Slightly hot

[spacecadet]

I'm majorly OCD... Looking for a slap to the face or a wake-up call.

1990 2WD GL 91,000 miles

New Thermostat
Staineless Coolant Lines from Tkay
All Coolant tanks filled accordingly and no leaks anywhere..

On the highway she runs under the middle of the temp gauge, great!

When I putt around town it will push slightly over the middle... I live in Pittsburgh, it's very hilly & stop n' go.. signs, lights, traffic.. Is the engine just working alot? and is this normal under these conditions? Or should I look at the radiator and/or other sources?

or... just calm down?

I'm really only concerned I might cook something running it hot.. I never get a temperature warning light and the fan kicks on when needed.

Thanks Samba!
_________________
Daily Drivers Only
--
1990 Volvo 740 Turbo(Sold)
1986 Mercedes 300 Coupe (Sold)
1954 Volvo PV544 (Sold)
1990 Dodge D250 Cummins (Totaled)
1990 Vanagon GL 2.1 Automatic (Sold)
1968 Ford F250(Current)

[Sherrinonie]

My 85 does the same during same conditions and the fan kicks in. New 2.1 engine with just over 7,000 miles. Looking forward to responses.

[Vanagon Nut]

On my '88 2.1 Westy fan comes on and needle is higher than LED in certain conditions. Like in stop/go traffic, hotter weather. (makes sense) Opening heater valve seems to lower the coolant temp. OTOH, my '81, with all new coolant parts (Jetta 2.0 engine though) fan rarely came on. i.e. a long grade on hot day (Klienschmidt), fan came on. Different engine and valve to heater core is always open, but that aside, cooling system is nearly identical to a 1.9 WBX. Given the new parts, this provides a point of reference for me.

On my '88 I suspect a less than efficient radiator and/or older coolant. Thermostat was changed.

Was your van overheating before the thermostat, coolant lines etc. were done?

If opening up heater (fan on) brings gauge down, maybe radiator is the issue? NOT saying this is something to worry about, per se, but a rad change may be in the future.

An infrared gun can be used to check temps at various points on engine. Provides a little piece of mind.

Neil.
_________________
1981 Westy DIY 15º ABA

1988 West DIY 50º ABA

VE7TBN

[peasant]

I think that seems to be pretty normal. Where is the needle when the fan kicks on?
_________________
89 wolfsberg weekender carat
89 Westfalia

[Jake de Villiers]

That sounds about right to me.

On the highway there's a *LOT* of air flowing through the rad, even though the engine's working hard, but in slow town traffic there's not so much. At the lights there's zero flow unless your fan is on.
_________________
'84 Vanagon GL 1.9 WBX
'86 Westy Weekender Poptop/2.5 Subaru/5 Speed Posi/Audi Front Brakes/16 x 7 Mercedes Wheels - answers to 'Dixie'
@jakedevilliersmusic1
http://sites.google.com/site/subyjake/mydixiedarlin%27
www.crescentbeachguitar.com
www.thebassspa.com

[spacecadet]

Yup, I understand air flow on highway vs. city..

Just drove the van 3 miles through town to work, it hung around the top of the warning light, but never past it. I even sat idling in work parking lot, its pretty cold out right now, it didn't go higher and no fan activation.

Thanks for the opinions and peace of mind.
_________________
Daily Drivers Only
--
1990 Volvo 740 Turbo(Sold)
1986 Mercedes 300 Coupe (Sold)
1954 Volvo PV544 (Sold)
1990 Dodge D250 Cummins (Totaled)
1990 Vanagon GL 2.1 Automatic (Sold)
1968 Ford F250(Current)

[VanMurph]

Just got my Vanagon back from the shop today. New (rebuilt - by Tuttle) cylinder heads, all new coolant hoses in/out, new thermostat, new Water pump, new radiator. My coolant needle is at the top of the led light in stop and go traffic and around the middle of the led at decent speeds. I'm guessing that this is normal?

Going for a test run down to San Diego on Monday to see how it does at freeway speeds...
_________________
'87 Wolfsburg Weekender
"I have enough money to last me the rest of my life... Unless I buy something." -Jackie Mason-

[?Waldo?]

[eeebee]

The needle is going to move. It's supposed to. You just have to get used to it. Not like newer cars where the needle doesn't move unless you are outside the "normal" range.
_________________
Eric

1987 Vanagon Wolfsburg Special Edition
GoWesty 2.3

Democracy is the recurrent suspicion that more than half of the people are right more than half of the time.

[VanMurph]

Thank you for the responses!
_________________
'87 Wolfsburg Weekender
"I have enough money to last me the rest of my life... Unless I buy something." -Jackie Mason-

[0to60in6min]

it's normal to me.

you may want to get a lower opening temp. thermostat and a lower temp. radiator fan switch but then it will take a bit longer to warm up in the winter. I would leave it as it is.

[?Waldo?]

Yes, as the owner's manual pictured above clearly states, it is normal.

[mrlimbo]

My 87 GL reads just to the right of the LED while driving, if it moves over to the left of the LED, the fan comes on. I'm happy as long as the fan comes on. Never gets higher.
_________________
-Jim DiGennaro, Samba lurker, Disc Jockey and LiMBO freak www.LiMBObus.org
'67 Kombi- April, its not original and I don't care.
'87 Vanagon GL (daily driver)
'01 Jetta Honey's car
Looking for a Vanagon weekender or Escorial green camper.

[wcdennis]

Nothing is getting "cooked" as long as coolant is not spewing out somewhere.

[mrlimbo]