Arlene,

"my 1987 wolfsburg vanagon is bairly driveable.
within a week of the light coming on it degraded."

Then that set of files for the diagnosis of Fuel injection system
problems is what you need.  The O2 sensor would not degrade just because
the light came on either.  What happened to your van and the light
coming on are unrelated.

Read the stuff I sent you, then you can discuss what is needed to repair
the van from an informed position.  Lots of people just throw parts at a
poorly running Vanagon (or any vehicle) hoping they will solve the
problem.  Lots of people post to these lists after having spent several
hundred dollars on parts and finding that the van is still running
poorly.

So, don't just let someone throw parts on your van and your money down
the drain.

For example, if you read that material, you'll find that you can
determine if the O2 sensor, or its wiring system, is your problem just
by unplugging it and seeing if the problems go away.  Other tests to
analyze the system are simple and others aren't, but be an informed
customer.

Sam

--
Sam Walters
Baltimore, MD

89 Syncro GL, Zetec Inside
85 Westy Weekender
85 Mercedes Benz 300D Turbodiesel - to become veggie oil powered

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