Hi all:

First the good news.  My '82 Westy passed smog, as I was sure it would.
Still, there's always a lot of nerves around this time of year.

This time I watched the "technician" (probably 18-19 years old) like a hawk
since the last two times I left the Westy at a smog shop for testing it was
very, very clear they had tried to start the in 2nd, but had hit 4th
instead.  "Stupid low-powered VW!  I've got to really give this thing the
gas a slip the clutch like hell!"  Both times I came back to the smell of
burning clutch material and a slipping clutch.

Anyway, he came back to the running engine carrying his timing light and
stood there staring in at the engine for a minute or so before I asked
"looking for a positive?"  He nodded, so I pointed him to the proper spade
on the coil and he put his positive lead on there.  When he went to attach
the negative lead on a ground point on the engine the engine began to die
and he pulled back, claiming he'd been shocked.  He tried it again a second
time at another ground point with the same results.  His boss walked by and
the kid told him what had happened so the boss told him to get the jumper
box (portable battery) and power the light from there.

What was it about that timing light - a fancy digital model of some sort -
that was causing that?  I've hooked up my old timing light using that same
set up dozens of times with no problems.

Tom Young