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Thu Dec 29, 2011 10:16 am

My 86 GL with Bostig conversion is having a starting issue. It sound sluggish when starting in the morning. If I drive it far enough to warm up completely, about 10 miles, it will not restart unless it has at least a half hour to cool down.

I have replaced the starter, (which is the VW one), the battery, checked the engine grounds, and added one. My alternator is putting out 14.2 when running.

Could the O2 sensor be problem?

Again the starter always sounds like it is not got enough umph to turn the motor over. Appreciate ideas as I have run out of them.

Thu Dec 29, 2011 10:27 am

Quote: it will not restart unless it has at least a half hour to cool down

Will not crank or cranks but won't start? Slow cranking initially would indicate either low battery voltage, a voltage drop on the starter circuit or it is very cold and the oil is too thick.

Anyhow, remove the ground cable at the between the front of the transmission and body. Clean both ends with a wire brush or sand paper as well as the mounting points. Remove both battery cables and clean the cable ends and the battery terminals until shinny. Do the same for the battery ground cable where it attaches to the chassis and the positive cable where it is secured to the starter solenoid. That is about all you can do without some extra testing equipment.

I would have the battery load tested to see if it passes. And I would have the starter load tested as well. At a minimum, try and start the engine with the volt meter connected to both terminals of the battery and read the battery voltage while cranking. Anything below 9.6 Volts indicates a bad battery.

Thu Dec 29, 2011 2:37 pm

delta-vanagon wrote: ...If I drive it far enough to warm up completely, about 10 miles, it will not restart unless it has at least a half hour to cool down...

That could be a faulty Temp II sensor. Oops, never mind -- unless that engine also has some cold start sensor that has a failure mmode that tells the computer that the engine is still cold when indeed it is warmed up.

The sluggishness when cold cold be something else (and is a common complaint).

Thu Dec 29, 2011 10:44 pm

Engine does crank very slowly, until it catches and then it runs fine. If I try to start it when it is warm it will run the battery down.
All connections were cleaned and the battery was tested fine, and is also brand new. Oil is the 5/20 that the Zetec uses, also just changed.

Sat Dec 31, 2011 12:46 am

Hi, I have an 86 Vanagon GL with the exact same starting issues! :shock: We can get it started when it is cold but the starter is very sluggish. When the van gets hot there is no hope of getting the starter to turn it over. I have been struggling to figure it out. Hopefuly we both get our solutions.

I have been trying to narrow it down by "fixing" one thing at a time. So I have had the battery load tested and it checks out fine. I had a rebuilt starter put in. I cleaned up all the grounds, on the battery and on the engine, and transaxle. I added a ground with a new cable to the transaxle . I put in a new ignition switch cause I read they can be a problem. And I also put the Bosch wr1 relay kit in to use the ignition as only a signal for a relay at the starter. That did not work because it would engage while the engine was running! What do I do next!? Did i get a bad rebuilt starter? My alternator is also new putting out 13.99V and the battery goes down to 10.6 while cranking.

On a positive note my wife and I are getting good at push starting! :P All your help is very much appreciated! :)

Sat Dec 31, 2011 7:07 am

the best way to test a battery is to have it checked for cranking amps.if there's a battey plus around you they can do it.it's a better test than load test.you can take your starter to auto parts store (o'riley's,auto zone)and they will test it.did roadside for cadillac dealership for years and seen alot of batteries pass load test and not pass cranling amp test.make sure every ground has good,clean connections.

Sat Dec 31, 2011 7:11 am

Check out this link at GoWesty-
http://www.gowesty.com/library_article.php?id=1468

Sat Dec 31, 2011 8:13 am

Wolfphotos wrote: Check out this link at GoWesty-
http://www.gowesty.com/library_article.php?id=1468
Has anyone used one of the new GoWesty starters? - Reviews??

Sat Dec 31, 2011 9:08 am

Perales wrote: Wolfphotos wrote: Check out this link at GoWesty-
http://www.gowesty.com/library_article.php?id=1468

Has anyone used one of the new GoWesty starters? - Reviews??

AFAIK, only automatic transmission vans are supported with the new gear reduction units.

Sat Dec 31, 2011 9:18 am

do not if your ztec is crank fired or has dist,but sounds like advanced timing.

Tue Jan 03, 2012 7:47 am

One of our members sells an adapter for mounting a better starter. Look half way down the page. mark http://www.westyventures.com/parts.html

Tue Jan 03, 2012 8:32 am

delta-vanagon;
You may have multiple issues.
My '84 always cranks slow but always starts. It has the original starter but I did add a hard-start relay. I know it will fail someday.
However, my no start issue, when hot, was from a bad fuel pump relay.
$5 preventive maintenance and maybe a cure for half or all your ills.
Good luck

Wed Jan 04, 2012 9:32 pm

So I found out the rebuilt starter I had put in was a bad rebuild. So now back to square one after replacing a whole bunch of other parts that were working fine. Now I am really tempted to buy the expensive go-westy gear reduction starter but has any one tried it? My van is manual but it looks as though I can order one for it...

Mon Sep 15, 2014 6:30 am

AndrewKaren wrote: So I found out the rebuilt starter I had put in was a bad rebuild. So now back to square one after replacing a whole bunch of other parts that were working fine. Now I am really tempted to buy the expensive go-westy gear reduction starter but has any one tried it? My van is manual but it looks as though I can order one for it...

so did anyone do this?
Mine has a hot start issue too