advice on driving my van "hot"

[debbiej]

quick recap. van just had head gaskets done. now, no leaks, no gurgling.
84 with 86 engine, manual. runs good, but needs either electrical troubleshooting on radiator fan/aftermarket dash ac, or new radiator. I can manually turn on the low speed fan with a toggle switch. I need to go to Tucson today to help my son with kids for the week. he is mechanical and would have time to look at the van. also more resources in Tucson for parts and maybe shops. I have another car to drive, but am thinking of taking the van.

so my question is, if I drive the van there...about 300 miles, carefully, is there danger of warping heads, or otherwise harming engine?

it is running pretty steady at 2/3 to 3/4 the way up the gauge. we have a manual switch to turn on the cooling fan, and I would use it probably most of the way.

or could go to Tucson in other vehicle, and deal with van and issues when I return.

[Beygon]

You could turn the air on and run the fan full time.

on second thought, if you turn the heater on, will it circulate the water plus the fan will come on? cooling the motor

[eeebee]

Check this article at GoWesty for basic information. Maybe just a fuse.

http://www.gowesty.com/library_article.php?id=52

[tencentlife]

At speeds above pedalling a bicycle, you don't need fan cooling at all, there is more than sufficient airflow to keep the engine cooled, and under those conditons the radiator fan would never run anyway. If that's the only thing wrong, a highway trip is nothing to worry about, it's in-town driving where you could get in trouble if the fan never runs. Turn on your fan as needed when driving slower in town and traffic.
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[debbiej]

duplicate

[debbiej]

I decided to go ahead and drive it, and driving and thinking, I realized that very thing. We took the bra off the front, and it ran a bit cooler. also the outside temps were cooler, so I think it was ok. it is still running about 2/3 of the way up the gauge, so hope to find the problem while visiting son and family here. I suppose it must be the radiator. I'd like the fans to come on, or at least have the switch turn on a higher speed on the fan. thanks!

[thummmper]

elevate the front and get the air out of the radiator. that will make a good radiator seem bad. coasting helps too. good luck

[ThorAlex]

Maybe check the thermostat? In my diesel vanagon it failed and spent most of the time partially open, the engine would run too hot whent it was hot (over freezing) and too cold when it was cold. It failed slowly, causing it to work only partially for a wile and kept the engine within the limits in the book but most of the time outside what i was comfortable with. The fan was not working but that only matterd standing still at idle, wich would make it get real hot real fast.
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1990 syncro 1.6TD "Smily"

Ex-vans:
1990 Caravelle coach 1.6TD
1986 Transporter Double cab syncro 2.1 112hp

"I'm wrong so often... It's great!" - Adam Savage

[debbiej]

yesterday I spoke to the guys who did the heads. he mentioned that he'd like to put a lower temp thermostat in there. so it is a possibility for sure.

[Zero419]

I haved helped a few people with these same symptoms.

Some T-stats being sold have the worng size bypass disk(larger).
If you have to force the cover on the housing to compress the spring, you have the wrong one. If you go to pull it out and it sticks in there, you have the wrong one.

My fan never came on either, but I did get heat out of the vents.

Not saying this is it, but it is def. woth a shot.
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1987 Westy Auto Bostig 2.0 Ztec

[Zero419]

Oh, and then I added 10cent's oil cooler kit for all day highway speeds without any worries.
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1987 Westy Auto Bostig 2.0 Ztec

[debbiej]

I decided to take my van to the shop in Tucson that I bought it from, as long as I was here. dropping it off was kind of cool. they were glad to see us, and there were 3 westfalias and two eurovans there for work. they fixed the wiring, replaced the thermostat. the fan switch was bad. everything is working just like it should be.

so nice!

[syncrodoka]

Easy fix. Nice.

[RCB]

[DAIZEE]

Now enjoy!
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'09 2.5L Jetta 5 cylinder, 5 spd, super turbo, see thread in H2O Cooled Jetta, etc...
83.5 Vanagon L Riviera Model with 98 1.9L TD AAZ 4 speed Daily Driver 3 out of 4 seasons (sold)
84 Vanagon GL Wolfsburg Westy WBX 4 speed (sold)

[debbiej]

drove home from Tucson to Las Cruces this evening. not sure why, but my van is much peppier. temp stayed right where it should be. got a bit better than 20 mpg. my only real problem was turning off at my exit. I wanted to keep on driving!

[claytonic]

I know this is an old post but wanted to add a tip

If you replaced the thermostat with a cheap O one with the larger bottom disk, you can as I did scribe a circle the same diameter as the small disk
and grind it down.

I cut off most of it with a zip disk and ground it round with a bench grinder.

a hack but it works.

[RCB]