aha... the speedometer on my van works well above 50°F (10°C)... under that
it won't work, so I have to give a whack on the instrument cluster cover
then it works again. I guess the grease/lubricant in there is too old or
too thick for winter temperature.

On Wed, Dec 8, 2021 at 4:47 PM Bruce Todd <beeceetee@gmail.com> wrote:

> I've added a couple of custom instruments to my van to try and understand
> the vehicle's operation a little better.  In some ways I think the real
> reason there are so few indicators in the Vanagon is to minimize the amount
> of stress we already have when driving these machines.  A kind of blissful
> peace as the gauges creep to the extremities.
>
> Anyway here is a Vanagon related instrument cluster story from this past
> weekend when I took the van out for a bit of a longer run in cooler temps.
> Was on the road at 6:15 AM to take my son to a sports game at a community
> centre about 40 kms away.  Anyway driving at relatively lower speeds in
> town then got to the Freeway and once I got past 60 km on the speedo I
> heard lots of clicking and ticking from what seemed to be the instrument
> cluster.  Pulled off the instrument cluster cover while driving - (my son
> has never seen that before and was wondering what I was up to) -
> anyway sure enough sounds were emanating from instrument gauges.  As the
> cab warmed and or the gauges warmed - the sound slowly dissipated.
>
> Possibly an arthritic gear or two in the speedo I wonder?  Might be time to
> find a used cluster as well - mine is pretty beat up.
>
> Bruce
>