Hi Mark,

Once upon a time (Summer 2003) I got a chance to talk to Bob Donalds
(Boston Bob) about aircooled engines... He told me he had done extensive
testing while working with Gene Berg and had determined that "heat soak"
was the killer. The way he told it, the engine is a heat pump and that
heat is radiated first to the air, then to the oil. Once the oil has
come up to temp, it starts backing up the line and eventually heats up
the valve seats beyond their rated tolerances. And that's when failure
occurs.

As long as you are not lugging the engine, it should not make much
difference whether you take the slow road or the fast.

BUT...

It's easier on the engine to take the lesser grade. In the fall of 2004
I dropped a valve seat en route to a campout in Brunswick MD. The
planned route on that trip was to use backroads and state highways as
much as possible. Running on 3 cylinders made for a terrible drive.

Coming back, I was still on 3 cylinders, and we took the interstate. It
took about 2 hours off the trip, and the bus ran a lot better. The hills
were still unpleasant, but there was a much larger margin of error
available.

Given the choice, I usually take an easier grade where possible, but I
often over-rule myself in the interest of exploration, boredom or
applied stupidity. YMMV.

Happy Trails,

Greg Potts
Toronto, Ontario Canada
197x Westfakia "Bob the Tomato"
1987 Wolfsburg Weekender Hardtop (ND Graphics graphics wrap)
1988 Wolfsburg Weekender Hardtop (Colleen's ride)
www.pottsfamily.ca

BUSES OF THE CORN - AUGUST 12-14th, 2011
www.busesofthecorn.ca

On 1/28/2011 4:55 AM, Mark L. Hineline wrote:
> If you must climb 1000 feet in an aircooled Vanagon, is it better for
> the life of the engine to take the long and gradual route? Or to
> downshift and climb over on the short but steep route?
>
> Mark
> 1982 Westy
>

--