Bryan:

Actually, you should be pushing the clutch all the way down to shift.

Is it shifting hard? That, is - is it hard to get into gear?

Three simple (and least expensive) things to check first:

1. Look at the Master cylinder (in front of the steering column under the
dash, close to the floor) and the Slave cylinder (open the engine
campartment and it is attached to the driver's side of the transmission.
Check for leaks. Cylinder will often appear "greasy" or wet if there is a
leak. Also look for brake fluid drips on the pavement undre the van.

2. Check your brake fluid level. To do this, remove the cover on the
instrument cluster in front of the driver. Small white container has a
"filler" cap. Level indicators are marked on the right side. It is very
important not to let the fluid level drop below minimum, otherwise air can
get into the brake/clutch lines.

3. Back at the transmission, look at the connections where the clutch
actuator attaches to the transmission housing. The upper-most connection
attaches to an "ear" on the housing. I have seen this "ear" cracked on
several vanagons. If it is broken, it may be that there is not enough
"travel" when you are pushing the clutch pedal down. The housing is
aluminum, but can be welded. The transmission should be removed to do
this.

Good luck.

Mike Vickey
vickrail@velocity.net

84 Wolfsburg (parts)
85 DblCab PickUp light gray
87 GL Syncro #1 Wolfram gray "Flash"
87 GL Syncro #2 dove blue met. "The Blue Flash"
87 GL Syncro #3 Wolfram gray
87 GL Brown "Betty"
91 GL Westfalia Camper Orly blue
93 Eurovan MV Tornado red