Date: Wed, 10 Dec 1997 01:47:41 -0600
Reply-To: Max/Joyce Wellhouse <maxjoyce@IPA.NET>
Sender: Vanagon mailing list <Vanagon@Gerry.SDSC.EDU>
From: Max/Joyce Wellhouse <maxjoyce@IPA.NET>
Subject: Re: What an idiot I was... (a cooling system saga) -long
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
I may have screwed up, but I cut the front heater core hose up by the
front tire of my 90 GL and put one of those Prestone t's in there. By
hooking up the garden hose to that T(yes there is a small area where the t
can go in and by turing the wheel all the way to the right, you caan
asccess the threads easily), opening up both heaters, and popping the
expansion cap off, with a little time and a warm engine you 'd be amaze how
clear that water will run after a while. From there, bleed off two gallons
from your favorite hose or drain hole, and then add the full strrength phos
free coolant and then save some to bleed the air and you should be done
w/it. Now, I need some gurus to shoot holes in this method. My GL had
many miles of driving w/ pressure and oily scum in the coolant tank, so I
wanted everything pristine.TIA
Bullwinkle
----------
> From: Eric Small <Eric_Small@SABRE.COM>
> To: Vanagon@GERRY.SDSC.EDU
> Subject: What an idiot I was... (a cooling system saga) -long
> Date: Tuesday, December 09, 1997 3:08 PM
>
> First a brief background.... I had a coolant line break on the way home
from
> work a week ago and was (un?)fortunately able to pull into a NAPA store
before
> it emptied or overheated. I replaced the split 5/16" hose (OEM hose is a
close
> metric equivalent) with stock fuel line and filled the system up with
2gal 50/50
> NAPA brand coolant/water.
>
> My first thought was that I now need to purge my cooling system at the
nearest
> opportunity and fill with Autobahn(sp?) phosphate free coolant.
>
> Having a bad cold... I elected to pay a local Dallas VW dealer the $95 to
do it
> for me. I quizzed the service mgr on how they would go about the job and
he
> seemed to know the Bentley prescribed method.
>
> But... as I watched the mechanic (I always go out into the shop and make
small
> talk with the mechanic while inconspicuously watching every -some times
stupid-
> thing he does) I became very disappointed. He drained the system by
removing
> the large hose off the engine side of the thermostat housing (I cringed
while he
> pried the hose against the expensive plastic thermostat housing with a
big screw
> driver) then put air pressure to the expansion tank (blowing coolant all
over
> the inside of my pristine van). He assured me that this method would
completely
> drain the system but in fact I would say from the coolant on the floor
and in
> his catch tray he had only drained about 2 gals of the 18.6qts in the
system!
>
> He then refilled with 2gals 50/50, Autobahn/water. He didn't even lift
the nose
> to bleed insisting that it was unnecessary.
>
> After it was over (kinda like a dentist appointment) I told the service
manager
> what the mech had done and not done. We argued a bit about the coolant
capacity
> of the van and the correct procedure to drain/fill until I got him to
look at
> his own Bentley manual. As it was late he told me he would charge me only
$45
> now and I should come back and he would have the shop foreman do it by
the book
> for the balance of the $95.
>
> Moral of the story... Dont get lazy... do it your self... You'll only end
up
> redoing what they did wrong or fixing what they broke. (There are great
mechs
> out there. I knew one in Atlanta at Specialized Import Service, but if
you dont
> know the mech, your taking a chance -Anybody know a GREAT mech in
Dallas, TX?)
>
> Question 1... Using the Bentley method for draining the cooling system
(vague at
> best) is it possible to drain close to the entire 18.6 qts? Does anybody
have
> hard experience in this? I found lots of general discussion in the
archives but
> no step by step method.
>
> Q2... The VW service manager advised the system not be flushed -too
fragile. Any
> comments?
>
> Q3...What would you do? Is it sufficient to have replaced only 2 of the
4.5
> gals? Should I go back (cringe) and let them have another try?
>
> Thanks,
> Eric Small
> Dallas, TX
> '86GL
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