Date: Tue, 27 Jun 95 9:19:29 EDT
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From: dcarment@ccs.carleton.ca (David Carment)
Subject: Trip report, oil, handle and rebuild
Hi all. We returned last night from a two week trip to points south
covering about 2500 miles. Our trip included some of the best camping that
Ohio, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania and New York have to offer.
Our trip took us through Binghamton, Gettysburg, the Ohio River Valley,
Athens and Buffalo (we stayed in Fort Erie on the Canadian side). I was
surprised by the beauty of the Appalachians,
the Poconos and the Allegheny mountains. Expecting major industrial
buildup through the region we found instead some very beautiful and well
preserved small towns in Penn, Ohio and West Virginia, specifically
Athens, Franklin and Oil City. Only parts of the Ohio river valley have
coal fired steel mills and electricity production which tend to mar the
serenity of the river valley drive.
The 82 Westy performed very well. Here is a brief summary on performance.
Overall mpg: 23 (imp). All highway.
I found that oil temps are a function of two things: speed and ambient
air temperature.
At speeds below 60 mph and temperatures below 80F, oil temperature would
hover between the 190 and 210 marks.
At speeds above 60 mph and temps below 80, oil temps would hover around 210F.
At speeds above 60 and temps above 80 (we had six days of 90F+ weather)
the oil temp would increase to 220 and occasionally hit the 230 mark. This
is with a second oil cooler mounted above the tranny. To increase air
flow I hooked up two flexible clothes dryer tubes slung out each side in
front of
the tranny underneath the body. They do not hang lower than the lowest
point on the car (rear engine mount) but do provide air flow at speed. The
oil temp switch that activates the fan gave out after four days (a
Bergmann purchase). I chose to run without it instead of having the fan
permanently on hence the higher than expected oil temps. Since 230F is the
mid point on the gauge, I assume that is not an abnormal level for oil to
run at (15W50 synthetic).
Head temps never exceeded 375 at speed and usually ran at 350 (as expected).
Whatever small oil leaks were at the seals at the beginning of the trip have
now stopped.
The hill factor does not seem to play as big a role as assumed except on
the 90F+ days when everything gets hotter.
I found that the full throttle switch has little effect, even when
adjusted properly. No surprises there.
The GEX seems to be coming into its own. Last checked compression was 145+
all around. After 13000 miles it seems to "like" synthetic....
The final run from Toronto to Ottawa took us into a head wind of a very
big storm. I was able to keep up a speed above 65 on all but the
biggest hills which for this Vanagon (fully loaded) was quite good.
Fixed along the way: water pump switch on tap; broken sliding door handle,
left rear flat; accelerator switch; right windshield spray nozzle.
We needed to buy a hose to fill the water tank as most of the state parks
do not provide a hose for filling the tank at the site.
On fixing the sliding door handle. I was quoted a price of $140 CDN to replace
the door handle from VW. There are few door handles available from
wreckers. Here is how we resolved the problem:
The handle is composed of white metal which cannot be welded. The
diameter of the portion that tends to crack is about 1/2" (slightly
larger). Using an about 3/4" length of 1/2" copper tubing (brass may also
work) I ground the circumference of the white metal until I could bang the
copper tubing over top so that the crack would close. I then cut the tubing to
length and removed it. Then I spread
liberal amounts of weldbond on the inside of the tubing and "slid" it
back on. The copper is flexible enough to widen without cracking but
strong enough to keep the crack together in combination with the weld bond.
It is also the right diameter to be inserted into the door lock mechanism.
Then I spread weld bond on the outside of the tubing and let is set until
almost dry. At that point I inserted the handle into the door lock so that
the still soft weld bond would shape to the circumference of the door
lock. It was then removed and let dry and then re-installed. The handle seems
to hold the load after about a week.
Given that door handles are both expensive and difficult to repair I would
suggest that people remove their door handle and check for cracks before
the handle breaks completely.
As for GEX engines (which we have). There are several advantages of having one
(though this is probably true of most engines with guarantees). They will
will allow a certified mechanic to work on the engine and will cover the cost
of parts and labour if it can be proven that the fault is with the engine.
Case in point: our initial GEX had an endplay that was out by several
thousands of an inch as determined by a mechanic. GEX replaced the engine
without cost and without question. A second advantage is that they will ship
directly to you and you could, if you are so inclined, install the engine
yourself; sinking the money spent on labour into items that should be
replaced anyway
such as a clutch and heater box components, tranny fluid, rubber skirt,
FI valves etc all of which are easier to install and check with the engine
out. Just make sure you take pictures of disassembly, so you have an idea of
how everything goes together.
That's it for now
David C.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
David Carment
School of International Affairs
Carleton University
Ottawa, Ontario
K1S 5B6
voice - (613) 788-2600-6662
fax - (613) 788-2889
Email address: dcarment@ccs.carleton.ca
----------------------------------------------------------------------
