Another stranded Vanagon -- Won't start

[Wildthings]

For some reason the spark is blasting into the sides of the distributor cap, makes me think that your timing could be very far off, or maybe someone came up with a way to install the distributor cap incorrectly. How did you get the cap off with the radiation shield still in place anyway?

When you first buy an ancient used car that someone else has been neglecting for years you need to replace the lubricants, a lot of tune up parts, and often most anything made of rubber.

[vanaglobal]

So changed the distributor cap and rotor. Started right up! phew. So at thats a relief but still seems to idle a bit rough. Working on the fuel lines now.
I'm wondering if I should just buy new fuel injectors while im at it? The rubber seals are definitely cracked and need to be replaced. Do you guys have an upgrade you recommend?

Once this is sorted I'll get to seeing if I have water in the tank next. Or should I do this first?

After all this ill have to do the seals on the gas tank. I dont want to drop it but I see drops when I refill so it needs to be done.

And then all the grounds...
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83.5 1.9l wasserboxer westfalia

[djkeev]

If you have a week to ten days, send the injectors to mrinjector in idaho.
They come back looking and operating like new for about $100 a tad more with shipping.

Dave
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Stop Dead Photo Links how to post photos

Ghia
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=392473

Vanagon
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=6315537#6315537

Beetle
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=482968&highlight=74+super+vert

[vanaglobal]

Just used the water finding goop from gas released from the ass end of the fuel filter. No color change. So I guess its safe to say no water in the tank!?
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83.5 1.9l wasserboxer westfalia

[vanaglobal]

[djkeev]

Up to you to decide.

I feel that fuel injectors have been an ignored service item for decades.

A good new one gives a "WOW" feeling.

I cleaned and serviced old one will give a similar"WOW" feeling.

I'm in the school of refurbished original most often exceeds new of any price.

I would love to have a set of spare OG injectors, if you opt for new, I'll take your old ones instead of throwing them away.

Dave
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Stop Dead Photo Links how to post photos

Ghia
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=392473

Vanagon
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=6315537#6315537

Beetle
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=482968&highlight=74+super+vert

[vanaglobal]

[dhaavers]

I vote new. Your chances of successfully repairing the coax cable are slim,
and without a perfect repair, you're right back where you started... <shrug>

- Dave
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86 White Wolfsburg Westy Weekender
"The WonderVan"
<EDITED TO PROTECT INNOCENT PIXELS>

[Wildthings]

[jlrftype7]

[vanaglobal]

Thanks for the info.
Attempted to replace the O2 sensor but it was seized in, so instead of messing with that I just bought some new wire and connected it to the old o2 sensor.

Everything seems fine until I shift into 4th gear. No power no stretch. 1st and 2nd feel and sounds great. 3rd seems a bit weak but once in 4th I get nothing even loss of power maybe.

Do you think it’s the o2 sensor?

The only other thing I could think of is when I plugged the fuel injectors in I didn’t remember which one went to which. Obviously I have the left and right correct but top and bottom might be mixed up. Could this be an issue?[/i]
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83.5 1.9l wasserboxer westfalia

[MarkWard]

You can't mess up the injector plugs. They all spray at the same time. A proper tuned engine should not need an oxygen sensor connected. Leave it disconnected until you have the engine running properly on it's own. If you can't pull 4 th gear that sounds like a fuel volume problem or maybe front brakes that are dragging.
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[vanaglobal]

I just did another experiment. I unplugged one fuel injector at a time while idling. I get a dip in RPM except on one... I unplug and plug it back in but it seems to have no affect. I’m guessing it’s the wiring so I swap the plugs top and bottom. The same fuel injector seems to be unresponsive... so what does that mean? I just had all injectors tested and cleaned...
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83.5 1.9l wasserboxer westfalia

[VicVan]

Is it running on three cylinders? Maybe the problem is not the injector but the spark. On the cylinder that you identified, remove the spark plug and check for spark.
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'90 Little Blue Truck, 2WD auto, FAS GenV 2.0 NA (AVH)

[Ahwahnee]

[Howesight]

The idle speed test is very useful. I think, as I try to interpret your comments, that the one cylinder for which idle speed did not drop, that you then swapped the injector wire from the neighbouring injector and that also failed to drop (or raise) the idle speed. Assuming that is correct, then the issue is likely no spark on that cylinder.

I suspect that your engine problem is unrelated to what gear you are in - - the higher gears just reveal the lower power from running on 3 out of 4 cylinders.

When changing your spark plugs, you should do a compression test and report you results here. Compression Test 101 is as follows:

1. Ensure your battery is fully charged;
2. Start engine and bring it to operating temperature and then shut engine off;
3. Remove all spark plugs and disconnect injector wires from the injectors;
4. Remove the centre wire from the rotor and connect it to ground, making sure it can't spark;
5. Connect compression tester to spark plug hole;
6. Have your helper floor the accelerator and crank the engine for the count of 3 or 4 Mississippis;
7. Check and record compression.
8. Repeat on the other three cylinders.

If you don't follow the above procedure, then your test will not yield a useful result for us to analyze.
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'86 Syncro Westy SVX

[MarkWard]

If the hose is relatively new, you can also swap the injectors and see if the miss fire moves. I would not recommend that on old injector hoses.
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[vanaglobal]

[4Gears4Tires]

He means the wire from the ignition coil to the distributor. You can use alligator clips or alternatively remove the power wires to the coil. I don't disagree with safety but that is certainly going above and beyond, just like opening the throttle all the way. I've never done either fwiw. The throttle body isn't sealed 100% tight, there will still be enough air going to the motor.
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'87 Syncro
Ferric Oxyhydroxide Superleggera Edition

[Wildthings]

You can do a good enough compression test by just disabling the ignition by grounding coil wire and then cranking the engine leaving the spark plugs in place. If starter makes about the same amount of noise as each piston sweep past its respective TDC then the compression is going to be close to the same across the board, while if one or more cylinders don't load the starter as much they will have lower compression than the others.