making one of Mark's test wire set ups. If I had I think I would have saved myself a lot of trouble.
>
> I had my wife crank the engine and I measured voltage to the coil. I wondered if there was a voltage drop problem during starting. Well it was more than a voltage drop, it was a voltage absence during starter cranking.
>
> I was stumped, I didn't see the obvious. While I was thinking, I cleaned out the idle valve with brake cleaner.
>
> We have this hard to capture rooster that has taken to roosting at night under our bedroom window. So I was up at five this morning. And them it occurred to me, the ignition switch.
>
> I got out a spare, and plugged it in to the steering column plug and turned it with a screwdriver. Engine started up immediately. Tried it again and again, engine started. Man, did I have egg on my face. I have replaced a few vanagon ignition switches over the years but overlooked it this time.
>
> Alistair
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