Date:         23 Jun 1997 10:46:00 -0600
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         "Carl Hansen" <Carl_Hansen@ATK.COM>
Subject:      re no start.

 BatSubject:     re no start.                           6/23/97    11:36 AM
part of the previous thread.
Advice received from Sean, Paul, Joel, Rob, Ken, Norman, Steve & John much
appreciated!  I checked my Bentley's description of the catalytic converter,
decided I'd been misinformed, got out my bike & plugged in Tugboat.  I've
just turned the key... no sound.  I flipped the headlight switch on & off, &
Tug came to life.  R
************
Hi, Guys, batteries die.  Most probable cause I've noted is one dead cell. 
Been there, done that, on my Yamaha, the GTI, the '78 and '86 Scirocco,
several air cooled vans and bugs, and the current '89 Syncro.  

Symptoms:  Will run, won't start.  Battery voltage measures 12, but not enough
juice to start.  You can note similar symptoms if there is corrosion on the
terminals.  The corrosion isn't always visible, but it causes just enough heat
build up to increase resistance and stop high current flow during starting.  

Best place I've found to buy batteries is Sams Club.  They sell Champions. 
Good prices.  2nd best place was Wards.

Ch
'89 Syncro Beast
'86 Scirocco (SO)
'87 GTI 16V Thinkin it's plug wires gone bad