On Fri, 12 Aug 1994, George Ruff wrote:

>      My '84 Vanagon camper has this problem where every 30,000
> miles or so the head gaskets begin to leak, causing gas buildup in
> the water  cooling system.  This first appears as a rising coolant
> level in the overflow tank next to the oil dipstick. Next the
> dashboard heater quits because it fills with gas.  Finally (about
> 2K miles later) the leaking gas literally blows coolant out of most
> of the cooling system and the temperature sensor begins to signal
> imminent meltdown!

It sounds to me an awful lot like your head bolts/studs are 
stretching.  This used to be a big problem on the rabbit diesels.  I 
would ask your dealer to look for a service bulletin on it.  Also call 
VWoA, they may have one of those (unpublicized) recalls going, even ten 
years later, or you may want to discuss "lifetime warantee" with the 
dealer, if it is indeed the head bolts.

					H Steven Dolan
					dworkin@netcom.com