If you can keep coolant in the thing you can keep it on the road, provided
you aren't getting combustion gases in the waterjacket (internal head gasket
leaks).  Have your cooling system tested for hydrocarbons (exhaust gas
sniffer in the expansion tank, or chemical test).

I STRONGLY advise against the use of Bars Leaks, or any other glop which
might tend to accumulate in radiator and heater core passages. These
quick-fixes are for emergencies - don't use them for maintenance. They may
cost you a radiator on top of the cylinder head work that has to be done
anyway. Start preparing for the reseal. In pricey Marin County, CA the
reseal costs around $1500, including rebuilding both heads. With new heads
the job goes to around $2000.

Or prepare for adventure - the job is definitely DYI compatible with a
reasonable set of tools, a good manual (Bentley, Haynes) and THIS LIST!

Coby

Valley Wagonworks
"Intimately acquainted with VW Vans since 1959"

Volkswagen Bus, Vanagon, Westfalia and Eurovan
Repair and Service Specialists

1535 Sir Francis Drake Blvd., San Anselmo, CA 94933
Voice:(415) 457-5628
Fax: (415) 457-0967
http://wagonworks.com
mailto:contact@wagonworks.com

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM]On Behalf
> Of James Ruch
> Sent: Wednesday, September 08, 1999 12:37 PM
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> Subject: head gaskets
>
>
> Hi All
>
> I had hoped that maybe I was immune... but I started dripping coolant last
> week :-(   While I try to decide if the gasket job is over my head (no pun
> intended) or not, can anyone tell me if I might get a few more
> miles out of
> my '85 transporter before jumping into this job (or hiring it out)?  I'm
> probably getting about 20 drips per minute (dpm ?).  I'm not very hopeful
> here.
>
> J.Peter
> '85 Transporter: "Snugvagon"