Either no spark or no fuel.  Connection broken somewhere, and as Scott says
you can test the spark the old fashioned way because Vanagons have a
traditional coil, not a modern high energy coil pack.   You should be able
to hear the fuel pump spin for a second or two when you turn the ignition
switch to "on."

Good luck!

Stuart

-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of
Rocket J Squirrel
Sent: Sunday, February 03, 2013 8:11 PM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Drove off a 9'' curb, and she just died

So at halftime of the Super Bowl, Mrs Elliott and decided to go to a
different sports bar. To avoid backing up, like, 50 yards to the curb
cut, I just slowly drove the van off a 9'' curb, onto the street. No big
deal, I've gone over bigger bumps in the backcountry.

But she just died. Would not start. No sign of damage on the underside,
no fluids leaking, electrical system (lights, dash) working. Called my
stepson, who works for the local tow company to haul the van back to our
driveway. He speculated that it might be the fuel pump. Sees a lot of
those failed after bumps in his line of work.

I'll take a look at it in the morning. I'll open the engine compartment
and look for anything obvious knocked loose.

(In Days of Olde, When Knights were Bold, Before Electronic Ignition was
Invented, I'd check for spark by pulling off a plug cap and seeing if I
could draw an arc to the engine, but I have been told that an open plug
line could cause damage to the coil, so I don't know if that's a smart
thing to do.)

I reckon it could be fuel or ignition. What are my cheap and easy ways
to check these? And any other tips for quick and dirty ways to figure
out what the issue might be.

I'm thankful this didn't happen in the backcountry.
--
Jack "Rocket j Squirrel" Elliott
1984 Westfalia, auto trans,
Bend, Ore.