Date:         Tue, 11 Jun 1996 11:19:00 -0700 (PDT)
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         "Maher, Steve (SD-MS)" <SMAHER@gi.com>
Subject:      RE: HE LIVES!!!!!


>AHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHA.......then there is this little problem of him not
>idling.  I think either the timing or the idle is off.  Any clues??  :-)


Timing is indeed the most common "simple" cause of a poor idle, along
with its fraternal twin, dwell (determined by the spacing between the
ignition points in the distributor)

But another gremlin that pops up occasionally, especially when an engine
has been disassembled and reassembled since it was last run, is a vacuum
leak. This can cause your engine to idle poorly-- runs well when you drive,
but conks out at stoplights.

Are your intake manifold gaskets OK where the intakes bolt to the cylinder
heads? If you have a dual-port engine, are the boots OK at the other end of
the intake manifolds OK, where they join to the T tube under the carb
(these are the most common failure points). Is the gasket under the carb
good?

Another potential idle-problem source exists on some engines: the anti-
diesel solenoid. It's a little electric valve screwed into the side of
the carb, with a wire on it. It shuts off the fuel to the idle jet
when you turn off the key. If it fails, or if the wire comes loose,
your engine won't idle worth beans.

Hope this helps...
                   ,                 ,                                ,
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     /      O                                   |
 Steve Maher     smaher@gi.com    '80 V6anagon    '66 Mustang Coupevertible
 http://www.wp.com/IrishMafia        "I can't hear you-- I'm driving a VW!"