Hello everyone
      I  just read the post that Jim Davis wrote, about vanagon cooling
systems. My cooling system was put to the test, on the 2 of July, I drove
through the Ozarks.  Temperature was 101 is Springfield Mo.  I had been
driving through steep grades.  The engine temp was between 180 and 190deg.
Later in the day I drove through Kansas City.  The temp was in the lower
90's.  I was caught in a traffic jam on I430 just over the Missouri Kansas
line, due to an accident.  Traffic crawled along at 5 to 10 MPH for about 25
minutes.  While the engine temp did climb it never reached 220deg. When
traffic started to flow the engine temp began to drop.  I had been driving
at 70 to 75 MPH for about 2 hrs previous to the traffic jam.  The engine and
oil where  thourghly heat soaked.  
     I don't think that the water cooled vanagons have a design error in the
cooling system.  If it is maintained correctly it does what its supposed to
do.  IMHO
     I only saw 4 VW busses on my trip.  One was a burnt orange bubble
window, one was a pea green splitttie, and the other two where vanagons.  I
waved at all and recieved not a singel response.  I did see a eurovan based
winnabago, but that is that still considered a bus?
      On July 15,  Markus wrote that he had trouble with the starter not
working when the key was turned.  I had a similar problem over the fourth.
When I tried to start the van nothing happend.  I could tell by the volt
meter that somthing was consuming power.  I pulled the starter out when I
got home and checked the solenoid.  I found that a build up of grease or oil
mixed with a little dirt, was preventing the solelnoid from operating
correctly.  The core would not travel far enough to make the switch and run
the starter.  I cleaned up the inside of the solenoid and it workes fine.  I
have'nt figured out where the oil residue came from yet.  It could be from
the bendix.  The number for the solenoid is,  BOSCH 0331 303 056-556.  I had
trouble finding a source, just for the solenoid.  FLAPS only listed the
starter and solenoid together at about $160.00.  
     Well enough rambling for now.
Colin A Moran

If you can't dazzle them with brilliance,
baffle them with bull sh*t.

 '86 Syncro GL