Date:         Tue, 19 Mar 1996 22:32:00 -0700
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         rickgo@halcyon.com (Rick Gordon)
Subject:      re Overheating symptoms?

>Here's a basic question:
>
>
>Without a temp gauge, how do I know if my engine is getting close to
>overheating. I know the engine compartment seals should be in good shape, and
>not to overwork the engine, blah blah blah. I know the preventative measures,
>but if I'm driving mountain passes on a hot summer day how do I
>know if I should pull over and let it cool?
>

I had a VW mechanic tell me that if you can sit on the rear bumper for any
length of time then its not too hot.  Kind of hard to do this when you're
driving though. I just installed gauges. Figure that if you're going over
mountain passes then you're probably running hot. Keep the revs up to
something reasonable, gear down, and watch out for oil-light flickers -
that means its hot enough for the pressure to drop below 7 psi. That is too
hot!

-rick

Rick Gordon
Bainbridge Island, WA, USA
-------------------------------------
rickgo@halcyon.com
http://www.halcyon.com/rickgo/
finger for PGP public key fingerprint
-------------------------------------