I currently have a problem like this on my 81 Vanagon.
I put a switch on my fuel pump and when it wont start
I crank it over with the pump off, then switch it back
on and it starts right up.
One of these days I will figure out why it does it.
Ed Maikranz
Abilene TX
81 Westy
71 Superbeetle

--- David Brodbeck <gull@CYBERSPACE.ORG> wrote:
> On Sun, 25 Aug 2002, Larry Alofs wrote:
>
> >
> > Had a similar problem on a 411 I once had.  Turned
> out to be the temp
> > sensor on the head.  Sometime they become an open
> circuit when hot, and
> > then when the engine cools things seem OK again.
> Next time it fails to
> > start or stalls, take the wire from the computer
> that connects to that
> > sensor and connect it to ground.  It should run
> this way if the engine
> > is warm, but would be hard to start cold.
>
> I had this happen occasionally on my '75 -- the
> threads that held the
> sensor in were stripped, so it'd vibrate loose.
> It'll cause the engine to
> stall right out when it gets hot if the sensor comes
> loose; I think what
> happens is with the sensor open the computer reads
> the engine as cold and
> runs too rich a mixture, eventually flooding the
> engine out.  After you
> try shorting it you may have to floor the gas pedal
> and crank the engine a
> bit to flush out the excess fuel.
>
> I know the FI system on the Vanagons is different,
> though, so I'm not sure
> if that's the problem here.
>
>              _ _
>   __ _ _   _| | |  | David M. Brodbeck (N8SRE)
>        Ypsilanti, MI
>  / _` | | | | | |
>
+-----------------------------------------------------
> | (_| | |_| | | | @ cyberspace.org
>  \__, |\__,_|_|_| "Geekdom is fantastic at being
> AGAINST something, and
>  |___/             it's hopeless at being FOR
> something."
>                                       -- Andrew
> Orlowski in The Register.

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