Update:
Oil light flickered briefly coming off the highway for gas after about 2200
km of driving on a fresh oil and filter change (Castrol Edge Titanium
Synthetic 5W-50).  By flickering, I mean a totally random on and off
pattern at up to two or three Hz, for example.

I am guessing that means I have low oil pressure.

Questions:
-What kind of highway speeds do people feel comfortable in sustaining?
-What are preferred oil brands and grade these days?

I accidentally got up to 5100RPM in 3rd gear for about 10 seconds on a long
climb.  Engine sounded great.  But I felt ill after I realised what I had
done.

gabby
'86 wbx

On Wed, Aug 23, 2017 at 9:01 PM, Gabriel Hourtouat <ghourtouat@gmail.com>
wrote:

> Can't seem to navigate the list from my phone so can't find your specific
> replies. Found this message in my sent box. Anyhow...
>
> Thanks for your wide range of helpful comments.
>
> Status update: no further oil pressure events after remove, clean and
> reassemble oil piston spring assembly, and a change of oil.
>
> I ended up changing the spring anyways even though there are strong
> logical arguments that it is NOT the spring. (BTW: I sourced the spring
> from the local Porsche dealership as VW wouldn't supply it. It came with a
> part number revision: same number with a letter C instead of B at the end.).
>
> So, I will see if the oil alarm gets triggered again as the oil degrades.
> I guess that would indicate one of the other problems: bearing clearances
> going bye-bye, or oil pump, or ?
>
> Otherwise, maybe there was some gunk in the oil pressure relief system
> that keeping it from re-seating properly?
>
> Need to add oil though.  (It seems to be dripping out somewhere near the
> engine block to transmission housing, right onto the exhaust pipe and
> bracket which is right there. About half a litre has dripped out over the
> last 1000km.)
>
> Cheers, Gabby
> 1986 Westy, 2.1L WBX manual Tx
> (Currently, we are near St Simeon, Quebec. )
>
>
> > On Jul 29, 2017, at 8:53 PM, Gabriel Hourtouat <ghourtouat@gmail.com>
> wrote:
> >
> > I love Gerry.vanagon.com.  Who has a new oil pressure regulator spring
> to ship me in Oakville, Ontario?  I need it early next week.
> >
> > Story:
> >
> > On the road with family, dog, bikes, canoe and all the ancillary gear,
> just 40km short of our destination for the week: Samuel de Champlain
> provincial park. Oil light comes on, flickering, no buzzer. Strange, yet
> unpleasant. A hint of lemons on the palate.
> >
> > Limp into the park. Mull it over. No buzzer. Manual (1986) says there
> should be a buzzer. Maybe it's been supplanted by buzzards circling
> overhead? Nah, it's just broken. Why wouldn't it be broken?
> >
> > Flickering light -- loose wire shorting out the Pressure switch?  Is it
> normally open? Normally closed?  Ahh, I don't know. Can't find any loose
> wires?  What if it was cheap oil that lost viscosity too soon?  Maybe an
> oil change?
> >
> > Get a basic oil change pan and some oil? Use it to check that spring?
> Is there a spring???  Where is that thing anyway?  How come I never noticed
> anything down there?  Wish my eyes weren't shut whenever I look under the
> van. Wish I was someone else.
> >
> > Dig a  6" deep hole in the gravel and pine needles under the engine so I
> can use my heftiest flat head screwdriver to release the screw which surely
> hasn't been turned in 31 years. Vice grips turn the screwdriver. It breaks
> free -- HOORAY!
> >
> > Hmm spring is 60mm long. But how long should it be???  60 mm sounds
> pretty good, pretty nominal.
> >
> > Biggest challenge left: use my phone to mine the info from The List. I
> am a digital immigrant.
> >
> > Did it: 62.3mm!
> >
> > Gabby
> >
>