¿ªÔÆÌåÓý

Somehow humans managed to survive without air conditioning until the

1950s. But now we need to strap A/C units to the roof of our recreational
vans? No offense, but that is hilarious, if not tragic. <<



This list is actually pretty kind. Someone wanted to do the generator/AC
deal with their Vanagon Westy and posted such request on the Vanagon list.
He proceeded to get barraged with responses like "Don't camp near me with
that ignorantly loud generator and A/C, go park next to the 60 foot
behemoths".



Bwahahahaha.





Bryan

--- In ev_update@..., kgkirkley@... wrote:

In a message dated 6/19/08 11:29:06 AM, dave_king_ev@... writes:

Lighten up already. Kludging a 5000BTU 110VAC air conditioner on top
of a camper van and then asking "what's a carbon footprint?" isn't
just kind of funny, it's hysterically funny.

("Solar panels leave a carbon footprint".....uh, no.)

There wasn't a smiley face at the end of your original comment.
Sure solar panels have a carbon footprint.
Somebody has to make them and making them using materials and energy.
Where does that come from:)))

While there was no smiley face at the end of his original comment,
there was an ROFL, a common variant of ROTFL, meaning, "rolling on the
floor LAUGHING".

But even without the ROFL, I thought the intended humor was blatantly
obvious.

Somehow humans managed to survive without air conditioning until the
1950s. But now we need to strap A/C units to the roof of our
recreational vans? No offense, but that is hilarious, if not tragic.

Serge

Ok tech experts here is the tough $$$ question. I know that some of you on the list have the experience of having a timing belt fail and getting into engine problems. I am looking for information on what happened to you and how things worked out. This question is not knocking the VW products, because the engine was in a GM Korea produced Chevy Aveo (4 cylinder 1.6 L gas engine,) Basic scenario at about 40,000 miles on the odometer.Friday night last he was driving at 60 mph on I-5 north of Seattle Washington when he lost power in 5th gear, tried shifting down to 4 but basically the engine died and he coasted to the side of the highway. I know all this because I was following him in a rental car about 6 car lengths back. The engine would not start, so we had the vehicle towed to Everett Chevrolet. Saturday morning the dealer said it must be a timing belt, I have no mechanic until Monday. It should be an easy job. We continued back to Canada 900 miles further away. Monday morning I was told yes it is a timing belt but we have no idea why it failed, there should be no internal damage. $300. Monday afternoon we were told the timing belt failed because the tensioner was broken. (one is now ordered). Tuesday afternoon we were told the head is damaged. (16 valve engine). The estimate is another $2000.00.... This car had no warranty it expired at 3 years, 36,000 miles.


Here are my concerns what are the chances the rest of the engine is TOAST? Even if we change the head and the pistons have no marks on them what are chance the bits of valves are not going to destroy the engine once it is put back together? I can do an oil change but are their bits of debris that won't come out?

I know some of you have done the damaged timing belt, damaged valves and head scenarios in VWs, what did you decide to do? What would you do?

I can buy a complete factory reman for $4000 or get engines out of wreckers for 800 to 1400, with installation at about $500. The issues with this car, is it my son's transportation, we live near Edmonton, Canada, and he goes to college south of Seattle. We aren't really interested in warranty, we are interested in reliability. Do we get the car fixed in Washington, or bring it back to Canada and get the work done here?

Even U-haul is a hassle, they won't rent a tow dolly, they say I need an auto trailer (ground clearance issues). They won't rent me a pick up truck to tow a car with and they won't rent me a cube van because I am a foreigner (so when did being a white Canadian male be such a big deal?) I mean the last time we invaded the US was about 200 years ago... and that was under a different king... :>)

Do we just swap the whole engine now and sleep better? My wife is the worrier. I am the bill payer.

Seattle area listers can you recommend the name of good local independent shop, or wrecking yards that might have GM products, and honest reliable towing companies...

Please reply direct to tya2@...

Reg near Edmonton

Good advice. It is likely that whoever changed the fluid 6k miles ago may
have failed to have the engine running when topping off the fluid, thus
leaving you a bit short.

Bob W


In a message dated 6/19/2008 1:58:59 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
gti_matt@... writes:

My 2002 EVWK has 58K miles. It's hard to shift into reverse, esp when cold,

and there is an occasional lag.

The lag between P and R, P and R, R and D, etc. is a bit typical of these
transmissions IMHO.

However if you're noticing a significant difference between when cold and
when warm, you probably have any combination of low fluid and/or dirty fluid. I
would have the fluid level checked (you might have a leak). I see you said
that at 52K you had the fluid changed. Did they also change out the filter
too? I'm thinking that since it was changed at 52K (and not necessarily at 40K?)
that you had VERY dirty fluid and probably could be due for another change,
since these changes don't get all of it out. Make sure the filter is changed
as well. While in there, do the pressure adjustment screw mod too
(search/google)H

My questions-are there any signs of a transmisssion about to fail?

I wouldn't think so here. These are more typical of dirty or low fluid.

What is "limp mode"?

Usually does that to protect itself and refuses to go into some of the
higher gears. Doesn't sound like that's what you are experiencing.






****Gas prices getting you down? Search AOL Autos for
fuel-efficient used cars. ()

My EV seems to have a bad transmission. The dealer says it needs a new

one, and this he has decided upon only seeing and smelling the
transmission fluid. The van does not shift properly through the lower
gears, but runs fine at highway speed. Downshifting to go uphill is
sometimes troublesome.

If you're getting all the gears OK and it's just a matter of the shift points, I don't think you have a trans problem at all.

The rebuilder suggested that perhaps the "adaptation program" wasn't run

after the computer lost its memory. Is that possible?

Maybe. I find that it also can just get "confused" trying to satisfy the driver based on past driving-style learning that conflicts with current/immediate-future driving conditions.

Could that destroy a transmission?

Doubtful.

Or could it mean that I just need to have the "adaptation program" performed

It's very easy to do yourself. Do it.

Thanks most recently to dave_king_ev posting these up in another forum, these are the steps:
1. Turn on the ignition (don't start the engine).
2. Turn the ignition off.
3. Turn ignition on again -- without starting the engine -- and depress the accelerator all and hold the pedal there for at least ten seconds.
4. Release the accelerator pedal.
5. Start the engine in the regular manner.
6. Drive, making sure that the transmission shifts through all gears.

and the ATF flushed?

and filter changed. Although if the above reset fixes it *and* your fluid is nowhere due for it's "every 40K change", it might be a waste of effort at this point.

My 2002 EVWK has 58K miles. It's hard to shift into reverse, esp when cold, and there is an occasional lag.

The lag between P and R, P and R, R and D, etc. is a bit typical of these transmissions IMHO.

However if you're noticing a significant difference between when cold and when warm, you probably have any combination of low fluid and/or dirty fluid. I would have the fluid level checked (you might have a leak). I see you said that at 52K you had the fluid changed. Did they also change out the filter too? I'm thinking that since it was changed at 52K (and not necessarily at 40K?) that you had VERY dirty fluid and probably could be due for another change, since these changes don't get all of it out. Make sure the filter is changed as well. While in there, do the pressure adjustment screw mod too (search/google).

My questions-are there any signs of a transmisssion about to fail?

I wouldn't think so here. These are more typical of dirty or low fluid.

What is "limp mode"?

Usually does that to protect itself and refuses to go into some of the higher gears. Doesn't sound like that's what you are experiencing.

I've read that a too-rich mixture for a long period of
time can damage the cat (excessive temps?).

Actually too-rich would run cooler than too-lean but the problem there is too much unburned fuel that will kill a cat.

I also know that many people on this list have reported that replacing the cat has corrected the high NOx problem (me included).

And myself too on my Mk2 GTI. However high NOX can be caused by several things, one of which is a failed cat.

Too lean a mix = high NOx.
Bad cat = high NOx.
Bad ignition timing = too high combustion temperatures = high NOx
Too high compression = carbon buildup = high NOx

Start with the cheaper things and go from there. Do the seafoam treatment through a vaccuum line (google it) to clean out any carbon. have timing checked. Too-lean mixture is usually not a big problem on modern FI engines as various faulty sensors, etc. are likely to cause a too-rich situation. Since cats are expensive, save that for last.

This response is very interesting because it does seem the rough

ideling started just after I put a new battery in. How can I find out
how to do the throttle body adaption?

Disconnect battery again, reconnect.

Turn ignition on but do not start car. Let it sit w/the ignition on for a few minutes. Done.

I've read that a too-rich mixture for a long period of time can damage
the cat (excessive temps?). I also know that many people on this list
have reported that replacing the cat has corrected the high NOx
problem (me included).



On 6/19/08, Stuart MacMillan <macgroup@...> wrote:

I had this trouble every time with my '84 Vanagon. I could get it to pass
with a high idle (just under the 1100 max they allow here). It didn't have
a cat, but was supposed to. Richen it up a tad, and crank up the idle, and
try again before throwing money at it. Better yet, have a shop that
guarantees passing tweak it. We have a guy here that has a van with a Sun
tester in it right next to the emissions test station. For $40 he would
even take my Vanagon through for me. It passed every time! (I think he
bribed the testers!)



Stuart

'97 EVC, Seattle



_____

From: ev_update@... [mailto:ev_update@...] On Behalf
Of Ian Mothersill
Sent: Wednesday, June 18, 2008 2:01 PM
To: ev_update@...
Subject: [ev_update] Failed Smog Test (Aircare) but closer this time....



Hello all,

The short version is, what do you check if the NOx is too high (and CO
is close to being too high) to pass the smog test?

A while back I failed the Vancouver-area "Aircare" smog test with very
high CO and HC readings (posting #103838). Turned out the blue 2
wire temp. sensor wasn't plugged in properly, so I was running in
default rich mode. This happened when I was diagnosing "no starting"
problems. I burned about ?? tank of gas with the sensor unplugged.
Plugged it back in, and the van ran better and didn't smell of gas.
So I waited for a couple of tanks of gas, some around town and some
highway driving, then went back to re-test. I also installed a 470
ohm resistor in the circuit to the Intake Air Temp sensor; haven?€?t had
any instances of high idling since then (something that happened from
time to time before). This time, HC and CO are OK, but NOx is higher
- high enough to fail.

Plugs, Cap, rotor, and wires are all new.

The readings on the first test were:
|max Allowed | reading | Avg. Pass
HC | .9900 | 1.6849 | .3049 >> FAIL
CO | 12.43 | 36.8187 | 6.1019 >> FAIL
NOx | 1.5500 | 1.2423 | 0.7272 >> Pass, but higher than
average

The readings on the second test are:
|max Allowed | reading | Avg. Pass
HC | .9900 | 0.6051 | .3049 >> Pass, but higher than
average
CO | 12.43 | 11.1820 | 6.1019 >> Pass ?€" barely!!
NOx | 1.5500 | 1.7398 | 0.7272 >> FAIL

I seem to remember that high NOx is often a catalytic converter gone
bad. Is that the case? Anything else to check out, such as the
Oxygen sensor? Timing?

My van has a ?€?generic?€ converter that was put in a couple years ago by
a previous owner. The front pipe that comes with the ?€?factory?€
converter is wearing through, so if it is the Cat I can kill 2 birds
with one stone on this.

Thanks.
Ian Mothersill
93 EV Weekender 5 speed





[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

--
Sent from Gmail for mobile | mobile.google.com

Alain -

You may have an overload on the DC output [charging]
portion of your Converter-Charger. There is an auto
reset circuit breaker inside the unit, that looks
like the 30A breaker wired in series with the short
lead between engine battery and the combiner solenoid-
relay. If there is an overload [short, reversed
polarity of rear battery, etc.], this breaker can
trip-reset-trip rapidly.

The overload could be a dead or shorted house battery
or wiring. It's much easier to check rear battery DC
& wires first. Did someone work on rear battery, or
have wires disconnected recently? Winnebago confus"ed
a lot of us with their "house wiring - Black = HOT
DC wiring. VW used conventional "Black = Ground =
Negative". When you look at engine battery, note the
Black wire on [+] terminal, to the little 30A breaker,
then to & from the solenoid combiner relay on firewall.

The Black [+] lead from other sde of relay goes to an
insulated tie point, just forward of the Converter.
The converter is connected to that tie point, & to
rear battery [+] terminal - with a Black Wire.

The Converter plugs into a 110V AC outlet, that is
just behind the Left tail-light, accessible after
tilting the power panel back.

If you unplug this hidden plug, you should still
have 110V AC to the Norcold, & AC outlet above it.
You will not have Converter DC, of course.

If rear battery and wiring are OK, the alternator
should still charge the rear battery, through the
Combiner relay to front battery. Note - check
rear battery wiring before running engine, if
engine has not been run recently. [+] = Black.

Had the van been run or driven recently? How long
has it been since you last plugged into 'shore
power'?

Did you have any DC loads plugged in to any of
the 3 DC outlets? Was the Norcold 'fridge on? If
ON, was "DC" selected?

I'll check PC from time to time, for more info
when you have it.

Do you have access to a volt-ohm-meter?

Regards,

Jack_son

=============
--In ev_update@..., "Alain gravel" <alain.gravel@..>
wrote:

I have a 96 ev camper, After i plugged the 120 volts on my van , I

had

the electricity working in the van but i noticed that an important
noise came from behind the electric and 12 volts panel located at

the

back of the vehicle under the shower. Taking the control panel off

I

can see that the noise is coming from what i think is the charger
located on the floor. The noise is there till i diconnect (110V)

that

charger or what ever it is or till i jump the ground fault plug,

and

then ther is no more electicity in the van (the 12V is OK).Somebodt

can

help me on that. i dont have the wiring schedule of that system

and

could not find it int the vehicle manual.help would be appreciate.

That is your Magnetek converter. It powers the 12V system and charges the
coach battery from 110V house current.

What sort of noise is it making? The Winnie service manual says that a
pinging noise indicates overloading.

Overloading can come from a dead coach battery, a short, or the coach
battery hooked up in reverse polarity. Make sure the black wire is on the
positive terminal!



Stuart

'97 EVC







_____

From: ev_update@... [mailto:ev_update@...] On Behalf
Of Alain gravel
Sent: Thursday, June 19, 2008 9:19 AM
To: ev_update@...
Subject: [ev_update] Problem with the 110 volts system



I have a 96 ev camper, After i plugged the 120 volts on my van , I had
the electricity working in the van but i noticed that an important
noise came from behind the electric and 12 volts panel located at the
back of the vehicle under the shower. Taking the control panel off I
can see that the noise is coming from what i think is the charger
located on the floor. The noise is there till i diconnect (110V) that
charger or what ever it is or till i jump the ground fault plug, and
then ther is no more electicity in the van (the 12V is OK).Somebodt can
help me on that. i dont have the wiring schedule of that system and
could not find it int the vehicle manual.help would be appreciate.

I only use solar panels manufactured with 100% nuclear energy.

Now you are getting silly.


out

I had this trouble every time with my ¡¯84 Vanagon. I could get it to pass with a high idle (just under the 1100 max they allow here). It didn¡¯t have a cat, but was supposed to. Richen it up a tad, and crank up the idle, and try again before throwing money at it. Better yet, have a shop that guarantees passing tweak it. We have a guy here that has a van with a Sun tester in it right next to the emissions test station. For $40 he would even take my Vanagon through for me. It passed every time! (I think he bribed the testers!)



Stuart

¡¯97 EVC, Seattle



_____

From: ev_update@... [mailto:ev_update@...] On Behalf Of Ian Mothersill
Sent: Wednesday, June 18, 2008 2:01 PM
To: ev_update@...
Subject: [ev_update] Failed Smog Test (Aircare) but closer this time....



Hello all,

The short version is, what do you check if the NOx is too high (and CO
is close to being too high) to pass the smog test?

A while back I failed the Vancouver-area "Aircare" smog test with very
high CO and HC readings (posting #103838). Turned out the blue 2
wire temp. sensor wasn't plugged in properly, so I was running in
default rich mode. This happened when I was diagnosing "no starting"
problems. I burned about ?? tank of gas with the sensor unplugged.
Plugged it back in, and the van ran better and didn't smell of gas.
So I waited for a couple of tanks of gas, some around town and some
highway driving, then went back to re-test. I also installed a 470
ohm resistor in the circuit to the Intake Air Temp sensor; haven?€?t had
any instances of high idling since then (something that happened from
time to time before). This time, HC and CO are OK, but NOx is higher
- high enough to fail.

Plugs, Cap, rotor, and wires are all new.

The readings on the first test were:
|max Allowed | reading | Avg. Pass
HC | .9900 | 1.6849 | .3049 >> FAIL
CO | 12.43 | 36.8187 | 6.1019 >> FAIL
NOx | 1.5500 | 1.2423 | 0.7272 >> Pass, but higher than
average

The readings on the second test are:
|max Allowed | reading | Avg. Pass
HC | .9900 | 0.6051 | .3049 >> Pass, but higher than
average
CO | 12.43 | 11.1820 | 6.1019 >> Pass ?€" barely!!
NOx | 1.5500 | 1.7398 | 0.7272 >> FAIL

I seem to remember that high NOx is often a catalytic converter gone
bad. Is that the case? Anything else to check out, such as the
Oxygen sensor? Timing?

My van has a ?€?generic?€? converter that was put in a couple years ago by
a previous owner. The front pipe that comes with the ?€?factory?€?
converter is wearing through, so if it is the Cat I can kill 2 birds
with one stone on this.

Thanks.
Ian Mothersill
93 EV Weekender 5 speed





[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Lighten up already. Kludging a 5000BTU 110VAC air conditioner on top
of a camper van and then asking "what's a carbon footprint?" isn't
just kind of funny, it's hysterically funny.

("Solar panels leave a carbon footprint".....uh, no.)

days ago i was mentionning that my 2.5 was very anemic with no power
and making 18 cdn liters per 100 KM which is very anormal. On top of
that my automatic transmission was not working very well.

I finally found the problem wich was my timing, after adjustment,
everything became anormal, the power is back the gas is ok and my
transmission is working ok now.

To who it can help.

If you want to order one I think you can get it from www.lichtsinn.com
<> . Last time I checked, the kit was $650! And
you'll need to install it, or pay someone for about 6 hours work. I don't
think it's worth it. I've been as high as 10,000' (Paradise, at Mt. Rainier
NP) with no problems. If you are having trouble with the fridge, it may be
something else. There is complete Norcold documentation in the files
section for your reading pleasure!



Stuart

'97 EVC with one vent

_____

From: ev_update@... [mailto:ev_update@...] On Behalf
Of dshel17
Sent: Wednesday, June 18, 2008 9:23 PM
To: ev_update@...
Subject: [ev_update] who offered norcold high altitude kit?



i understand the 97 and newer evc's had two exhaust/intake vents
installed to help with fridge performance. i have read here where a
high altitude kit was offered free of charge to previous owners at one
time who only had the single sytem. who was paying for this kit?
norcold, winnebago, or vw?

I have a 96 ev camper, After i plugged the 120 volts on my van , I had
the electricity working in the van but i noticed that an important
noise came from behind the electric and 12 volts panel located at the
back of the vehicle under the shower. Taking the control panel off I
can see that the noise is coming from what i think is the charger
located on the floor. The noise is there till i diconnect (110V) that
charger or what ever it is or till i jump the ground fault plug, and
then ther is no more electicity in the van (the 12V is OK).Somebodt can
help me on that. i dont have the wiring schedule of that system and
could not find it int the vehicle manual.help would be appreciate.

Ha--yeah! Well, I'm just glad to also end up with a vehicle that can
reasonably easily haul 4'x8' sheets and such, too. That's a
non-vacation related issue that we feel like we've addressed, here, too.
I'm jazzed, all the way around. --Charley

________________________________

From: ev_update@... [mailto:ev_update@...] On
Behalf Of Sea2river@...
Sent: Thursday, June 19, 2008 10:01 AM
To: ev_update@...
Subject: Re: [ev_update] Re: Newbie must express himself...!



You should have kept the TT and stored it in the van.

Bob

--- In ev_update@..., "Dan Cross" <dan.cross@...> wrote:

My advice is this: First don't talk to that
dealer again unless you bring a lawyer. Next, do the adaption. The
procedure is in the files.

If your ATF and filter hasn't been changed at 40K or less get that
done. If you still have issues after this then take it to and ATRA
shop. You can find one near you at:

Thank you for the links. I will start checking with the ATRA shops
near my location.

I guess I have to decide whether to leave the vehicle where it is
(about 2 hours away) or have it towed back here where I can more
easily get additional opinions.

-Erich

This is typical. I wonder how many EV transmissions have been
unnecessary replaced because loyal VW customers trusted the advice of
morons like these. My advice is this: First don't talk to that
dealer again unless you bring a lawyer. Next, do the adaption. The
procedure is in the files.

If your ATF and filter hasn't been changed at 40K or less get that
done. If you still have issues after this then take it to and ATRA
shop. You can find one near you at:

Ideally you should pick one that has experience with EVs but anyone
that works on VW/Audi transmissions will be good. Have them do a
diagnostic/pressure check. This will give you a lot more
authoritative indication of what may be wrong with your tranny if
anything. In any case getting this attended to promptly is best
since low pressure can lead to accelerated clutch wear. One more
thing! Relax; it's probably not as bad as you fear.

IVAN
Therefore:
I am,
Dan


--- In ev_update@..., "efickel" <EFickel@...> wrote:

Hi group. I've been here in the past, but I've been away from the
group for quite some time. I could use a little advice.

My EV seems to have a bad transmission. The dealer says it needs a

new

one, and this he has decided upon only seeing and smelling the
transmission fluid. The van does not shift properly through the

lower

gears, but runs fine at highway speed. Downshifting to go uphill is
sometimes troublesome.

One of the rebuilders I found through reading group posts,

indicated a

possible cause of my woes. I had a battery replaced before my

vacation

(from which I just returned). It was not done at a dealer. The
rebuilder suggested that perhaps the "adaptation program" wasn't run
after the computer lost its memory. Is that possible? Could that
destroy a transmission? Or could it mean that I just need to have

the

"adaptation program" performed and the ATF flushed?

Dealer is quoting $5700 for new transmission installed, which he
insists is new and not a factory rebuild. GoWesty seems to have the
best warranty for approximately the same cost. There is also a site
selling rebuilt EV transmissions for $1850, which seems enticingly

low.

Any ideas? I am currently waiting for a response from Volkswagen
regarding assistance with the problem.

-Erich