A couple of "minor" issues

[pnw_ski_vanagoneer]

Hi everyone,

A quick update, I have been enjoying driving the weekender up and down the kitsap peninsula and up skiing for the last couple months, but I figured now is the time (ski season is coming to a close... maybe ) to stay on top of some issues I have noticed.

The first one is the cooling system, the PO told me that they had put a "syncro thermostat" in and that's why it was constantly reading low at the gage. I think either the sensor has a bad connection (corrosion) or they used an 80C vice the stock 87C thermostat. What is happening is that it reads low (right above the bottom line of the gage), it'll stay there indefinitely until I drive sustained highway speeds (60-75 mph) and then when I get stuck in traffic or go thru a drive thru, it'll climb until the fan kicks on and stay there until I get back up to about 45mph for a short period of time where it'll go back down to the line. Thoughts on that anyone?

I'll be redoing most of the cooling system and checking all the pipes and tubes sometime this summer, new t-stat, housing, water pump, etc.


The second is one I just noticed last night, starting from a stop, the speedometer doesn't read until about 20 mph where it jumps up quickly, I noticed that I could bump the top of the housing with my hand at about 15 mph and it'll start working there.... I haven't had the time yet to troubleshoot this but has anyone else run into this or a similar issue?
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"If a problem can be solved there is no use worrying about it. If it can't be solved, worrying will do no good."

91 Tornado Red Carat

[VicVan]

Hi

Your assumptions about the thermostat might be correct. You can test it in a pan of hot water with a thermometer, the opening and closing temperatures are in the Bentley.
And if you're due to change it in a few weeks, change it now !
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'90 Little Blue Truck, 2WD auto, FAS GenV 2.0 NA (AVH)

[SCM]

Maybe the PO meant that your van has a Syncro T-stat housing, not t-stat. I believe the Syncro used a metal housing while the 2wd version is plastic.

GoWesty's metal replacement T-stat housing comes with an adjustable resistor that mounts in-line with the temp sender. http://www.gowesty.com/product-details.php?id=23433&category_id=23281&category_parent_id=

This is because the switch to a metal housing can sometimes change something with the electric signal to the temp gage, causing it to read low.

Maybe this is what you're experiencing?
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'91 Westfalia GL Automatic (GTA "Turbo" Rebuild w/Peloquin) and 2.3L GoWesty Engine

[Steve M.]

Changing the thermostat is easy to do if you have something like this "Fluid Line Clamp Set" they sell at Harbor Freight.

http://www.harborfreight.com/4-piece-fluid-line-clamp-set-65116.html
They are on sale now for 8 bucks a set, 2 sets will take care of closing off the hoses you need closed.

There are similar products out there that will do the same thing. Basically you put one on all the hoses going to the thermostat housing. There is also the hose from the Expansion Tank to the engine block to prevent the coolant coming back up through the engine.
You do this and you might loose 6 ounces of coolant when you open the thermostat housing when it is COLD. Takes about a half hour to have the thermostat out and in using a 10mm socket on a 1/4" drive ratchet.
the hardest part was getting a clamp on the big line going forward over the clutch master cylinder and I could reach that by sticking my arm in through the back over the top of the transmission.

If you say you will wait a few weeks or longer to change it, but it is so easy why not do it now? At least you will know it is good.

I just did mine and found the rubber seal eaten away around the edge of the center valve. You would have thought it would not have been a problem because there wasn't much gone, but it made the difference in operating temps. This was giving me low operating temps so there was no heat coming out of the heater for the one day I needed it in sunny Florida!

Also, if your new thermostat does not have a small hole in the face of it, it is a good idea to drill a 1/16th hole in it to allow the air to bleed through it. It will help when you are bleeding the system.

[pnw_ski_vanagoneer]

Thanks for the info, I am not 100% sure what they meant, but it's definitely a plastic housing... I have a feeling that their mechanic told them things either incorrectly or they didn't really understand what he was saying. When I bought it they claimed that their mechanic told them the flywheel was rusty and that's what the squealing on start up was, turns out it was the belt that looked about to fail (missing teeth/way too many cracks), changed that, hasn't squealed since.

I'm not waiting a few weeks because I just don't feel like doing it right now, I just don't have a ton of time at the moment and my wife has been telling me to stop working on the van so much and work on our house...

Thanks for the idea on the clamps though, that'll make that part really easy if I don't do the flush at the same time!

On a side note, my heaters all work fine and there appears to be no adverse affects from the gage reading low, it still runs great and idles better than my 2010 Subaru, gets 16-18 mpg too which I think is right about normal. It is just the fact that it's a new to me vehicle that has 'issues' with the cooling system and I'd like to put it back to square one by replacing the water pump, thermostat, t-stat housing, and flushing the coolant. Although, now that I think about it, I may just go ahead and do the thermostat and housing once I get my parts, and have my VW mechanic do a flush and fill on the coolant and verify all of the hoses are in good condition. How often do water pumps really fail on these?
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"If a problem can be solved there is no use worrying about it. If it can't be solved, worrying will do no good."

91 Tornado Red Carat

[Steve M.]

I couldn't give you a number for how often water pumps fail on these. Really it's just like any other car in that regard.
There's really only two things in a water pump - the shaft bearing and the impeller. Unless you're pumping sand through it the impeller will last indefinitely.
The shaft bearing you can check by loosening the belt and try moving the pulley side to side. If it has play then I would go ahead and change it.

Best to listen to the boss and take care of those domestic issues! You know how that goes!