poor contact.
on the dash light bulbs..........they so easily don't make contact.
next time it happens, rap on the top of the instrument cluster - that often
will make the light come back on.
The 'next level up' is to remove the instrument cover, and wiggle the dash
light bulb holders - those white things.

the instrument cluster uses a printed circuit.
on many automotive printed circuits.........like Vanagon instrument cluster
one..............and Volvo tail lights........where the plastic bulb holder
inserts and twists to make contact on the printed circuit - it's just
fundamentally weak there.
Just 'dumb design' ..........or 'theoretically should always work' but in
real life, often doesn't.

I've seen two piece of metal touching ..........firmly touching, when they
are supposed to conduct electricity from one to the other, and they won't
........
I've seen that many times.
Electrical contact cleaner..............get a spray can of that and try
using it on stubborn contact areas.
there are many tricks in this whole realm - of getting electrical contact
where you want it. - you know..........jam a tiny piece of tinfoil in the
right place if that's what it takes - not that I do that very often, but
that's how you need to think.............*what* is gong to create contact
again.  I am constantly tightening up female spade connectors, and treating
the contact surfaces, and so forth. Think on a molecular and atomic level
too sometimes.........
what electricity actually is.........and how to make it go where you want it
to go.
Scott
www.turbovans.com

----- Original Message -----
From: "Matthew Snook" <matt@SNOOKSBAND.COM>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Friday, October 03, 2008 4:59 PM
Subject: Re: [WetWesties] pumped out -VOODOO

> Well, I did a voo-doo fix on the pump.  I hate it when that happens,
> because
> I don't really know what happened!  Just the other day, the light went out
> on my tachometer/fuel gauge bay in the dash.  So I pulled the cover and
> just
> started looking at the connections and parts, never really moving anything
> and also not finding the problem.  I couldn't find anything obviously
> wrong,
> so I put it all back together.  And the light came on.
>
> Same thing happened now with the pump!  You guys said 'look at the
> contacts,' so I got out the book, started taking things apart and naming
> the
> pieces, didn't see anything disconnected or obviously wrong, so put it
> back
> together - and it works.  I'll take the good luck, of course, but I'd feel
> better if I knew what I was doing! :)
>
> Matt
>
> ________________________________________
> From: Scott Daniel - Turbovans [mailto:scottdaniel@turbovans.com]
> Subject: Re: [WetWesties] pumped out
>
> ...did you *look* anywhere ??...