>I'm still tossing around the idea of
>trying the Ford Horn relay kludge,

It's not a horn relay kludge. My Mustang (and everyone else's)
came from the factory with one of these between the key and the
starter-- it's a real, gen-yew-wine starter relay. MUCH higher current
capability than a standard horn relay. But limited duty cycle-- I've
seen them smoke, literally, when a big V8 engine was cranked for a long
time, but keep on operating correctly. Well, the starter motor was
probably smoking too by then.

>Also, make sure that your starter switch wire is actually connected to
>the <VW> solenoid...for a while, mine kept falling off.

By George, I think you've got it!!!

This is a VERY common problem in VW starters-- it's a 1/4" push-on
connector. If it ever had a boot on it, it's usually naked by now,
exposed to all kinds of crap. And years of vibration and heat-cycling
have oftened loosened it up to the point where it rattles loosely on
the spade terminal on the starter. Pull it off, clean it up, crimp it
just a LITTLE bit tighter (it's fragile), and push it back on. Will
clear up 80% of your starter problems.

True, VW starter solenoids do tend to hang up occasionally, even with
good connections. It's often the beginning of the end. A sharp tap with
a hammer, often springs them free for the next few starts. But you
should take the hint, and start saving for a new one. Then you can
arrange a time and place, and change it out when YOU want to... not
when it wants you to, which is invariably outdoors, beside a busy street
in the rain or snow.

 -Steve Maher    smaher@gi.com    '71 VW Transporter
                                 '66 Mustang Coupevertible