and don't try to rotate your tires yourself  on that car Dave.
You can't do that right without also 'teaching' the system what new position
each tire is in.

----- Original Message -----
From: "Dave Mcneely" <mcneely4@COX.NET>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Thursday, September 22, 2011 3:19 PM
Subject: Re: flashing coolant light purpose

> ---- Don Hanson <dhanson928@GMAIL.COM> wrote:
>> On Thu, Sep 22, 2011 at 1:22 PM, John Rodgers <inua@charter.net> wrote:
>>
>> > I wonder if there would be some other way to identify such a failure. I
>> > wouldn't mind having an audio alarm of some type in addition to the
>> > light for low coolant warning - but if a belt breaks and the pump stops
>> > turning  and pumping - like  you say - you may miss what the real
>> > problem is until it's to late. As a matter of fact - until you
>> > mentioned
>> > this, I don't think I had ever even thought  of it. Now I am aware, I
>> > know to stop immediately when that alternator light comes on and check
>> > things out.
>> >   It is astonishing
>> > the number of people who just get in their vehicles and just drive,
>> > never ever monitoring the engine until it acts up or quits.
>> >
>> > Do Happy Scanning, Have  Happy Driving!
>> >
>> > John
>> >
>> >
>> That is why they put things like flashing lights in most cars
>> now....because
>> people aren't aware enough to actually use a gauge.  Hence, those
>> flashing
>> warning lights, those blinking "Check Engine" notifications on your
>> digital
>> dashboard...There is a reason those are fondly called "Idiot
>> Lights".....they wake up the Idiot who is driving the vehicle to the fact
>> that something is wrong with it....without confusing him/her with any
>> data,
>> with any incremental knowledge like you might gain by monitoring a
>> gauge..
>>
>>   I get a kick out of the very new vehicles....they should just have a
>> great
>> big flashing dollar sign...followed by a minus sign......because often,
>> when
>> you get some indication of problems with your vehicle's operating
>> systems....it will not tell you what is wrong....you must take the
>> vehicle
>> to the dealer to have him read the fault with his diagno$tic
>> computer....at
>> a very high shop rate and probably appointment needed and 'do not drive
>> this
>> vehicle if you see this warning...have it trucked to the dealer'....
>>
>>   Personally, that overly-complex electrical circuitry in order to warn
>> an
>> Idiot car owner....that is one of the reasons I so enjoy my old
>> vanagon....I
>> can put actual working gauges on it and see things....as they happen...
>>
>>   Don Hanson
>
> I have one of those vehicles with a display system that tells all (but
> nothing).  It even has a tire pressure monitoring system, complete with a
> little electronic graphic of a flat tire.  And yes, it has a "Do Not
> Drive" graphic, consisting of a triangle with the word "STOP" in it for
> things the builder deemed worthy of such a warning.  One knows not what
> prompts the warning.  There are numbers of idiot light signals, but nary a
> gauge.
>
> The upside is, the car has now 93K miles, and none of those warnings has
> ever appeared, except the tire pressure warning on cool downs like
> happened this week (and of course, they all light up initially on
> startup).
>
> On a lot of these modern cars, especially those from Japan, nothing ever
> goes bad.  But you're right, if anything does, be ready to pay out a lot
> of money.
>
> --
> David McNeely