In a message dated 10/2/02 1:31:34 PM, gmbulley@BULLEY-HEWLETT.COM writes:

<< Suggestion: buy a 96 plate transmission oil cooler, mount it up front

with a sucker fan, and run 1/2" copper lines to an oil thermostat and

filter hooked in with an oil filter block off. Get a hose-maker to

create the fittings/flexible lines. >>

Good suggestion. I should have pointed out the oil cooler/heat exchanger was
an important part of the problem for both oil /air cooled and watercooled
Vanagons. As I have described in the archives previously (Archive Nazi that I
apparently am) I use both the VW liquid to liquid cooler/exchanger and a
Mazda RX-7 oil cooler mounted over the transmission. The second cooler really
takes the heat out of the oil and there is a significant change in coolant
temperatures. As you might expect, I have temperature monitors on the inlet
and outlet of the oil cooler and at several points in the engine compartment.

Several posters have raised the issue of how to overheat their rides at high
altitudes with high engine rpm and low vehicle speeds. Well, the hardest runs
I have made were the Benner Pass at 20 mph with a fully loaded Westfalia (my
diesel) with 5 adults, one child full luggage for a 6 week trip and a good
deal of reading material. Got about halfway up between LED and the top mark.
On another occasion with my now gasoline powered unit I hit similar gauge
indications going wide out (6500 rpm) in second up the seemingly endless
Black or Back Mountain an the way to Logan Utah from Salt Lake. I had a full
electron spectrometer complete with ion pumps in the center section and the
day was in the 90's.

I'm sure the low air mass will have a significant performance loss in terms
of heat transfer, but I'm surprised that it negated the built-in capacity.

My problem with altitudes and a beautiful area like Colorado is that the
power goes away! That is one of my justifications for the turbo Audi engine.

Frank Grunthaner