Date:         Sun, 5 Jul 2015 18:58:05 -0400
Reply-To:     Marc Perdue <mcperdue@GMAIL.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Marc Perdue <mcperdue@GMAIL.COM>
Subject:      Help! Weird noises after installing injectors...
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8

Hi all,

First: '87 Westy, no A/C, auto, 170K miles.

I've got some weird noises in my van after installing new fuel
injectors. They may not, in fact, probably are not related, but I'm
worried about burning up my van, so I'm paranoid.

I had my van up and running for a while and took it off the road for
maybe up to a month to replace the front window seals, install
Dynamat, reattach the plastic lining in the doors, replace the front
speakers, test the fuel injectors and replace them with new ones (and
new seals).

Now, as others pointed out, the fuel injectors didn't fix my running
problem. Still, one of them wasn't spraying right, they all looked
like crap, and the seals were all shot. I did, however, as a result of
the testing, discover there was water in my gas. I've put some Heet in
the tank to absorb the water and am going to replace the fuel filter
after the drier gas has had a chance to work through the system.

In the meantime, I was taking the van out for a test run and I'm
hearing two distinct new noises. The first is a fairly loud thunking
sound when going around corners, like some large object is loose and
banging against sheet metal. Driving it today, I only turned right,
going around the block, but it did it when I came home, turning left,
after the first test drive. I've looked all over the engine
compartment and can't find anything loose. I initially expected that I
had not installed the air filter correctly, but that's not the case.

The second noise is a fairly loud clatter that seems to be coming from
the driver's side of the engine and sounds like heat plates rattling
against something. Again, I can't find anything obvious. Would the
lifters make this kind of clattering noise after sitting for a while?
I'm frankly a bit nervous about taking it for a long drive because I'm
afraid I'll destroy the engine or something else.

I know this is some fairly general information and hardly actionable,
but does anybody have any thoughts on what might have happened?

Thanks in advance for any light you may be able to shed on this.
Marc Perdue, in central Va.