My experience with diesels is mostly in the far north. Shut one othe
things down in winter and you will play hell ever getting it started
again until spring. It takes a lot of heat to ever get that oil to burn,
and if that engine is cold - look out. Diesels don't burn much when
idling, and they don't really put out that much heat. My business
partner's son drove a diesel from Anchorage to Kenai - about 150 miles
through the mountains -  at 25 below zero with no coolant in the cooling
system whatsoever. Didn't hurt the thing at all.Course this wasn't a
turbo job, either. Ust normally aspirated.Was a little truck - Isuzu as
I recall. I always thought that was sort of amazing. Wouldn't recommend
the practice though.

John Rodgers
88 GL Driver

Scott Daniel - Shazam wrote:
> "smeg" ......?
> something tells me you didn't preef rood before sending david.
>
> I think your assessments are valid though.
> Us US people can't relate to 2500 kg though very well.  Let's see, on pound
> equals 2.2 K.......... anyway, what is that, 5,500 lbs ?
>
> I agree with you about the torque thing. But there is something wrong with
> me. I just can not stand diesels. And I drove a TD vanagon s my only and
> best and 'do anything' rig, drove it to Whitehorse YK even.........and was
> into that for about 8 years.  Now I love the smoothness of gasoline. I have
> diesel vanagon engines is reserve if the system falls apart, but right now
> at 3 dollars per US gallon I'm happy with the smoothens of gasoline. And the
> instant gentle starting too.
>   I was so please to read that New Mexico is enacting law to not allow
> diesel trucks to idle there engines.  What is it with diesel freaks about
> idling the damn thing ? I for sure didn't shut mine off if it was 15 degrees
> F too often, but otherwise, shut the damn things down please ! no idling, it
> pollutes and is noisy.
>   sorry for the rant ! ....anyway...................
>
> >From what I've read the Zetec is a little buzzy at high rpm's. I will say
> thought that I think Jim A is a smart guy, and really delivers on what he
> says. We disagree some - I think an inline 4 is not so natural in a vanagon,
> and he thinks opposed engines aren't that great a layout.
> Interesting that Subaru ...ahem.............has an opposed TD engine , the
> worlds' first mass produced one.  ( vw actually made a diesel version of
> their early bug engine as an experiement ...karl sent me the link, or posted
> it....had about 26 hp I think....but subaru who does all right with engines
> has an *opposed*  4 cylinder TD engine now.  Don't know what the torque is.
>
> On your Tourreg there.....the only reason it has 500 ft lbs of torque or
> whatever is the silly American 'it's got to big and hugely powerful to be
> any good SUV craze.' .............
> No body needs that kind of power, UNLESS....they just have to tow their
> 8,000 foot big power boat or the big trailer.  It's overselling 'big and
> powerful'.    Even ford's basic pick-up, the F-150 is a 6,000 lb monster
> with a bed lift-to height of about 4 and half feet. That is DUMB.  And they
> just 'educated' the consumer c that they 'need' that huge powerful stuff.
>   Don't know about your neck of BC, but where I am, one guy using and empty
> giant pick-up truck at about 17 mpg tops in town, like it was a commuter car
> - that's the norm.
>
> But I am very glad you got a toureg, I think the engine and overall concept
> is fascinating.....but I don't like the lack of humbleness about it. But as
> long as you enjoy your toureg, that's what's important. And I can't wait to
> see some technical issues and grappling you do with it !
> And ...really.........that LT VW van.....that inline vw diesel
> engine..........you need that V-10 in there !
> It's all fun,
> Scott
> And how anyone can stand the racket of diesels is beyond me.  And I did one
> , for years too.
> That you can use alternative fuels is the only advantage, and fuel mileage
> and range  of course also.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of
> David Marshall
> Sent: Thursday, January 10, 2008 9:32 PM
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> Subject: Re: 1985 Vanagon - Ford Focus Engine alternative
>
> Yeah... almost Friday.
>
> My company car is a 2003 Ford Focus...
> what a piece of smeg engine... makes lots of noise when you step on it and
> when you wiiiiiiind it out to the top end of the rev range there is a hint
> of decent power then and then red line and you have to shift.  This
> is not the engine I would want to put into a 2500kg westfalia and hope to
> get anywhere faster than what it could do with a stock engine.
>
> Torque sells cars and engine conversions, but really torque is what is
> needed to get our Vanagons going, so a Diesel engine is what our Vanagons
> need.
>
> The V8 gasoline Touareg has 350hp and the V10 Diesel
> Touareg has 313hp - the *Diesel* will win in a 0 to 100km/h sprint as it
> has 553ft.lbs or torque at 1800 rpm and the gasser has 324ft.lbs at 3000
> something in the rpm band.  Tourque is like a drug the more you have
> the more you want.  Once you drive a Vanagon with lots of torque you
> will spend the rest of your life trying to convert the unwashed.
> :-)
>
> David Marshall
>
> http://www.hasenwerk.ca
> http://www.fastforward.ca
>
> Box 4153, Quesnel BC, Canada V2J
> 3J2
>
> On Thu, January 10, 2008 20:22, AAG - Larry Word wrote:
>
>> It's almost Friday - what is the consensus to date of the group
>>
> installing
>
>> 2000 ford focus engine into Vanagons?
>>
>> Any ideas, links, info., articles, etc. would be appreciated!
>>
>> Thanks
>>
>> Larry
>>
>>
>
>
>