Date:         Tue, 10 Nov 1998 16:09:17 -0800
Reply-To:     Tom Young <young@SHERLOCK.SIMS.BERKELEY.EDU>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         Tom Young <young@SHERLOCK.SIMS.BERKELEY.EDU>
Subject:      Re: 87 possible ignition problem
Comments: To: Matthew Wallenfang <mwallenf@HOTMAIL.COM>
Comments: cc: vanagon@VANAGON.COM
In-Reply-To:  <19981110231929.1650.qmail@hotmail.com>
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII

Matt:

Intermittent electrical problems, and that's what it sounds like, can be
damn hard to track down.  One thing that could cause the problems you
describe is a intermittently-bad ignition switch.  They're not too
expensive, and not too hard to replace, so I'd give that a try next.

On Tue, 10 Nov 1998, Matthew Wallenfang wrote:

> [snip]
> From time to time the engine begins to miss causing the tachometer to
> go to zero and then recover within a second.  This happens at highway
> speeds and around town causing a torque spike through the drive train that
> make the van lurch forward.  The last time it started I pulled over to
> the side of the road and wiggled every wire and connector I could
> find hoping to stop the skipping or cause it to occur.  No luck.
>
> The problem shows no preference for weather.  It's happened on
> cold days, warm days and wet days.   At times I think that it may be
> induced by rough road but it occurs on perfectly smooth road and
> then may not occur on rough road. Once this problem starts the tach
> can be observed "hopping" even when the van is parked and I attempt to
> maintain engine speed at 3000-4000 RPM.
>
> [snip]

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Tom Young               young@sherlock.SIMS.Berkeley.EDU
Lafayette, CA  94549    '81 Vanagon
---------------------------------------------------------------------