Date:         Tue, 18 Apr 1995 10:02:54 -0500
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         msanner@INTERACCESS.COM (Matt)
Subject:      Western Escapades

WOW!

1160 Messages since I've been gone.  Busy place around here!  Anyway, I have 
returned from my great excursion.  6,051 miles in 16 days in a 84 Vanagon Gl 
that I bought for $1,600 (plus $1,000 for engine work).  I couldn't be 
happier with it. (Which is not to say that there weren't any problems)

The first problem showed up at about 890 miles. Everytime I turned over the 
engine, the starter would squeal.  So i developed a way to defeat that 
without actually addressing the problem.

The second problem happened at around 3,000 miles.  The first setting on the 
front heater stopped working. Two and three work fine though.

THe final problem was with the engine itself.  Around Salt Lake City, the 
engine started to miss and lose power.  At first I attributed this to the 
altitude *maybe the O2 Sensor?*  Since I was at a major city, I stopped in 
an autoparts store and got a new rotor and cap in case that was the problem. 
When I canged the rotor/cap, the leading edge of the rotor was crispy and 
torn up. New electric guts and I was on my way. In Montana, it started 
again. Each time when this would happen (total of about 5 or 6) I would pull 
over and stop for a while, then continue. It wouldn't happen for a few hours 
or a day.  

One scary time it happened was at the top of I-80 at 8,190 ft., driving on 
solid ice with the Semis passing me at 60 mph.  The engine sputtered on an 
upgrade and for a second the oil light came on, just a flash though.  I took 
it out of gear, reved the engine, engaged back in third and it went away. A 
good thing too, because the shoulder was solid uncindered ice!

I thought about the wiring harness, but I seem to remember that it was sort 
of a blue moon type of thing. (How can I tell if I have the factory harness 
or the new improved one?) Then I realized that I was filling up with 89 
octane and at some stops it was that ethonal blend. So I switched to 92 oct. 
(By then I was in Iowa and I could almost see the broad shoulders of 
Chicago). I think it may have happened in Iowa but i'm not sure if it was 
the cross wind or the engine. Anyways, iif it was it was nothing like the 
other times.

The engine now idles rough and seems to miss every 30 seconds or so 
(putt,putt,putt,putt,*piff*,putt,put,putt...)

The good stuff is that i averaged between 22 to 24 mpg and averaged between 
60 and 65 the whole way ( although when i needed to i could pass at 75 mph, 
but that was rare!)

I have good stories to tell, and when i get the time I will share them!


'84 Vanagon GL
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