Hello Marla,
Sorry you missed Busses by the Buoy this year. It was great. The camping
was awesome. And the weather, well, it could not have been better.

Whenever an auto Trans changes its operating characteristics, there is
reason for concern. As for fluid "moving around", I sense some denial
here. Late engagement or having to rev the engine is usually a sign of
low hydraulic oil pressure. This can be caused by a clogged filter or a
leak some where on the pressure side. The direct drive drum assembly
relies on piston style ring for sealing while it spins on the pump hub.
These rings can break due to careless assembly or they may be too
brittle (aftermarket crap). The direct drive or reverse/first piston may
also be torn or cracked causing another internal leak. A competent trans
mechanic can pressure test the system and determine if you have a pump
or internal leak problem. Dropping the pan and valve body will allow the
trans to be "air checked". That is, applying air pressure to each of the
piston ports to determine if there is an internal leak at on of the
clutches or the brake band.

I know you spent some money here but this trans is not complicated as
far as autos go. You should not be having this much trouble. You need to
find someone who knows how to fix it.

Good Luck,
Dennis

-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf
Of Marla Stelk
Sent: Tuesday, September 23, 2003 10:16 AM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: AT problems again - Dennis H.?

Hi volks,

Dennis if you're reading this, I met you a couple years ago at Buses by
the
Buoy (which unfortunately I missed this year), but you had offered some
suggestions regarding my transmission and basically saved it from
becoming
completely fried.  I brought it back to the guy who rebuilt it for the
previous owner (less than a year before it crapped out) and he repaired
it
for me and split the bill.  About a month later, it started leaking
again.
So I went back to him and he repaired it again at no cost.  Then a week
later it started spewing transmission fluid and gear oil out the
breather
hole on top....and he repaired it again.  Evidently the seals he used
were
bad or something.  Now its been about 6 or 7 months and its hesitating
when
it starts up cold before it goes into gear - only in drive though not in
reverse.  I have to put the gas pedal down gently a couple of times to
coax
it into gear.  I brought it back to him about a month ago and he said
its
fine - its not leaking (I knew that) and he said its probably just
moving
the fluid around somewhere else in the unit before it fills up the gear
area
(sorry I've forgotten all the technical terms).  So my question is this:
is
this guy just brushing me off because he doesn't want to work on it
again or
should I not worry about its hesitation?  Obviously no one can say for
certain, but if anyone has experience on ATs please give me your advice
on
this - I'm great at replacing seals and hoses, but the real mechanical
nitty
gritty stuff eludes me.

Thanks!
Marla
'87 Westy GL "Vana Morrison"

_________________________________________________________________
Instant message during games with MSN Messenger 6.0. Download it now
FREE!
http://msnmessenger-download.com