Date:         Tue, 9 Aug 2005 13:59:27 -0700
Reply-To:     Joseph Fortino <fortino1@EARTHLINK.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Joseph Fortino <fortino1@EARTHLINK.NET>
Subject:      Re: VW Power on hills/ Enjoy the view <splat!>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1

ones mind works faster then ones slow bus. " grasshopper Joe " lol
somethink you need to do fast speeds on hills in order to get there faster, well when i have
semi-trucks i'm passing go figure..  




-----Original Message-----
From: Thomas Myers <thomas.myers@XEROX.COM>
Sent: Aug 9, 2005 1:31 PM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Re: VW Power on hills/ Enjoy the view <splat!>

I concur with Joe about the relaxing part.  I keep the cruise at 65

And make it a point to stay in the right lane.

I try to tell friends what a difference it

Makes driving in traffic when you are probably the slowest vehicle,  youčre
not trying to keep up with

Anyone and you are not racing to get anywhere. All I have to worry about**
is

Keeping the van in the lane and just enjoy the scenic vista

Out the panorama / bug killer windshield.

I did a 350 mile RT this weekend on Interstate 81 in NY and PA and probably
passed 2 vehicles

[ one was a truck with a aluminum Avion camper on it!]


Roadtripping in my Golf Turbo however - consists of rushing to get
somewhere, pushing 75-85 the whole

Way, passing in and out of traffic and watching my radar detector.

And mysteriously I need a nap The minute I arrive.....


Tom
Rochester NY

**of course ­ I do spend a excessive amount of trip time staring at my oil
light and temp guage like a hypocondriac




From: Joseph Fortino <fortino1@EARTHLINK.NET>
Reply-To: Joseph Fortino <fortino1@EARTHLINK.NET>
Date: Tue, 9 Aug 2005 15:48:32 -0400
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Subject: Re: VW Power on hills

I'm a firm person that I am slower traffic and stay right as much as
possible, have a 6 percent
grade hill by my home and if i get 50mph taching lower what the hell I'm
getting up the hill :) sometimes
i get 3rd gear and bring the rpms up then go 4th getting to 50. i never push
to hard. 

most wait to long to come around you i feel, then you get the hemi-head
thats just a tail gunner
and gets behine you tring to push us faster.. I just relax and save gas.. ;)

thats my 2cents 
Joe 

-----Original Message-----
From: Mike Collum <collum@VERIZON.NET>
Sent: Aug 9, 2005 11:58 AM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Re: VW Power on hills

Do you do as I do in my '84 automatic and downshift on big hills?
Locking it into a lower gear does make a big difference.

Mike 
'84 GL 7 pass auto 
'85 GL Westy 4 spd 


Sharon Mendonca wrote:
> I don't know about everyone else with automatic transmissions, but we go down
to about 40 or so on bigger passes.  We've had manual transmissions on other
Vanagons and I really don't think the automatic is that much slower on hills.  I
know it's a lot faster in regular traffic situations.  We go down to about 40 on
Cuestra grade here in San Luis Obispo, CA area, as well as most hills of any
size.  What was surprising to me is that the last time we came back from Fresno
on Highway 41 I think it is, there were two full size pickups behind me pulling
something like tent trailers and they couldn't get around me when the passing
lanes came up, and believe me I was bogged down to around 40-45 on most hilly
areas of that road.

> 
> Sharon & Bob Mendonca
> 88 Westy 
> 88 Vanagon GL 
>