Date:         Sat, 30 Mar 1996 00:08:32 -0500
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         DHaynes57@aol.com
Subject:      Re: Oileth Boileth at the 85 vanagon

In a message dated 96-03-27 04:13:17 EST, charliec42@ilinkgn.net (Charlie
Callahan) writes:

>
>Howdy again...
> I seem to be having the ole fashioned vw oil pressure 
>declination syndrome..as seen in VW Archives!
>
>>flicker-> lit(really flickering)->cool down ->repeat->?
>temperature's stable, but oil pressure drops phenonemon.
>
>I never even saw the lite come on while driving before 
>Monday..except starting, of course. The noise was there 
>before, showing up randomly, but now..
> 
>.I can tell when that light's gonna come back on, as my 
>noise klacking gets louder until the light creeps on 
>again. not LOUD loud, kinda like me van's trying to do a 
>Beetle impression, sound-wise.
>
>This van has sat, sat, sat, and then was repo'd, tuned, 
>transmission trashed, and sat some more. I'd honestly 
>say that this week I've probably put more miles on it 
>than it's had in years.
>	 But despite that, it runs fine, no leaks, just that 
>*(#@ noise and now, the accompanying loss of pressure as 
>temperatures stay right on the middle while mine rises.
>
>This also tends to bite rpm and time as I pull off to 
>cool down.. This is the way my Beetle acts, frazzing 
>that oil to a toasty temp till it slips past something
>and drops the pressure..
>
>.If even this is a common phenon, what can I do to fix 
>said problem? I use 20w-50, and this noise made the 
>original owner abandon it years ago, I'm betting, as 
>nobody's been able to get it to hiway speed for awhile.
>
>The general impression I get from pulling the oil 
>pressure spring, globby with residue about, may apply to 
>many other major mechanical compontentry.  likely doing 
>something nasty within to cause the pressure leak. My 
>exprerience with other vw's was to fix the pressure, the 
>noises will leave. (If one is lucky!)
>
>Now, if I was to clean out this thing without taking it 
>apart, what would I put in there? 
>
>	A freind tried to get me to get Gunks' Engine Flush,
>but I was leery of it. Frightented, actually..
>
>
>
>Another mystery to ponder:
>
>Whilst going over every hose, connection,etc. I found
>a metal insert that looks like the tip off a ballpoint
>inside one of the vaccum tubes. unlike many scenarios, 
>this one was not an actual pen, but had a teensy pinhole 
>opening. I removed it, do I need to put it back? ? 
>
>I appreciate all you all's help as I attempt to extend 
>this van's range past 100 miles.. :)
>
>Charlie "Well, it's noisy, so it's parked" Callahan
>
>
>

I think you have a bad case of "Crud" in the engine.  Pull the valave covers
and see if it is clean in there.  If there is a lot of carbon and sludge,
then you are in trouble.  The crud gets picked up by the oil pump and clogs
the screen while driving.  When the screen clogs, you loose flow and you know
what happens next.  When you shut the engine off, some of the crud falls off
the screen and everything seems okay when you restart.  Then a few minutes
later, it hapens again.  Unfortuantely, you can not access the screen without
tearing the engine completely down.  If the crud is hard carbon, there is no
miracle slop that will cure your problem.  I have seen this problem many
times. Although it is rare in Vanagons, I have dealt with it many times in
other cars.  It happens from poor mainteneace and cheap oils.
Hope this helps,
Dennis.