Date:         Fri, 8 Mar 1996 09:30:19 -0800
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         Thomas Zallen <tzallen@uniserve.com>
Subject:      Re: ECU units

I have an '87 Vanagon which was stalling intermittingly.  When it stalled,
it did it sudddenly and completely. Sometimes it would re-start immediately,
sometimes not.  In any event, the problem was tracked down to the ECU unit.
A new unit was intalled at a very hefty cost.  The van runs better now.  It
doesn't stall, but occassionally, particularly under load, it stutters and
hesitates. 

Has anyone had a similar experience?  Is it possible that this new computer
unit is faulty?

I should also mention that I have had to replace the head gaskets twice in
20k miles.  The original computer (ECU) glitch occured immediately after the
right head gasket was replaced (I mean two blocks from the mechanic).  My
other questions are:

Are the events (the head gasket replacemnet and subsequenr stalling)
possibly related?  Are head gasket problems common in older vans (mine has
about 80k)?  If so, can anything be done?

These may be common questions, but I am new to the list.  Any help would be
much appreciated.


Thanks

Tom Z.
Tom Z.