On Tue, 16 Sep 2003, Felder wrote:

> One, on the left, is the starter knob, I know. But I don't  have a user
> manual and don't understand its proper use.

That's the "cold start device".  It advances the injector pump timing 5
degrees, for easier starting.  When starting a cold engine at a
temperature *above* 15 degrees F, pull out the knob before starting, and
push it back in once the engine has warmed up a little.  *Below* 15
degrees F, VW says not to pull the knob out until the engine has fired,
then pull it out and leave it out until the engine has warmed up a bit.
(The stated reason for this is that under some very cold conditions
pulling the knob out can prevent the engine from firing.)  If the engine
is already warm there's no need to pull out the knob.

> The other, on right, is a knob with a light bulb behind it, with a
> couple of click positions. The legend on the front says HEAT. It
> doesn't seem to do anything...

Sounds like your van is, or was at one time, equipped with an auxiliary
heater booster.  This is a little furnace under the van that burns
gasoline or diesel fuel (depending on the model) to help heat the cabin.
They were the only way to get real heat in an aircooled van, but a bit
less necessary in watercooled models.  It *is* nice to get instant heat
without waiting for the engine to warm up, though.

David Brodbeck, N8SRE
'82 Diesel Westfalia
'94 Honda Civic Si