Date:         Tue, 05 Apr 94 14:08:00 EDT
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         derekdrew@aol.com
Subject:      VANAGON INTERMITTANT "STALLING" 

OK guys/gals, you convinced me. Here is the symptom and the fix:

The Vanagon gets a weird stalling/bucking/shuddering problem. There are many
possible symptoms.

--It sounds like someone is flicking the electrical system off for just a
second and then back on causing the van to "shudder" while driving
--the van bucks and seems like it is going to die and stop running but never
dies totally
--the problem sometimes requires long drives to show up
--the problem is worse after driving in cold or wet weather
--the owner of the vehicle is in dispair and becomes depressed and mopy. It
is hard for him to explain to others how deeply he feels about this.
--sometimes the problem is worse at certain RPMs; sometimes not
--VW dealers are mystified; often the problem will not reproduce itself in
the shop
--If your van is under warranty, like my '87 was, nobody minds if the dealer
replaces $3,567 worth of parts to see if the problem goes away. (Each time I
arrived, we would play "pick a part." Which ever part we picked the dealer
would order and install, and we would see if that fixed the problem.)
--this problem can go away for weeks or even months and then reappear; it can
last for 10 mins, 30 mins, or go away if the vehicle is turned off and then
back on

Frequently, the problem is traced back to the air flow box, to bad grounds in
the engine compartment (Dennis Haynes), or to the throddle switch adjustment.

I had this problem in both my '87 Westy Syncro (RIP after it hit a deer) and
my '90 Westy Syncro. When it began in my '90 I began looking for bridges to
jump off.

There is a factory fix that all you guys should try first. This is to buy the
auxiliary wiring harness for the air flow box at your dealer. I would
consider buying it even if you haven't gotten the problem yet since this part
will not be available forever. The part number is 025906302. (There are two
other numbers on my repair order. Perhaps they are some kind of procedure
numbers? They are 9750660001 and 975051A.) The price for the part is probably
between $25 and $50. Installation seems to be idiot proof. This fix should be
valid for any vehicle, 1986-1991. Check with your dealer if the harness will
fit on the 1.9 litre Vanagon.

In my opinion, there should be a recall on all Vanagons for the installation
of this harness. As with depression, untold hundreds of Vanagon owners are
suffering silently with this dread disease.

Derek Drew, 487 Columbus Ave. #3R, NYC 10024. 212-580-4459. INTERNET:
derekdrew@aol.com.