Date: Mon, 26 Oct 1998 14:39:26 EST
Reply-To: Jwilli941@AOL.COM
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From: Todd Hill <Jwilli941@AOL.COM>
Subject: Re: Michael Townsend's transaxle questions
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Michael is having some fun........
Those switches for reverse lights can be a real bother
sometimes. I don't think its the rod which closes the
contact portion of the switch that has failed/broken.
While its remotely possible I've not seen a failure such
as that. Its more than likely that the rod is not pushing
the button on the bottom of the switch in far enough to
complete the circuit. Its not that the rod is worn out but
that the switch is requiring the contact button to be 'over'
pushed to get contact. I'd try a new switch and see if
that cures the problem. (You did ensure that the entire
reverse light circuit has continuity?) If you ask for a
Vanagon back up light switch be sure to hang onto your
panties because you'll think that they are gold plated for the
amount they want. Take your old one in with you to compare
before you leave the FLAPS. Most electrical items are not
returnable for any reason other than being bad right out of the
box so you want to make sure that they give you the correct
one to begin with!
Now for the good part. By using my physic transaxle problem
diagnosis skills and laying my hands on the computer monitor
I'd say that Michael is probably going to need a quality rebuilt
trans in the near future. I base this upon his noting that it is
grinding into all gears when cold and the difficulty engaging 2nd
gear. Being low on gear oil didn't help matters either. The above
two complaints are very typical of the 091 gearboxes with 'old'
style components. We started seeing complaints like this from
Van owners around 5 years ago. The syncro rings were originally
not all moly coated like they are now. Also, the pin that the 1st
and 2nd gear fork rides on is known for stretching and eventually
breaking. Then there is the notorious cracking 3rd/4th hub as
well. For the syncro problem I only use German ones. These
are not the factory ones, however, whenever you get those from
the dealer they are not in the mfg. box and simply in a plastic
baggy. I suspect, but cannot prove, that the German ones and
the dealer ones are the same just rebagged. There are Brazilian
syncros for about a fifth of the cost of the Germans (which are
half of what the dealer wants for theirs) but I do not use those in
my Vanagon box rebuilds. The Brazilian syncros seem to do
just fine in the Beetle gearboxes but with the heavier Vanagon
I'd rather go for a 'safety' margin and stick with German. I have
seen, Horrors!, mainland Chinese syncros start to appear for the
Beetle boxes but simply will not use those at all! For the 1st/2nd
fork pin there is some minor modifications and fillet welding that
cures that potential problem area. The factory updated 3rd/4th
gear hub also seems to be doing its job well (all 091 gearboxes
from me get this hub) and I haven't had any problems with them.
As far as how much is too much on transaxle leaks and seeps
I have a rule of thumb that I go by. If the bottom of the transaxle
is *very* slightly damp and dark from gearoil then I wouldn't pull
it out for a reseal. If it is wet and dripping then that would be a
prime candidate for at least a reseal and possibly a rebuild while
we were at it. Some folks will not tolerate any discoloration or
damp spots at all while others wait until it leaves an oil trail behind
the Van so they can find their way home. You need to determine
where your level of tolerance lies in that area. Synthetic gear oil
is ALL I run and is a must in my Vanagon boxes. The VW synth
is the best in my book but comes with a VW price tag. Mobil 1
seems to do a good job while others have reported good success
with Redline MTL or Amsoil. If you were 2 quarts down then the
transaxle has been leaking for quite a while. Michael probably
had less than a quart remaining when he dumped the Mobil 1
in. Always dump the old oil and add fresh. Try not to mix the
two if at all possible.
My 2 cents for the day.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Todd Hill
VolksWerks Transaxles
Olympia, WA
