Hello, I too used the 10% ethanol blend (mostly ARCO) in my '84 without a problem until: A couple of years ago, while traveling in Idaho during an exceptionally hot spell I started getting vapor lock type problems. I took the car to a VW dealer and was told that a lot of Vanagons were coming in with similar problems just then, and that there was a free factory authorized fix. I had it done and no further problems. The fix as described to me: It seems that excess fuel not needed at the engine is returned to the fuel pump at the tank. The circuit is such that in the header just below the tank the gas from the tank and the returned fuel join and flow into the pump. The vapor lock condition occurs when the loop gets a vapor bubble in it that ends up in the pump. The free fix was to drill a second hole in the tank header leading to the tank. This allows any vapor bubbles in the fuel return path to rise through one tank path and be replaced by gas through the other tank path. The fix took 15 minutes at the dealer, but I didn't see them do it. I have never had the problem again. As a side note, I live in Phoenix where the summer temperatures are almost indescribable. The local gas suppliers do not use gasahol in the summer and avoid the high vapor pressure problems. Mike
-- Gerry Gerald Skerbitz <gsker@med.umn.edu> U of MN Med School Admin 6-5379 Home St. Paul,Ramsey County,Minnesota, USA
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