Since no one has sent you an qualified opinion, I'll offer my
unqualified one.

I would think that the two issues are unrelated UNLESS the broken
wire was shorted against something that could cause the motor to cut
out, and I don't know what that would be.

The blue wire is the signal to the instrument panel that the
alternator is operating within spec. I don't think it has anything to
do with running the car.

If your engine dies and the tach drops, that's probably the ignition
switch. I'd pick up a spare switch and print out the instructions
from the archives on how to replace it. Cheap insurance for $12.

Jim

On May 22, 2007, at 2:52 PM, Gregor Brandt wrote:

> Sent this out on a long weekend and got no replies....my bad
>
> On Sun, May 20, 2007 7:25 pm, Gregor Brandt wrote:
>> '86 Westy, manual trans
>>
>> As some of you may remember, I had a few problems with my van last
>> month.
>> Two of the problems were 1: no voltage at blue wire for aux
>> battery.  2:
>> Engine cutting out (tach going to zero, major bucking) when hitting a
>> bump.
>>
>> I fixed the blue wire, it was broken behind the fuse panel.  After
>> that
>> fix the cutting out disappeared.  IF this bare wire from the
>> alternator
>> was grounding, could that have caused my cutting out issues?
>>
>> My wife and I are now a week into our 5 month stay in the van for the
>> summer.  Things are going very well....knock on wood.
>>
>> Gregor
>>
>