Previously posted problem pacified

[pighamling]

Some time ago I posted a mystery problem I was having with my 83.5 1.9 liter and asked for help. I'm finally posting the shorter version of this story.

Here was the scenario - When driving, regardless of speed, heat, or revs, vanagon would die. No sputters or jerks . . . just dead.

Starter would turn but no starting. After 10 minutes to 4 hours it would finally start and run perfectly.

Eventually it stranded my wife and friends in the Gila and they ditched it (after my wife changed the fuel filter), went backpacking, and then called me to rescue them when they staggered out of the woods.

I was stuck. I replaced the coil and temp sensor and then had to drive back to work in the other car. Vanagon went to the shop. 3 weeks later I got a call that I could pick it up. I payed 450$ and was told that they couldn't figure out the problem but it was running and not cutting out. On the 2 hour drive home, 5 miles from my house, it did it again. This time I had it towed to my house. I cleaned the grounds and it started. I called the shop it had been at previously and eventually got a check back for 250$.

I thought it was over but oh no. 1500 miles and half way through our summer trip with my wife and our baby it happened again. We were north of Cheyenne. Hours later it started again and we drove for another couple of weeks and 500 miles before it crapped the bed again in the Black Hills. It started again after a few hours and I got to Devil's Tower for some climbing. I figured I would head home and try to deal with it again when I got there because wife and child had caught a plane but the vanagon had other plans.

Headed south on I-25 I once again neared Cheyenne and it died. No problem, no hurry, I could just wait a couple hours and get going again. 12 hours later I called a tow truck and got a tow to Haller's RV.

After a 1/2 hour (not 3 weeks) they diagnosed the problem in the distributor and told me I needed a new Hall sender. It was my birthday, July 3rd. Cool, happy birthday! I'm getting my rig fixed! Not so fast. The part would take a few days because of the weekend and the holiday. The vanagon was runnning so I asked them what I should do for the next thousand miles to keep it from stranding me.

So easy - Beat the distributor with a wrench. It died three more times and each time I banged the distributor and it started up immediately. I got home and replaced the whole dist.

Fixed!

[msinabottle]

WHAP! WHAP! WHAP! WHAP!

First, you have to get their attention!

Congratulations on your victory!

Best!
_________________
'Winston,' '84 1.9 WBX Westy
Vanagon Poet Laureate: "I have suffered in
many ways, but never, never, never in silence."

[vwgrl1999]

Glad you finally figured out your problem.
I had a friend in college who owned a 78 Westy that she did this to all of the time...I mean all the time, she drove it for years like this. That couldn't have been the smartest thing to do! Everytime we tried to go anywhere in her Bus....Whack, Whack, vroom. Weird.
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Current VW's:
1987 Vanagon GL
1999 New Beetle
Past VW's:
1980 Westy
1971 Beetle
1974 Super Beetle

[snowesty]

random banging is apparently good for many parts. Back in my pre-westy days, my subaru died in the middle of nowhere on a mountain road. After the epic recovery, I figured out (with some help over the phone from my dad the master mechanic) it was the fuel pump. The way he had me verify it was to take a hunk of wood and tap the top of the fuel pump a few times. Vaaaarooom!!! He said you can do that a few times before it's REALLY gone. I sure won't forget that next time....
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Fritz - '86 Syncro Tintop, Camper interior
Toaster - '91 Multivan Westy, 4sp.