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TurkisMafia
Samba Member
Joined: August 21, 2019
Posts: 186
Location: Sarasota, FL
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 Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2020 11:05 am Post subject: Bus left me stranded. Help diagnosing? |
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Driving the bus today, experienced several quick complete losses of power... sort of a bucking sensation. Ran fine for another few miles. Did it again complete with some huge backfires. Ran fine again for another few miles the. Shut off completely when idling thru a parking lot. Fired right back up and idled fine. Coil going bad, potentially?
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1961 Turkis Sedan, 1641cc
1963 Turkis Ragtop, 1200cc
1963 Turkis Vert, 1200cc
1963 Turkis Single Cab, 1600cc
1964 Turkis Standard Walk-Thru, 1641cc
1978 Westfalia 2.0L EFI Automatic
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SGKent 
Samba Member
Joined: October 30, 2007
Posts: 41031
Location: Citrus Heights CA (Near Sacramento)
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| Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2020 11:16 am Post subject: Re: Bus left me stranded. Help diagnosing? |
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or dropping a valve seat
or the points rubbing block failed
or the fuel pump puked
or a vacuum leak opened and closed
or an injector farted
or the ignition switch is going bad
or ... .
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KentABQ
Samba Member
Joined: September 11, 2016
Posts: 2406
Location: Albuquerque NM
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| Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2020 11:21 am Post subject: Re: Bus left me stranded. Help diagnosing? |
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My vote is either the points or the TS2...
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-Kent-
1976 Riviera, 1.8l FI chrome yellow VAN - "Chloe"
"I must say, how can you be in a bad mood driving this vehicle full of vibrant color.
Cars of today are so bland in comparison. It's like driving a celebration!" ---WildIdea
Bus ownership via emoticons:
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trailrunnerbus
Samba Member
Joined: September 30, 2019
Posts: 26
Location: flyover state
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| Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2020 11:27 am Post subject: Re: Bus left me stranded. Help diagnosing? |
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| Points probably? Or do you have an electronic ignition kit that's maybe failing? |
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Wildthings
Samba Member
Joined: March 13, 2005
Posts: 50337
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| Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2020 11:28 am Post subject: Re: Bus left me stranded. Help diagnosing? |
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| I would add a bad rotor and/or cap to SGKents list, could also be a pin has pushed out of one of the plugs in the FI system, they often cause intermittent running issues. Don't think it would be the TSII sensor as a bad sensor typically would not allow for a hot restart, worth check the resistance though. |
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aeromech
Samba Member
Joined: January 24, 2006
Posts: 16959
Location: San Diego, California
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| Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2020 12:23 pm Post subject: Re: Bus left me stranded. Help diagnosing? |
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Just saw this a couple months ago. It was a bad condenser
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TurkisMafia
Samba Member
Joined: August 21, 2019
Posts: 186
Location: Sarasota, FL
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| Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2020 1:35 pm Post subject: Re: Bus left me stranded. Help diagnosing? |
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Update. Got back from the funeral we were attending to limp the bus to the shop... will no longer stay running. Turns over and coughs for a second or two but won’t run. Was idling perfectly when I shut it off.
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1961 Turkis Sedan, 1641cc
1963 Turkis Ragtop, 1200cc
1963 Turkis Vert, 1200cc
1963 Turkis Single Cab, 1600cc
1964 Turkis Standard Walk-Thru, 1641cc
1978 Westfalia 2.0L EFI Automatic
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cmonSTART
Samba Member
Joined: July 15, 2014
Posts: 1915
Location: NH
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| Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2020 1:37 pm Post subject: Re: Bus left me stranded. Help diagnosing? |
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Can you post a video?
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aeromech
Samba Member
Joined: January 24, 2006
Posts: 16959
Location: San Diego, California
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| Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2020 1:46 pm Post subject: Re: Bus left me stranded. Help diagnosing? |
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I bet if it cools down good it will start and run good. Then when it gets warm it will act up. Try the easy and cheap things first. In my case I quickly swapped in a new distributor and the problem went away. Installed a new condenser I had in stock and my customer was a happy camper.
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Lead Mechanic: San Diego Air and Space Museum
Licensed Airframe and Powerplant Mechanic
Licensed Pilot (Single engine Land)
Boeing 727,737-200-300-400,757,767
Airbus A319,320,321
DC9/MD80
BAe146
Fokker F28/F100
VW type 1 1962,63,65,69,72
VW Type 2 1971 (3 ea.) 1978, 1969
VW Jetta
VW Passat
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my59
Samba Member
Joined: August 13, 2003
Posts: 3791
Location: connecting the dots
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| Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2020 1:52 pm Post subject: Re: Bus left me stranded. Help diagnosing? |
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Check the point gap. Had a similar issue a few years ago, it was the points. The screw had loosened.
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60vwnewengland
Twin #2
Joined: June 25, 2003
Posts: 1784
Location: District of Columbia & Cape Cod
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| Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2020 6:21 pm Post subject: Re: Bus left me stranded. Help diagnosing? |
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Sound like condenser to me too. Those cheap Chinese condensers melt and leave you stranded. Swap out the condenser and see what happens.
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MGBBob80
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Joined: April 05, 2009
Posts: 126
Location: Bremerton, WA
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| Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2020 7:38 pm Post subject: Re: Bus left me stranded. Help diagnosing? |
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I had similar issue a few months back. After a lot of troubleshooting, it turned out to be the condenser. Replaced it and have been running strong ever since.
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malcolm2
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Joined: September 28, 2011
Posts: 1272
Location: Mount Juliet, TN
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| Posted: Sat Oct 24, 2020 7:48 am Post subject: Re: Bus left me stranded. Help diagnosing? |
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| trailrunnerbus wrote: |
| Points probably? Or do you have an electronic ignition kit that's maybe failing? |
My question too. I had a similar missing or bucking issue in my 914 (1911cc TIV). I made it home and had my tools. So here is what was suggested.
Take your timing light (inductive kind that clamps around the wires), put it on a plug wire. Start the engine. Point the light anywhere and wait for the light to go out when the engine misses. Do all 4 wires. If it goes out on each wire, your electronic module is going bad. I have a video I will try to find and edit here.
found it:
Link
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Wasted youth
Samba Member
Joined: July 06, 2012
Posts: 5134
Location: California's Hot and Smoggy Central Valley
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| Posted: Sat Oct 24, 2020 9:13 am Post subject: Re: Bus left me stranded. Help diagnosing? |
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| KentABQ wrote: |
| My vote is either the points or the TS2... |
Easy way to test TS II is to ground it out. Disconnect the lead to the TS II and attach a small jumper lead to the wire, then to the bus body/frame ground. See if there is a remarkable difference.
 You might have a problem with the Deceleration Valve.
If it were dropping a valve seat, the problem would be far more consistent than what you described. It would probably not be as intermittent and as harsh as you describe... you would definitely feel a loss of power but it would not just come and go as starkly as you describe.
A bad ignition switch or faulty primary circuit would kill or let run the engine, and unlikely cause the symptoms you describe... UNLESS it was loose or bad connection that was erratic.
Vacuum leaks generally cause a large increase in engine idle and rarely just suddenly go away. A vacuum leak might cause a backfire if it suddenly stops leaking, then leaks again, but it doesn't meet up with the other symptoms you describe, like your normal idle.
Injectors don't fart. They either work or they don't. When they don't you will see a consistent loss of power. Carefully check the connector on the resistor pack... a broken wire right at the base of the pack is not rare and is something I experienced on my 1977.
A failed rubbing block on the points would probably, but not guaranteed to be, a little more consistent than what you describe. But I also had the brass pickup tab break off a brand new Bosch rotor. That caused me a lot of irritation.
Check your Fuel Pressure Regulator for correct operation.
Check your Deceleration Valve
Check your Fuel Pump for flow and pressure... check the fuel filter and fuel tank for rust and sludge.
 Browse through these Free selections of great information: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/manuals/fuelinjection.php
Ratwell has some really practical advice: https://www.ratwell.com/
 Of particular interest:
https://ratwell.com/technical/LimpingHome.html |
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sjbartnik
Samba Member
Joined: September 01, 2011
Posts: 5994
Location: Brooklyn
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| Posted: Sat Oct 24, 2020 6:26 pm Post subject: Re: Bus left me stranded. Help diagnosing? |
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Easy stuff first, check out the points. Make sure a vacuum hose didn't pop off or fall off.
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TurkisMafia
Samba Member
Joined: August 21, 2019
Posts: 186
Location: Sarasota, FL
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| Posted: Mon Oct 26, 2020 9:05 pm Post subject: Re: Bus left me stranded. Help diagnosing? |
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Hey Steven,
So we worked on it in the shop today and basically threw a bunch of parts at it. New coil, new points, new condenser. Also replaced the large FI intake hose which had a slight crack under the hose clamp. It fired with some convincing, then idled and behaved itself on a limited test drive today. It was hot and under heavy load, after about 30 minutes of driving when this occurred, so I’ll be looking to recreated those conditions tomorrow and really see if we solved it.
It has just been painted and the shop who did it left the ignition key on several times for days on end (ugh). My belief is they killed the coil, which was an original. I’ll update with results.
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1961 Turkis Sedan, 1641cc
1963 Turkis Ragtop, 1200cc
1963 Turkis Vert, 1200cc
1963 Turkis Single Cab, 1600cc
1964 Turkis Standard Walk-Thru, 1641cc
1978 Westfalia 2.0L EFI Automatic
Turkis Mafia
Turkis Mafia Facebook Group
Sunny Sarasota, Florida |
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SGKent
Samba Member
Joined: October 30, 2007
Posts: 41031
Location: Citrus Heights CA (Near Sacramento)
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| Posted: Mon Oct 26, 2020 9:19 pm Post subject: Re: Bus left me stranded. Help diagnosing? |
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more likely killed the ignition switch so carry a spare. Once damaged, when it gets hot the contacts move farther apart and the car dies. The coil could be bad but the voltage spikes typically don't go away with it cooling off, so once winding insulation is compromised it is always compromised. The starting contracts in the switch are different so if it starts but dies as soon as you let go of the switch and it moves to the regular contacts, that would point to an ignition switch - so watch for that symptom.
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