Hey Walter,
that's darn clever using beep mode  on your ohm meter so you could test
switch function from the driver's seat.
Glad you got  'er fixed !
Scott

----- Original Message -----
From: "Walter Houle" <whoule@ECSCONTROLS.COM>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Friday, February 12, 2010 6:04 PM
Subject: Re: 1.9 Stumbles When Damp

> Time for a follow up, its been a few weeks.
>
> Week 1 - My immediate fix to the problem was to drive to the desert and go
> camping. Van ran great and we had fun.
>
> Week 2 - Did the water spray test in the dark, no sparks or missing seen.
> Checked the inside of distributor - looked nice and clean,and no tracks.
> Took Scott's advice on adjusting the TPS, the only thing I hadn't done,
> which he expertly pointed out. For some reason, I had been avoiding doing
> this procedure for some time, mainly because I could hear it clicking when
> I moved the throttle linkage by hand. Read the Bentley procedure for my 1
> switch design, and saw that the symptoms described exactly matched the
> symptoms I was experiencing. Misfire when cold, and flooding / fouled
> plugs on long off-throttle descents. So I finally adjusted the switch. It
> was pretty easy, though the switch was near the limit of its adjustment
> range, and its final position would change whenever I snugged up on the
> adjusting screws. I put my ohm meter in beep mode and moved the
> accelerator pedal from the drivers seat - that way I could hear the switch
> working under actual operating conditions.
> Took the van to the mountains, parked & camped overnight in the clouds and
> the morning frost. It ran fine, no more symptoms. A little plug fouling on
> the long downhill home, buy way better than before.
>
> Week 3 - More cool damp weather, drove around town for several trips. Ran
> fine, no more symptoms. I think I got it.
>
> Thanks Scott and Zoltan, for your help and motivation. This list is a
> great thing.
>
> Walter
>
>
> On Sat, 23 Jan 2010 12:41:55 -0800, Scott Daniel - Turbovans
> <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM> wrote:
>
>>fwiw, I've yet to have any issue ever with a Bosch distributor cap on a
>>waterboxer vanagon. ( Non-Bosch ones I replace automatically, even if
> new )
>>.
>>So for me......as long as it's a half decent Bosch dist cap, it's probably
>>not that.
>>
>>but I would pursue ignition breakdown in the presence of moisture,
>>especially with the plug wires.
>>
>>some of my low tech but often very effective tricks for testing spark plug
>>wires -
>>
>>In TOTAL Darkness, watch the engine running, looking for tiny electrical
>>leaks, little flashes ....if you see any, the plug wires are leaking.
>>With the engine running .......spray a mist of water on the plug wires and
>>coil....any stumbling ..........you suspect the spark plug wires.
>>
>>too large spark plug gaps could contribute to voltage leaking upstream of
>>the spark plugs.
>>
>>and bosch parts ........that's what I only use.
>>I'll use NGK spark plugs say, but for cap, rotor, or wires, Bosch.
>>and ......there are plug wires better than Bosch ones - based on what a
> set
>>costs me, I figure they are ok, but not the best made in the world.
>>
>>and even though all electrical contacts have been cleaned ........I'd do
> it
>>again , with electrical contact spray cleaner.
>>I'd want some extra components to swap in too............ecu, air flow
> meter
>>etc.
>>But mainly, I'd concentrate on ignition to start with.
>>oh...........spray everything down with WD-40.
>>Everywhere except inside the alternator.
>>I might even try it on the running, cold, stumbling engine.
>>I have seen an electrical 'not right' connection get instantly fixed with
> an
>>application of that magic juice.
>>and I find throttle switches off all the time, and I don't think I saw
> that
>>on the list, so check that.
>>'most' of the vanagons I encounter, have a non-working, or an incorrectly
>>adjusted throttle switch at idle.
>>
>>
>>Scott
>>
>>----- Original Message -----
>>From: "Zoltan" <thewestyman@GMAIL.COM>
>>To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
>>Sent: Friday, January 22, 2010 10:17 AM
>>Subject: Re: 1.9 Stumbles When Damp
>>
>>
>>> You said, you changed it, but for me most of the time it is the cap.
>>> Moisture inside connects the four edges that also maybe loaded with
>>> graphite
>>> from the center piece.  It can eventually crack the cap also along the
>>> line
>>> where the "lightning" is travelling.
>>> Zoltan
>>>
>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>> From: "Walter Houle" <whoule@ECSCONTROLS.COM>
>>> To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
>>> Sent: Friday, January 22, 2010 7:40 AM
>>> Subject: 1.9 Stumbles When Damp
>>>
>>>
>>>> My 85 1.9 has had this problem for more than 2 years and I've never
> been
>>>> able to solve it. Its time to ask the experts. Whenever the van sits
>>>> overnight and its cool and damp out, it misfires until it warms up. It
>>>> idles fine, but won't rev under load without breaking up. When I say
> its
>>>> cool and damp, its the San Diego version, which means 50 degrees and
> 65%
>>>> RH. It doesn't matter if the van is in the garage or outside in the
> rain.
>>>> The problem is intermittent, which is one of the reasons that its been
>>>> around so long. Once the van gets fully up to temperature, the problem
>>>> vanishes and it runs fine until the next damp day, which usually is a
> few
>>>> weeks away. However, its finally getting worse, so its time to do
>>>> something about it.
>>>>
>>>> Over the past 2 years, some of the items that I replaced were the coil,
>>>> cap, rotor, plugs, plug wires, hall sender & connector, injectors, temp
>>>> sensor, and O2 sensor. I also have cleaned all ground connections and
>>>> cable connections at the ECU, AFM, idle stabilizer, etc. I have not
> dealt
>>>> with the last 3 items other than simple cleaning. Next 2 simple things
>>>> I'll check are the wire & connections for the temp and the O2 sensors.
>>>>
>>>> Any suggestions?
>>>>
>>>> Thanks,
>>>> Walter
>>>> 85 VAnagon 1.9