BTW: My father's 81 does the same thing....but I would suspect that your
running a little rich.
Karl Batzler
-----Original Message-----
From: Bulley-Hewlett & Associates <gmbulley@BULLEY-HEWLETT.COM>
To: vanagon@VANAGON.COM <vanagon@VANAGON.COM>
Date: Monday, November 09, 1998 8:01 AM
Subject: black exhaust residue

>Friends,
>
>We are leaving a skid, but not with our tires...
>
>From the seat of your pants, our 1982 Westy runs great. Gets 20mpg
>(thereabouts). The previous owner had a "rebuild" about 15k miles ago. I
>say "rebuild" because it appears to have been closer to a "Fix What's
>Wrong, And Put It Back Together." What was wrong was a detonation burn on
>#4 piston. Has new VW jugs and pistons, and new exhaust. I can't be sure
>about the rest, but the lower end bearings *sound* like there is more play
>than there should be at 15k. (The guy doing the rebuild used a grease
>pencil to number the cylinders, despite the numbers being stamped into the
>tin. His numbers didn't correspond with VW's system. Uh, oh.)
>
>The motor burns some oil (1.5-2.5 quarts per 3,000 miles), dependant on
>conditions, load. I can't see any smoke when I accelerate or start the van
>though. It has only one TINY leak on the rear main bearing (flywheel side)
>just enough to moisten the bottom of the case, not enough to drip overni
>ght. I use about a pint of Marvel Mystery oil in the crankcase, and about
>the same in the fuel at each fill up. I run FI cleaner in every other
>tankful.
>
>The motor does not appear to run rich. Plugs stay clean, nice light brown.
>Exhaust smells good, no heavy fuel smell, and no real oil burning smell. I
>know the preceding sounds goofy, but I have owned a bunch of Type2/Type4
>motors, and they have a "good" smell to me when they are running right, and
>a tell-tale smell when they are not. I'm not a certified hydrocarbon
>detection device though.
>
>My question is: considering all of the above, WHY is my exhaust leaving a
>HUGE black "skid" on the pavement when I start it up in the morning? Four
>Egg Sample, this a.m. I had to jump start a neighbor. Started the van, and
>within about 30 seconds, I was "revving" the van to about 2,000 rpm to
>charge/start her battery. No smoke behind van, just the predictable
>moisture of the morning exhaust, and a copious skid of carbon. My TD Jetta
>does not even do this. Something isn't right. Inside of exhaust pipe is
>BLACK.
>
>What's up? Help. Mayday.
>
>G. Matthew Bulley
>Principal
>Bulley-Hewlett & Associates
>Communications for Organizational Development
>www.bulley-hewlett.com
>(888) 468-4880 toll free
>