Date: Sun, 15 Aug 1999 13:38:02 -0700
Reply-To: Coby Smolens <cobys@WELL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Coby Smolens <cobys@WELL.COM>
Subject: Re: 86 Vanagon GL Oil pressure warning
In-Reply-To: <NDBBJINNPLIAMGCBAIEGMEBOCAAA.merryj@teleport.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Don't panic. There are two oil pressure switches in your van's engine, and
either one will cause the buzzer to sound if it's defective. Did your
mechanic check the switches? They are not easy to access and most places
that don't have a lot of Vanagon experience won't even know where to find
them, let alone how to test them. So make sure they are both working. I'm
not particularly frightened by the oil pressure readings your man came up
with. I think the low reading is still above the minimum for the switch. The
other part of the system that is prone to failure is the buzzer control
unit - this is a piece of printed circuit board attached to the back of the
speedometer housing - and if it fails it will do exactly what you are
describing.
The way to go about it is first to get someone who is familiar with these
systems to check it out, or if you are so inclined and feel at least sort of
capable (i.e. you can figure out wiring diagrams and use a VOM), get
yourself a copy of the Bentley Vanagon book (good to have in the car anyway
for those instances when you're in Boondock, Wyoming and have to have your
car worked on by someone who's literate, good with their hands and willing
but whose chief repair experience is fence mending) and start tracking
things down. Start with the sensors and work your way back to the control
unit. You can pretty much assume if the sensors are good the problem is in
the control unit. I would also recommend doing an archive search for this
problem as well as for service bulletins pertaining to it, although I don't
remember any bulletins.
Then again, how many miles are on the engine? This is an important bit of
information to include when entering a discussion about what may turn out to
be wear that would occur over a long period of time.
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM]On Behalf
> Of Merry Young
> Sent: Sunday, August 15, 1999 12:11 PM
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> Subject: 86 Vanagon GL Oil pressure warning
>
>
> My oil pressure buzzer and light went on recently when i was
> driving over a
> mountain pass. Pulled over and checked oil, it was fine. Temp was
> fine too.
> Kept going. Buzzer and light went off again. Went home and
> changed vans. The
> mechanic said the oil pressure is 9 lbs. at idle and 20 lbs. at 2,000 rpms
> and the factory min. is 29. He recommended a rebuild. The van drives fine
> around town. No suspicious noises or weird behavior. There is a tiny oil
> leak, but very little. Do I really need a rebuild? I would like to get it
> road reliable, so any suggestions as to what things I should get
> checked out
> or fixed are very welcome.
>
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