The cold start cable on you diesel Westy is actually a timing=20 advance cable. When the vehicle is turned off, you should not be=20 able to pull the knob out, at least on mine you can't. It is used to=20 keep a cold engine running smoothly when the air temperature=20 is cold outside, until the engine warms up a little. =20 Where I live, the outside temp is about 10=B0 F right now, so the=20 starting procedure on my '83 diesel westy is as follows: turn on=20 key and wait till glow plug indicator goes out, start engine, pull=20 out timing advance knob till the engine idles smoothly, then=20 push the knob back in. It actually advances the timing to allow=20 the van to run better. I have also used this at higher elevations=20 like 6,000'+ to help with initial cold starts. You don't have to sit at an idle until you can push the knob back=20 in. I usually take off down the road and after a minute or two of=20 driving I then push it back in all the way. The mechanics at=20 Volkswagen explained to me that the timing advance does=20 nothing when the engine rpm is greater than 2500, so driving=20 with it out is no big deal. I don't know about that. I like to push=20 it back in and forget about it. I'm just happy I haven't had to try=20 the block heater yet. type2sue
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