The vanagon syncron? Cool. How fast? .75c? .95c? sweet. When does it get
too heavy to accelerate anymore?

First place it is Syncro.  Can i have your aunt as mine too? Sweet.  Do
you have the diff lock Locked? On the dash below the radio is a knob.
Make sure it is IN and not pulled out. The three knobs. You have all
three? Sweet. From RIGHT to LEFT. Rear diff lock. Decoupler. Front diff
lock. OUt will engage the diff locks and DEcouple the front. Put all of
these in and you'll have full time 4 wheel drive. Pull out the middle
for long road trips to give you rear wheel drive only. Pull out the left
and right when stuck in mud or sand or snow. these keep the differential
from working as it's supposed to.
got it.
your tires are probably OK, just turn off teh diff locks!
matthew

Ronald Gregory Smithers wrote:
>
> Hello, everyone.  I just subscribed to this list and at first I thought it
> must lack vitality, then all of a sudden my mailbox was overflowing with
> interesting e-mail's about Vanagons.
>
> I have a problem with a Vanagon Syncron my aunt recently gave me.  It was one
> of my departed uncle's favorite toys.  He kept it at the Cape for exploring
> the Dunes. The van appears to be in immaculate condition as he had it
> serviced at the beginning and the end of each summer season.  While it has
> had only about 18,000 miles of use, there seems to be a serious problem with
> the drive components.  It drives fine on gravel and sand, but on a paved road
> the tires squeal loudly on any turn taken at more then 30 mph.  I have placed
> a deposit on a Beemer X-5 and I will need to have the Syncron repaired before
> I can trade or sell it.  Is this expensive to fix?
>
> One other question, if you will allow.  There are 3 knobs on the lower dash
> panel.  What do they do?  I think they engage the four wheel drive because
> there is an outline of the van above them with green lights which come on in
> a delayed manner.  I like using the four wheel drive, so I just leave then
> pulled out.
>
> TIA
> Ronald