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Date:         Sun, 15 Jun 2014 20:40:12 -0700
Reply-To:     Don Hanson <dhanson928@GMAIL.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Don Hanson <dhanson928@GMAIL.COM>
Subject:      Vanagon Syndrome is it also known as Digifant Disease, maybe?
Comments: To: "Vanagons and VW Buses (Bays) with VW inline gas engines"
          <vanagons-with-vw-inline-4-cylinder-gas-engines@googlegroups.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8

I've seen mention often of the Vanagon Syndrome but I only skimmed the threads, thinking.. that doesn't apply to me, my Vanagon doesn't have the WBX motor, it has an inline VW four from various Jettas and Rabbits. However, mine runs most of the same Vanagon stuff..the MAP, the air cleaner, same idle control, similar throttle switch, same Temp II, etc...It runs Digifant II, just like a WBX Vanagon, I guess..

My motor has always run really sweet...never hardly ever any hickups or misses or anything but in the past two days it has decided to act up. It may be this Vanagon Syndrome, that is all I can come up with really. Coming home from windsurfing yesterday I blasted along the Columbia into about 50mph headwinds for about 50 miles with nary a thought for the motor...It just ran smooth and strong as normal until I got out to open our gate...then it went all wonky...missing like a poorly tuned carburetor motor...though I 'jazzed it' with the accelerator and made it to the garage. I checked the normal stuff this morning, connections, fuel pump sprayed the throttle switch...and let the motor idle for almost an hour without it missing a single note... Weird... This afternoon I again went 50 miles to windsurf and when I got to my turnoff...again the motor got "sick"...until then, very sweet..I nursed it to the launch site..about 1/4 mile, and saw nothing on any of the gauges out of the normal range no warning lights no weird sounds...After my session on the river, the van started and ran 100% normal again and again I blasted into the headwind all the way home without any acting up this time....

So twice in the past two days I have had short interludes of really crappy running...followed by normal running again. I can't induce the behavior by wiggling wires or flicking the throttle switch or blipping the throttle or anything.

Now I recall that maybe there is a fix...something to calm down the signals to the Brain? Prozac for the Digifant? A resistor or something?

What do you think? Anyone want to chime in with advice or information that might help me here? The Fuel pump is just a month old and sounds normal..the filters are new also...It did behave a little like bad gas, but only for those two interludes...the rest of the time, perfect running...My fuel consumption has not changed nor have any of my gauge normal ranges.. No visible smoking from the exhaust... Got me puzzled as to where to begin, other than the vague recollection of similar symptoms being mentioned as Vanagon Syndrome... Thanks, Don Hanson 84 van, 92 Jetta 8 valve head, 93 Jetta ABA bottom end, digifant II operating system.


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