On Thursday, June 20, 2002, at 08:14 PM, Fryday wrote:

> So, it seems that the radiator fan comes on and turns really fast and
> there's
>  some sort of vibration (which could just be the speed). Also seems that
>  normally the fan doesn't go that fast and doesn't make that much
>  noise/vibration.

Yes, the radiator fan on the water cooled Vanagon's has two speeds.
Under normal conditions only the lower (and quieter) speed is used. If
you are driving in VERY hot conditions or working the Vanagon very hard
(going up very steep grades, and/or towing) then the second higher speed
will come on..

However, it isn't unusual for the resistor (located in the front) to
fail and the lower speed never turn on...then when the engine gets hot
enough the higher speed will engage.

If that is the problem, its relatively cheap to fix.