Dam it!!! My wife and I have been towed the last 100ks to Alice by the RAVC. I need to find a garage that can find the fault and fix it. What do you recomend? Any good garages?

The problem is. Fully recon 2l dual carb. No flaps or t stat.
New temp guage and dip stick sender. 10 000ks of no problems. loaded up and left Melbourne. Temp guage looked to high. About 110oc oil temp. Thought it was weight and kept an eye on it. Went up to about 120oc on flat with 10oc airtemp. All airflow is good. tin ware cool to tough after 100ks at 80 kph. No smoke, no noise. Called a few mechanics who both said. Crappy guages no way would it get that hot. (100oc in 5 ks at 80 kph) pull it out and just drive.

I got more worried and in the end boiled water and sat guage in it. 95oc!!!!!. Had topped up oil in morning and for the first time half a litre had gone???? No real sign of it.

What am I up against. If you are in Alice and can help or know who can. Let me know asap.

regards

Philip

Soooo its still running but its getting too hot is that it.

Check the timing at max advance,got a strobe light.

It is still runnig. But was worried about the motor. I have no strobe and few tools. It was suggested the vacuum advance on the Distributor could be cactus? I had a look and the nipple on the distributor is loose. What do you think?

theres a few things that can make ur engine run really hot, super high compression/ too far advanced timing and carbs too lean. If you have a vw manual you can figure out how adjust all these.

here is a link to doing your timing, http://type2.com/bartnik/timing.htm 

and one for adjusting ur carbs http://type2.com/library/fuel/dualsol.htm 

so what you want to do is make your car run richer and retard the timing a bit. And if ur still haveing probs then let us know...

G'day Philip,
Check your other thread. When I drove my '77 2lt camper to Gove (top r/h NT) in '97 it was running at 130 degrees most of the way through the Center and 140 degrees accross Arnhemland, was told to throw the gauge away and stop worrying (I didn't on either count) and we made back home to Bendigo (Vic) ok. I did a bit of research while at Gove and was told by the Oil Comp Tech people that the flashpoint of most oils inside the motor is around 220 degrees.
Make sure you use an oil with an S factor higher than H, eg: SH, SJ etc. Under H the oil doesn't have the abillity to absorb heat enough therefore will run hotter. Never use noname brands which are SG or lower.
Hope you get it sorted so you can continue to see this Great Country.
Cheers, Ian.

So what is the actual problem? Engine Temp. as indicated by oil temp. can be all over the place. I have seen oil temps from 60C to 140C (on highway) in various engines in good running condition, with variation largely due to air temperature. I've run to 140C oil temp in a Fastback and up to 130C in a beetle with no harm done. The gauge is good beacause it makes you slow down before destroying motor, but also makes you worry. Is the MOTOR really hot?

If vac. advance nipple? is loose could be causing loss of advance, or vacuum leak, both of which will cause overheating. May be poss. to use silicone sealant to fix leak. Tightening valves may also cause progressively hotter running. I've had them tighten up to "no" clearance on long trips, esp. with car that has not been used for long trips... Should be checked. Yes, never use "no-name" oils whether SG or anything.

having been in you situation (but with more tools) I would be checking that all four plug colours match, I would also check valve clearances & that the vac advance is not leaking, to check on that, pull dissie cap off, watching points suck as hard as you can on vac hose & points should move around a bit, stick tip of you tongue over end of hose to seal in vacuum & points should not return to original position unless diaphram is leaking.

Also check that those rubber boots on the manifold are not cracked and causing the thing to lean out

An engine full of cracked rings can do it too, but I guess not many other people have that poblem. It'd be accompanied with a truly gutless drive too.
The temp seems warm but reasonable to me.

Thanks for the help guys. I have had the whole exterior stripped down and nothing is wrong. Guage is 5 0c out, timming and vacuum good. No noise, can turn it over by hand, oil cooler not blocked, all tin ware and seals tip top, oil pressure valve free, ETC. The motor is only 11,000 ks from full rebuild and has had all the service I can throw at it. The carbs have been stripped and serviced, infact, since I got the van over $7000 has been spent on the motor and running gear. Might be time to call it quits and sell or just plow on. 3 years of planning and we got no where. Bad Luck?

So you're saying that you hit 120c yet Dessert Bug is saying he cruised with it at 130c.....so maybe you've got no problem at all???? I know when you do these sorts of trips that you worry about things a little more, especially if you breakdown in the middle of nowhere....but maybe she actually running fine???

Does it SMALL hot???

If a motor is cooking inside it will smell hot.

Have just re-read a couple of times your post.
If i get it - at the moment the problem is the gauge is reading high???

Do you have a pressure gauge?
Can the mechanic put a pressure gauge on??
Does the motor have decent pressure at idle??

What weight oil are you running?? 30 weight??
Is the oil too thick??

Credit to you for 'looking out' for your engine but 120 degrees C on modern oils is NO PROBLEM! It is routine, normal, for VW engines. You have checked everything and found no blocked air ways, fan is working etc etc... Pack up and go! Enjoy your trip!

Hi Snifer,
I can understand the situation your in, I did a round Oz trip last year.
I'm not sure you've really answered some of the questions above.
Other than the oil temps has the motor had ANY other problems, change in fuel economy, lack of power, hard to start, hesitation at any engine speeds etc????
ANY thing else about the motor (other than oil temp gauge) that is different to when you left home??

Some more details may help others to narrow down if there are any likely causes to what you see. As Bizarre say's, be nice to know oil pressure at idle once the oil is hot?? (does your oil light ever come on??)

I know with my kombi (2L dual carb) I found just like Desert Bug the oil ran quite hot during my trip. Partly due to the weight I was carrying and also due to the air temps of the day. I was not stressed to see temps up to 130C.
As has been mentioned above, use a good oil, and change a little more regularly if you run temps that high. If there are no other problems evident (loss of ecomony/power etc) enjoy your trip!!

Check this out! (From http://www.bus-boys.com/bbvdo.htm#tempoil )

"Dipstick Senders are not recommended for the Type 4 style engines (72-83) as they are not long enough to reach into the case to accurately inform you of both the oil temperature and correct oil level. In addition, our experience has been when using a Dipstick Sender that it can be very inaccurate (reading temp too high)."

Hmm. Toss gauge keep driving sounds like the way to go. Try a cylinder head temperature gauge instead. I have a CHT gauge which has alerted me to a number of problems such as timing too advanced and a vacuum leak.

Strange comment? VDO sell a number of different length dip stick's, you then adjust where the tip (measuring part) sits in the oil. Set right it actually ends up in the same position as one mounted into the sump plate on a type 4. Can't see how this is less acurate then?

i use one on my t4 engine and it reaches the sump easy and they can be adjusted to match the gauge ill be doing this when i put mine back together to ensure the accuracy

Look up Volkswagen in the local phone directory and get the mechanic to give it the once over. A compression test will tell you a lot about the interior of the motor. Maybe you are jumping the gun with getting rid of it. If you have invested & thousand + bucks a few more is not going to give you much of a headache.
here are some mechanics to ring and ask if the paly with Vee Dubs



Your Search: mechanic , alice springs, northern territory, metropolitan area, business/government.

Results 1 - 20 of 34 listings found Next »

Name & Location Contact More Info Map

1Hz Mechanical
1 Erumba St Alice Springs 0870 (08) 8953 8571



A-One Mechanics
31 Priest Strs Alice Springs 0870 (08) 8952 5228



Alice Mechanical Repairs
18 Wilkinson St Alice Springs 0870 (08) 8953 8889
Fax (08) 8952 8881



OUTBACK MECHANICAL & REFRIGERATION
54 Elder St Alice Springs 0870 (08) 8952 8799
Fax (08) 8953 2758



Heinzel P & D Mechanical Repairs
24a North Stuart Hwy Alice Springs 0870 (08) 8953 8411



ALICE OFF ROAD MECHANICAL SERVICES
6 Brown St Alice Springs 0870 (08) 8952 8733
Alice Springs Fax 0870 (08) 8952 8818



C.K.S. ELECTRICAL MECHANICAL SERVICES PTY LTD
28 Kidman St Alice Springs 0870 (08) 8952 3344
Fax (08) 8952 8189
After Hours (08) 8952 3093
Email ckselect@ozemail.com.au



Elliott Mechanical
6 Lewis St Elliott 0862 (08) 8969 2040



Lakeside Mechanical Repairs
Lakeside Drv Jabiru 0886 (08) 8979 2255



Frontyard Mechanics
Lot 2839, Zimin Rd Katherine 0850 (08) 8971 7030



Darrens Mechanical
Brown St Tennant Creek 0860 Mobile Service 0419 213 602



L & S Mobile Mechanics
36 Maloney St Tennant Creek 0860 (08) 8962 1843



PITSTOP MECHANICAL SERVICES
4556 Arnhem Hwy Humpty Doo 0836 (08) 8978 9000
Mobile Service 0418 895 094



All Rural Mechanical
Humpty Doo Shopping Cmplx Humpty Doo 0836 (08) 8988 9746



Pitstop Mechanical Services
Lot 8/ Elizabeth Valley Rd Noonamah 0837 (08) 8988 1588



D & D Mechanical
5 Tulagi Rd Yarrawonga 0830 Mobile Service 0410 798 043



JS MECHANICAL
Lot 6682 Koolinda Crs Karama 0812 (08) 8945 7000
Mobile Service 0407 464 383



V R Mechanical Parts
50 Ladywell St Beckenham 6107 (08) 9350 6733
Fax (08) 9350 6799



P E G MECHANICAL SERVICES
7 Albatross St Winnellie 0820 (08) 8984 4710



ATKO MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
390 Lowther Rd Virginia 0822 Mobile Service 0417 825 707
Phone/Fax (08) 8988 2718
Email atkome@bigpond.com




nn[ Edited on 31-8-2005 by Twokombies ]