Well it started about 3 months ago when we headed off to Brisvagas from Sydney. Just prior to leaving for the annual pilgrimage to Qld to see the outlaws, we had our Kombi tuned by one of the more reputable VW mechanical shops around Sydney/Woolongong and all was going well for the big trip north
.
Well all was going well with the bus packed up and we hit the road at 9 o'clock at night to beat the heat and the traffic when the bus started to play up (engine surging and running rough?). Well the NRMA (Not Really Mechanics At all) turned up at Hornsby to give us the advise that it "sounded ok as a Komb!" So my wife and I bite the bullet, got aboard our faithful and reliable bus for the trip to Brissie and set off! With a few problems along the way we got to Brissie with not to much of a hassle.

As that the Kombi is fuel injected and that the problem could be either injection or ignition, I set about fixing whatever was making the engine serge in the 2000 to 3000 RPM range; well after quite a while on the phone and speaking to Experts, it came down to the fact that it was the injection that was playing up and needed to be looked at.

So the three of us (My wife, me and the Kombi) headed over to one of the Haltech dealers to get the problem sorted the techie got his laptop hooked up and preceded to check all the things that could/would/were going wrong with the injection to make it such a pain to drive. Even had a look at the fuel MAPS. After ½ Hr of looking, and checking I was told that "Naah mate, can't be your injection she's all working fine..must be your ignition!". So I handed over the $$$$ cash for the time spent and went on my way.

Now project yourself one and a half weeks after Christmas and we are off to Sydney,still with the problem. We got back to Sydney, relieved, tired and happy that the Kombi had not died bigtime on the trip back and still having the problem with the ignition/injection!

So I found another reputable mechanic to check out the ignition. Once again, "Naah mate, you have enough spark back there to light the space shuttle........must be your injection!"

During this time I have emailed every Haltech expert that I could track down to get to the bottom of this saga; the HITMAN and a few other Haltech Gurus were over seas selling their knowledge to the world and having a well deserved holiday........(Lucky B!@#$^+S), so in the mean time I was off to Melbourne with work for a few weeks, so all plans were put on hold and have to wait for my return back to Sydney.

Now picture this;I get back to Sydney on the Friday night after being away for 2 weeks, have the Australia day long weekend to get ready for the removalists to come and pack up our house for the move to Melbourne on the Tuesday.
Still the bus is not fixed, and our beloved kombi is our only means of transport to Melbourne.
So Thursday Arvo comes around.......and record temperatures have struck Sydney (47 deg C at Liverpool)
So we hit the road and make it to Melbourne.....still with the engine problem.

Took our poor bus to a Haltech place here in Melbourne to be told that the Throttle Positioning Sensor was faulty and it was the reason for the problems that we had encounted! Haaaaaaay a solution!!!!!!!!!!
One new TPS installed and more $$$$............and still the problem was there! So I thought it could be due to the fact that the old girl needed a service as we had done 5000klm in the last 5 weeks. So off for a service by a terrific mechanic,still the problem persists! So the mechanic said, "Mate, take it to the EFI guys around the corner they can fix anything and love a challenge!"

So off to the EFI specialists our Kombi goes...........3 days later ........all is fixed! (and more $$$$$) The mechanic had a chat with me and said that there is no way the fuel MAPS could have changed and the reason for it's erratic performance is that someone must have changed the MAPS. So after a little bit of an investigation it was found that the TPS was faulty in Brisbane, and that the Expert in Brissie must have changed the MAPS when he was checking things out!

So after much hassle, many a $ ($500+) spent and good advise after bad our problem is no more.

What can be learnt from this:

What is an (expert) x-spert? X is an unknown quantity and a spert is a drip under pressure!
Good advise is hard to find.....it took us 2000 klms!
Kombi(T IV) motors are a very robust engine!
Don't always believe what you are told...........even by an expert!
Keep smiling!


In closing I would like to thank all those that did help us and those that tried to help us however small, and due to one reason or another did not have the plans come off. Thank you.

[Edited on 15-2-2003 by kombiluva]

ALL air cooled motors are robust brother.

I did the xmas run one year (what was a 900 k round trip), in my 1600 kombi loaded with me, wife, 4 kids & assorted gifts.

Left Werris Creek xmas mornining, got about a hundred yards from the top of the Liverpool range & the sh!t hit the fan.

The oil light came on & I got this incredible rattle from the motor for about 5 seconds.
GREAT, the oil pumps packed it in.
Pulled up in the truck parking area & checked the oil. No problem there.
Started the motor, the oil light went out & the noise is gone.
OK, it's got a bit testy climbing the range, but what the f#ck was that noise, & I'm really suspicious of things that seem to "fix" themselves.
You can't do a uturn til you get to Murrurundi , but by the time I got to there all seemed well again so we kept going to Newcastle.
As I say it seemed to be running ok but it was a bit weak, I had to change down on a couple of hills that had not bothered the old girl before.
Tried to check the plugs at dad's, but #3 wouldn't come. Don't remember cross threading that one, but I'm 300 k's from home on xmas day, so I aint gunna force the issue.
Boxing day, off to the outlaws from my folks place 150 km each way.
Back to Newcastle in the arvo.
Retrieve my eldest from the creature that gave birth to him, & head home.

Next morning I bite the bullet & get #3 plug out.
It wasn't cross threaded, it had been beaten to death from the inside & was no longer a round shape. Not a good sign.
Dropped the motor out, pulled the head off & here's #3 exhaust valve imbeded in the piston.
That was the rattling I heard, the steel valve hammering the alloy head & piston til it found somewhere to rest.

So if you tell me a story about a kombi running when it probably shouldn't have, sh!t yeah, I'll believe you.
I drove mine 850 km,s, over 2 mountain ranges on 3 cylinders...........
:thumb:thumb




[Edited on 15-2-2003 by Spook]

I met a m/c rider at a rally (BMW R100G/S) who related that when he was riding home from WA the motor dropped a valve in SA. Solution? He removed the plug & pushrods & put them in the pannier & rode home on 1 pot! When you think of it, the motor would have been perfectly balanced with the crook piston acting as a counterweight!

It's possible.
May also have something to do with the fact that a Beamer is as close as you get to bullet proof.
Makes me wonder why people buy American scrap, sorry iron, when you can get 10 times the bike for less money.

Hi Guys
It just goes to show that the boxer engine design is one tough motor
I have had beetles and one Kombi (that I have now), and an aircooled BMW boxer for twenty years, and I have never had any trouble with any of them, and I do big miles on both! a lot of camping trips in the Kombi and at least 5 rallys a year on the bike.
Aircooled boxers for me for ever!

Sounds like theres at least 2 closet MC rally boys in this forum,anymore,last rally i went to was in 84,sorry off topic!:beer:beer:beer:beer

Well the good news in all of this is that the engine did not die...thank god,( or who ever you worship) and as far as I can tell and, the mechanic that did the service, there has been no damage to the motor.

In a nut shell, the fuel maps were lean between 2000 and 3000rpm. If i was under accelleration or full throttle there was no chance of damage to the motor, and as such that is the way I have driven for the past 3 months......it was a different driving style......especially around town!!!

Mick

[Edited on 16-2-2003 by kombiluva]