Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 14:26:47 -0700
Reply-To: Kevin Sullivan <ksull@MBARI.ORG>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Kevin Sullivan <ksull@MBARI.ORG>
Subject: Re: Viscous Coupling survey
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
I'd be interested in performing this test but being mechanically
dyslexic, I could see the front wheels grabbing, the rears coming
down and the floorjack end-over-ing or the extended part puncturing
some underside part of the van.
My question: where do you place the jack and how keep the van from
rolling foward if the VC is working?
Kevin
-----Original Message-----
From: Brent Christensen <bpchristensen@MINDSPRING.COM>
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Date: Wednesday, April 21, 1999 9:28 AM
Subject: Viscous Coupling survey
>I think it would be interesting to see how many of the Syncros out there
>will idle freely at 1,000 rpms with the rear wheels spinning in the air and
>not engage the front wheels. If you have a Syncro and a floor jack with
>wheels it is a relatively simple test. If you have time, please try it and
>report back to the list.
>
>My Syncro will engage the fronts at the full 800-1,000 rpm idle speed, but
>if I slow the rear wheels down a bit using the hand brake, then the fronts
>will disengage. I wonder if my VC is toasted... ???. (The fronts grab
>while making sharp turns in parking lots, but don't seem to act up at
"road"
>speeds.
>
>Brent Christensen
>'89 GL Syncro Westy
>'91 Taurus SHO (For Sale)
>'95 Cherokee Sport
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: Dr. Rainer Woitok <woitok@rrze.uni-erlangen.de>
>To: Joel David Shortlidge <shortlid@expert.cc.purdue.edu>
>Cc: Steve <Steve@Schwenk-Law.com>; <wt@iscnet.co.uk>; <Syncro@onelist.com>
>Sent: Tuesday, April 20, 1999 3:55 AM
>Subject: [Syncro] Re: Viscous Coupling
>
>
>> From: "Dr. Rainer Woitok" <woitok@rrze.uni-erlangen.de>
>>
>> Joel and all others,
>>
>> On Mon, 1999-04-19 15:55:41 -0500, Joel David Shortlidge wrote:
>>
>> > ...
>> > How can you tell your VC is frozen???
>>
>> VW's original (German) repair manual doesn't say much about how to test
>> the viscous coupling. They only recommend placing the rear wheels in a
>> break testing stand. If you then switch to the G-gear (creeping gear),
>> the front wheels should move the van out of the test stand as soon as
>> the engine is revving slightly above idle. If the front wheels fail to
>> do so the viscous coupling is to be replaced, VW says. VW adds another
>> tiny sentence to this, saying that only when the engine is revving at
>> idle and with the G-gear switched in, the viscous coupling is able to
>> absorb all the torque to the front wheels and keep them from moving.
>>
>> To me this last and rather ill-formulated (in the German manual)
>> sentence is the key to testing the viscous coupling. For in most cases
>> we are not dealing with viscous couplings doing less than their share,
>> but rather with hard-going viscous couplings which don't have a problem
>> at all in moving the van out of the test stand with the engine just
>> idling.
>>
>> Thus the really important thing here is not the van successfully leaving
>> the test stand. On the contrary, the important thing here is the van
>> not moving and staying put in the test stand with the G-gear switched in
>> and the engine just idling. If your Syncro doesn't pass this test your
>> viscous coupling is probably worn out and ready for a replacement. Or
>> put the other way round: as long as your van's viscous coupling is
>> working properly you will not notice your van has got one.
>>
>> As soon as you are encountering problems with your Syncro when
>> cornering, in particular after a long and fast drive, or as soon as --
>> despite of power steering -- steering becomes a bit difficult when
>> turning and the Syncro slows down considerably when going round a corner
>> ... as soon as one or more of these things are happening, your viscous
>> coupling is most probably due for replacement. When the tires start
>> whining while cornering it might well be too late already ...
>>
>> Hope this helps.
>>
>> Sincerely
>> Rainer
>>
>> '89 Caravelle GL Syncro 16"
>>
>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>> | Rainer M Woitok | Phone: (+49-9131) 85-27811,-27031 |
>> | Regionales Rechenzentrum | |
>> | Friedrich-Alexander-Universitaet | Fax : (+49-9131) 30 29 41 |
>> | Martens-Strasse 1 | Telex: d 629 755 tf erl |
>> | D-91058 Erlangen | |
>> | Germany | Mail: Woitok@RRZE.Uni-Erlangen.DE |
>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>>
>> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> You can now easily share photos and documents with your fellow list
>members
>> http://www.ONElist.com
>> Check out our homepage for details on how to use our new shared files
>feature!
>
| 
