Date:         Mon, 1 Dec 2003 01:25:34 -0500
Reply-To:     David Beierl <dbeierl@ATTGLOBAL.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         David Beierl <dbeierl@ATTGLOBAL.NET>
Subject:      Re: more oil pressure buzzer / light problems
Comments: To: Joe18d@AOL.COM
In-Reply-To:  <c1.3a0d055a.2cfc06b2@aol.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed

At 09:51 PM 11/30/2003, Joe in NH wrote:
>       This engine is a fresh rebuild, with about 1k miles, it runs great.
>What next? I am contemplating taking it to the dealer to have the actual oil
>pressure tested. I hate going to the dealer, any dealer. Any constructive or
>humorus input is appreciated, Joe in NH

The buzzer is trying to tell you something important and potentially
drastic is wrong.  If the buzzer is right, you're in danger of wrecking the
engine, possibly very rapidly.  Under the circumstances, I'm unable to see
any sensible course other than parking the vehicle as soon as you can pull
to the side of the road, and not proceeding until you know whether it's
pulling your leg.  A reading with a known-good pressure gauge is the only
way I know of to unequivocally answer that question.

So my constructive advice is stick a gauge on it, run it up to the cockpit
if possible, and find out who's lying, instead of fiddling with what
*might* be wrong -- and so far isn't -- with the buzzer.  That will tell
you whether it's safe to drive it, and you can go on from there.

Nobody wants to find they have such a problem (and you likely don't, though
it's less likely with everything you try that isn't the trouble) -- but
it's like tetanus, the consequences of getting it are so awful that it just
doesn't make sense not to assume the buzzer is correct until you've proved
otherwise.  But that's what I read over and over again, people basically
taking the buzzer to court and making it prove it's right before they take
the rudimentary precautions to avoid destroying their engine.  I might do
the same -- I'm certainly capable of wishful thinking.  I recall once many
years ago with my Saab 96 (yeah, yeah, with that, a Fiat 128, a Sunbeam
Alpine and a Vanagon I'm a glutton for punishment) the right-rear brake was
making some awful noise.  But I'd never been inside a drum brake, was
scared to death of them, and I managed to convince myself that it was the
front.  Of course when the pads didn't fix the noise I knew right away that
I'd really known all along that it was the RR and not the RF.  We humans
seem to be good at that.  Yes Ben, I'm a human last I checked... ;)

david


--
David Beierl - Providence RI USA -- http://pws.prserv.net/synergy/Vanagon/
'84 Westy "Dutiful Passage"
'85 GL "Poor Relation"