Date: Mon, 9 Mar 2015 23:04:55 -0400
Reply-To: James <jk_eaton@HOTMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: James <jk_eaton@HOTMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: spring checklist
In-Reply-To: <31039.1425908793@sandelman.ca>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Hi Michael,
I'm in Ottawa too! Our '91 spent this winter outdoors under a JustKampers cover, having been garaged the year before.
Taking the batteries out for the winter is the subject of much discussion - I don't know if it's really necessary, but what is necessary is a nice, slow charge at the end of the winter (regardless of whether the batteries were stored indoors or out), before starting the van for the first time of the season. Lead-acid batteries, like other sorts, slowly self-discharge when not regularly used. Jumpstarting is hard on batteries, because it is a sudden inrush of current. Last winter, I avoided this by starting the van every month and running it for 20-30 minutes on warm (near freezing) days, but we didn't have many of those this winter, so I'll be charging.
I wouldn't swap the house and starter batteries, as they see very different service - ideally, they shouldn't be the same type of battery, as the house battery should be a deep-cycle type, not a starter battery.
Check the tires - they will probably need 4-8 psi added. Rotation once a year or more is good. Winter storage does not affect alignment, so that should be unnecessary.
The brakes will squeak and shed rust for the first few stops - and there's really nothing you can do about that, except drive carefully and use light brake applications until it passes. Anything you sprayed on the brakes and rotors to reduce rust would also reduce braking effectiveness.
If the bottom of your doors is rusty, then scrape, but seal with something more solid than Vaseline - consult a body shop, or at least use a high quality rust-coating paint. Avoid this problem by having your van visit Krown or Metropolitan rustproofers every year or two.
Coolant and oil checks - yes, and get an oil change while you're at it. Oil that has been used a summer and then sat over winter will be full of acids. Go to somebody who gets the proper German oil filters for the VW engine, not the cheap Fram or Motomaster ones. (www.frankcondelli.com in Almonte is the Vanagon's friend!)
Enjoy Jed, and hope to see you around the city or out camping this summer. Our '91 is Orly blue; it gets used as a second car regularly in the city in the summer. Do you every camp at Fitzroy Harbour or Sharbot Lake?
James Eaton
Ottawa, ON
'91 Westy Weekender
> Date: Mon, 9 Mar 2015 09:46:33 -0400
> From: mcr@SANDELMAN.CA
> Subject: spring checklist
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
>
> Hi, I'm a new Westfalia ('91) owner as of last summer. We live in Ottawa.
> We put our van (we call him "Jed") away last November in our carport.
>
> (In some some sense, this is the first vehicle we've owned, since my wife and
> son have lived car free urban lives for the 25 years of our adult life.)
>
> A tarp over one side, and the back to keep the snow drifts away.
> It got cold much sooner than I thought last year, and it I didn't get the
> batteries removed as soon as I wanted, but they did get removed and stored
> in the basement by Jan 1. I'm told that keeping them from freeze/thawing
> will lengthen their life. I'm told that even though they are disconnected,
> that they likely need a charge in the spring, or I should plan on jump
> starting Jed.
>
> Should I swap the house/starter battery each year? Will that contribute to
> even wear of them, or will it just mean I have two equally worn (and equally
> dead) batteries in the future?
>
> I imagine that the tires will need air after sitting all winter; should they
> be rotated? Aligned?
>
> I'm told to expect rust to fall from the brake pads due to it sitting still
> for months... it hasn't been a damp winter (in Ottawa, 2 months of -30C,
> where we normally get 2 days of that, and rain in february)... Is there some
> mitigation that I should do?
>
> I've been told to wire-scape bits of rust off the bottom of the door and
> cover those parts with vaseline.
>
> The 12V plug on the dashboard never worked, and I've yet to figure out how to
> get the glove compartment drawer out to get in to fix it. The 12V plug under
> the passenger seat never work well (physically worn out), and then it seems
> to have failed last fall... I've ordered new plugs (and USB ones too) online,
> but I have to get the passenger seat off to get in there, which will be my
> project at the end of March. We won't actually drive Jed anywhere until the
> snow and salt are all gone in mid-April.
>
> Obviously there is coolant and oil to check.
> Is there some other non-obvious thing that I don't know about?
> Probably there is a FAQ I've missed :-)
>
> --
> ] Never tell me the odds! | ipv6 mesh networks [
> ] Michael Richardson, Sandelman Software Works | network architect [
> ] mcr@sandelman.ca http://www.sandelman.ca/ | ruby on rails [
>
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