On Fri, 4 Aug 2017 11:33:32 -0400, Dave Bohannan <fjazzbass@GMAIL.COM> wrote:

Years ago I had a major problem with my '84 Westy that resulted from a broken ground strap bolt,
broken off during manufacture. When the second bolt came loose, the computer fed overreach mixture
that resulted in a trail of black smoke and *very* low speed all the way back from Tofino to Vancouver.

Ugh! So grounding is an issue with performance. Check the main ground strap from the engine.

Stuart

>Hi Bernie,
>
>I did have some issues like that with my 85 a long time ago, and then again recently…
>
>Here’s what I did that gave me an immediate fix- I ran a direct ground wire- heavyish gauge from
the negative battery cable to the starter- this additional ground IMMEDIATELY improved the situation-
that said- obviously grounding is a big deal on these beasts… I don’t think enough can be said
about cleaning and fixing grounds…my bandaid ground wire is just that, a bandaid...
>
>The second time this happened recently by an odd chance I decided to check the coil- to my surprise
the connection was literally filled with water and the terminal had corroded- the boot showed no
indication of a breach, but it got in there some how… Not saying this is your issue- just saying to not
leave any stone unturned when it comes to connections that could create this type of intermittent issue�
��
>
>Pull connections, clean, reseat….it’s a start- the danger component exists in all of these things
when we don’t have multiple backup systems….we are pushing the limits on them with age alone�
�� and I agree- it’s terrible when you lose power when you absolutely need it. Some of us don’t
have the luxury of a shoulder…
>
>Dave
>
>
>
>
>> On Aug 4, 2017, at 11:21 AM, bernie <1234bjs@GMAIL.COM> wrote:
>>
>> I have owned a 1985 Westy for 15 years and early on
>> it showed symptoms of vanagon syndrome. Symptoms ranged from the more
>> frequent mild to the less frequent more severe. When more severe simply
>> restarting it seemed to solve the issue. As these symptoms were infrequent
>> I simply never got around to solving the issue. The symptoms would range
>> from a simple miss or hiccup to lose of power and bucking. It has been very
>> manageable for about 200,000 miles. Coming home from desert last year I
>> noticed frequent "missing" for want of a better term. I seemed to notice
>> less power but was able to maintain speed but seemed to be more laboured.
>> On one occasion when holding speed at 60 miles per hour speed simply
>> dropped to 50. I dropped into third and it seemed to respond normally. I
>> recently purchased a rebuilt air flow meter and had that put in and took my
>> first trip this past week. I put about 500 miles on it and it preformed
>> like a champ until it didn't. I felt a couple of misses and then real and
>> sudden loss of power coupled with sputtering. I was on a two lane highway
>> with no shoulder and it was very dangerous! I think I flooded it trying to
>> keep it going. At any rate got it started and it performed great all the
>> way. This is now clearly a danger and I don't wish to drive it like this.
>> This incident was worse than previous incident with old AFM. The shops I
>> have available to me do not seem to have any interest in a intermittent
>> problem. They say it has to be exhibiting the problem when I bring it to
>> them. I am perplexed. This is now a significant safety issue. Any help and
>> suggestions appreciated. Thank you.
>>
>> Bernie