At 07:03 PM 8/12/2009, Andrew Philbrick wrote:
>I'm trying to determine if I need to replace my coolant level sensor or the
>entire expansion tank.  Here are the symptoms.
>
>'86 GL (Westy) with the 2.1 motor.  We just got back from a 3200 total mile
>trip with no problems.  However, I noticed during the trip that if the
>coolant temp was above halfway and I honked the horn, the coolant level/temp
>LED would flash.  I checked the coolant level frequently and never lost
>coolant so I assumed this was caused by an electrical gremlin.

Sounds as though you may have low voltage to the panel, and the horn
drags it down enough to drop the regulated panel voltage below 9.5
volts (probably anything below 11v at the panel input.  That will
definitely start the light blinking.

>Then today, I noticed the Vanagon is leaking some coolant from the seal
>between the expansion tank and coolant level sensor.

O-ring.  Or if the ring is good, just tighten it a little.  If it's
leaking up through the pins then it needs replacing.

>  So my question is - do
>I need to replace the level sensor, both the sensor and the expansion tank,
>or could I just get away with putting some high temp sealant around the
>treads of my current sender to stop the leak.  I'm not sure what caused the
>LED to go off when honking the horn but if that is a sign of the sensor
>going out, I'd appreciate knowing.

It's not.  The "sensor" is simply a pair of stainless-steel
pins.  Keep them scrubbed down with steel wool from time to time and
it should work for a long time.

  --
David Beierl - Providence RI USA -- http://pws.prserv.net/synergy/Vanagon/
'89 Po' White Star "Scamp"