Donald,

The thermostat is easy to replace.

If the weather is bad just remove the engine cover and keep the rear hatch
closed and work on it from inside.

When you get the old one out boil it in a pot of water to make sure it was
really bad. (it should open in boiling water)

Les

-----Original Message-----
From:   Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM] On Behalf Of
Donald Baxter
Sent:   Saturday, January 27, 2001 10:33 AM
To:     vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject:        Thermostat Replacement

I've always heard that replacing the water pump in a Vanagon is a pain, but
what about the thermostat?  It's frigid here in Iowa now, and my Vanagon
will not reach normal operating temperature until several hundred miles on
the highway with the ambient temperature being around 95-100 degrees.
Actually this was a good thing when I drove the van to Iowa this
summer--running the AC in St Louis stop and go traffic got the thermostat up
to barely halfway.

On a recent long drive in 15 degree weather here, I went back to feel the
radiator hoses and they were about as warm as tepid bathwater.

Any special hints on replacing the thermostat?

_____

Donald Baxter  Iowa City, Iowa
(319) 337-0494
www.mindspring.com/~onanov

"The gap in our economy is between what we have and what we think we ought
to have -- and that is a moral problem, not an economic one."
-- Paul Heyne.