Do you remember anything about what your oil pressure was at various RPMs
around the time of failure?

just curious...

On Thu, May 10, 2012 at 11:43 AM, Stuart MacMillan <stuartmacm@gmail.com>wrote:

> I had the dual sender and yep, they both agreed and I ignored them equally.
> The problem was I took it on a long trip (Seattle to Fargo round trip) and
> the engine started knocking about 150 miles from home on the return trip!
> It threw a rod about 5 miles later while on I-5.  Not a bad spot for
> failure
> considering!  So, if you develop a strong bearing knock, kiss your engine
> goodbye!
>
> Stuart
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of
> pickle vanagon
> Sent: Thursday, May 10, 2012 5:55 AM
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> Subject: Re: Best way to judge life left in Waterboxer?
>
> I just want to point out:
> for some people, activating the light at a higher pressure could be a big
> disadvantage.
>
> Especially once you have a gauge, the idiot light should really just be
> used
> an indication that you have catastrophic oil pressure failure, not as a
> gauge to indicate engine wear.  So you could argue that introducing any
> nuisance blinks at that light may only desensitize the driver to its
> purpose.
>
> There is also at least one case in the archives of someone who rebuilt his
> engine because he occasionally had flickering of that light with the VDO
> sender, only to have things not really improve.  Obviously I don't think
> you
> would make the same mistake but I'm just saying it's worth people keeping
> in
> mind the difference in specs.
>
> Of course you can always use a tee to run both the VDO and stock sender,
> although more connections is its own disadvantage.
>
>
> On Wed, May 9, 2012 at 11:23 PM, Dennis Haynes
> <d23haynes57@hotmail.com>wrote:
>
> > I would never want to use a plastic tube to bring pressurized oil into
> > the passenger compartment. Use an electric gauge. The VDO with the
> > dual terminals, ( gauge and warning light) are amongst my favorite.
> > Especially since it will activate the light at a higher pressure than the
> stock unit.
> >
> > Dennis
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Jon Durham [mailto:jon_durham@knology.net]
> > Sent: Wednesday, May 09, 2012 7:53 AM
> > To: Dennis Haynes
> > Subject: Re: Best way to judge life left in Waterboxer?
> >
> > What type of oil pressure gauge shall I install? A sensor or one in
> > which the oil flows thru a tube to the gauge?
> >
> > On 5/8/2012 11:17 PM, Dennis Haynes wrote:
> > > A properly working oil warning light is either on or off. No faded
> > > glow. It shall turn on each time the ignition is turned on and then
> > > turn off after the engine starts and sufficient oil pressure is
> reached.
> > >
> > > Dennis
> > >
> > > -----Original Message-----
> > > From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On
> > > Behalf Of Richard Koerner
> > > Sent: Tuesday, May 08, 2012 3:30 PM
> > > To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> > > Subject: Re: Best way to judge life left in Waterboxer?
> > >
> > > Stuart,
> > >
> > > Thanks, that's helpful information; I'll keep an eye for that oil
> > > pressure light flickering.  I've had an occasion recently of very
> > > faint dull red glow from the LED at startup and idle, which
> > > subsequently quickly faded away once at operating temperatures.
> > >
> > >
> > > Reason I'm asking is that I'm trying to plan for the future.  I've
> > > been know to take some pretty long roadtrips in my Vanagon, like
> > > 10K-12K miles at a crack.  That would be unfortunate, to have to
> > > decide on a rebuild or Subie conversion while on the road thousands
> > > of
> > miles from home base, lots of
> > > downtime too and expense.   And still not sure what my long term travel
> > > plans are, to keep Vanagon-based for the next 10 years or upsize a
> > > little to something like a Sprinter or the next generation Ford
> > > Transit scheduled for USA manufacture in 2014 (latest rumor).  I
> > > still really appreciate the handling of the Vanagon and
> > > garage-storage capability, both of which would be compromised by a
> > > larger van-style rig; I don't know if even a small Class A motorhome
> > > would suite my style which is on the "minimize" side.  And I've been
> > > a VW Van owner
> > since
> > 1974 so it's in my blood now.
> > >
> > > So if my current motor would be good for another 25K or so, it would
> > > buy me a few years time to dial in my long-term options.  I know at
> > > this age of the vehicle there are just so many factors to take into
> > > account regarding overall vehicle longevity, but I appreciate the
> > > helpful List advice on this issue.
> > >
> > > By the way, when I said it doesn't "burn oil", I guess it would have
> > > been more accurate to add "excessively"....I use about a half quart
> > > every 2000 miles.
> > >
> > > Rich
> > > San Diego
> > >
> > > --- On Tue, 5/8/12, Stuart MacMillan<stuartmacm@GMAIL.COM>  wrote:
> > >
> > > From: Stuart MacMillan<stuartmacm@GMAIL.COM>
> > > Subject: Re: Best way to judge life left in Waterboxer?
> > > To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> > > Date: Tuesday, May 8, 2012, 9:31 AM
> > >
> > > Rich,
> > >
> > > Just drive on, and forget about it!  If you do a compression test,
> > > what will you do if it's low (and it will be)?  The death signal is
> > > when the oil pressure light starts coming on or flickering,
> > > particularly
> > after a long run
> > > on the freeway.   When that happens it's time for a rebuild, or if it
> get
> > so
> > > gutless a passenger has to help you push it up hills.
> > >
> > > My '84 went over 200,000 miles and was running strong, but I replaced
> it
> > > with a used 2.1 just for the fun of it years ago.   Bad idea.  I blew
> > that
> > > one up (http://volksweb.relitech.com/21rodbrg.htm) and I don't have
> > > that rig anymore.
> > >
> > > Stuart
> > > '85 Westy
> > >
> > > -----Original Message-----
> > > From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On
> > > Behalf Of Richard Koerner
> > > Sent: Monday, May 07, 2012 3:45 PM
> > > To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> > > Subject: Best way to judge life left in Waterboxer?
> > >
> > > The 1.9 engine in my 85 manual Vanagon has 198,000 miles.  Never
> > > been opened for any reason.  Runs smooth as silk.  Gentle driving,
> > > burns no oil, always passes smog, power seems about the same as always.
> > > Wondering how long this thing can last?  What's the best way to get
> > > some
> > idea, compression test?
> > >
> > > Rich
> > > San Diego
> > >
> >
> > --
> > "Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened."
> > Anatole France
> >
>
>