List,

        I have recently gotten an '87 Westy and have been gleaning lots of
great info from you all.

        Now, I have a question. This van shows lower temps on hotter days and
hotter conditions such as in town. When out on the freeway, the temp
goes above the led, when I would think it should go down.

        If I pull over after a run on the freeway, with the higher temp
reading, the overflow tank overflows. However, the hoses to and from the
radiator are not hot at all, and the fan is not going.

        In town, on hot days, the rad is nice and warm, the fan operates
occassionally, and the temp is about in the middle of the led.

        This leads me to believe that the air cooling of the engine while
cruising on the freeway leads to a water temp insufficient to keep the
stock 87C thermostat open. When stopped suddenly, the thermostat cannot
react fast enough to bring the radiator online before the boil-over
occurs.

        My question is this: Has anyone explored this problem before? Has
anyone put the 80C thermo from the '79 Audi 5000 in? (I did this
morning, but have yet to test it)

        Any suggestions?

Thanks
Brendan