Hi All,

I'm pretty new to owning a Vanagon - bought an '88 Wolfburg Weekender in
Iowa and drove it back home 1300 miles to Montana with very few, if any
problems.

Now, it is overheating. It did this only for very brief moments on the
interstate drive back home, but now it does it all the time. I've searched
through archives and tried nearly everything (I'd be glad to write this up
to share with other newbies, but want to get to the question at hand).
Thought it was the fan/thermo switch at first....but....

The hose feeding coolant to the radiator is hot, and the one exiting is
cold. I'm thinking both should be fairly hot (within 20-30 degrees of each
other at least) So, I'm down to two possibilities (I think...)

1. Plugged radiator - I completely pressure flushed out the radiator and
filled with the proper mix of fluid (this did not work). The passenger side
of the radiator gets warm, but the driver's side does not. It stays cold
enough that the fan does not turn on (I've check or replaced every
possibility associated with the fan as a few things needed to be done
anyway- switch, resistor, fan motor, fuses, etc).

2. Weak water pump - according to the guy who sold it to me, he put in a new
water pump 5K ago, so I am guessing it is not this??

Do any veterans have advice?
Is there a RIGHT way to trouble shoot this?

I think I am still looking at a plugged radiator. I got water to flush
through it under garden-hose pressure, but a lot of grey water came out and
I know 40 psi is a lot more than what the water pump puts out. I am living
on Montana wages with a new baby on the way so I am hesitant to take a
chance on buying a new radiator for 200 if it is just a guess. Please Help!