Hapy No-Start Again

Sadness arrived again just prior to Summer Solstice: Hapy refused to start. Today's post covers the initial issue, it's resolution and the subsequent issue that arose along the way. Finally a car post! Before I begin, for my US readers, Hapy Independence Day.

Glow-Plug Not Glowing

I jumped into the driver seat to get to an appointment on a relatively cool weekday morning. By relatively cool, I mean 55*F (13*C) or so. Hapy didn't want to start, and he was throwing a code. I checked and it was the glow-plug P0380 error. Joy. Hapy had been harder to start in the mornings on cooler days, and I probably could have put one and one together, but my brain is pretty full these days. Anyway, that evening after work, I shifted into diagnosis mode. It being so close to the solstice, we have workable daylight until 830PM or so. I started with checking the resistance for the 4 plugs. I feel like I replaced these when I did the new injectors, and when I tested them (lowest resistance setting on your multi-meter, you want them within like .6 of each other)... they all came up with the exact same resistance (.8). So, not a glow-plug problem. Before tearing into the harness that Justin and I installed, I thought I would check the relay and the fuse.  

First, I pulled the relay and checked the voltage at the relay: almost 0V. I concluded it was not the relay. Recall that I just redid all the wiring a couple of years ago, so I pulled out the notebook diagramming the circuits, and found the right battery-top fuse. It's the same as the one any other TDI of this vintage uses: #2. Knowing the wire was fresh, I figured it was probably not the wire. Still, it was wise to check the connectivity of the wire: almost 0 resistance, so the wire is good. I moved on to the fuse.

original adapter

On the supply-side of the fuse, I had 12.45V. Hmm... even after all those start attempts, and there were many, I still had lots of juice. On the other side of the fuse, however, I had almost 0V. Not 0, just a shade above 0. So, the fuse wasn't blown, it was just acting like a big-ol resistor. So, I removed the nuts (10mm) and pulled the fuse. Sure enough, there was almost infinite resistance. These fuses are basically a metal bar (see picture above), but because they are exposed to the elements, they can become compromised by the weather. I do not have a replacement, so I cleaned it up with a metal file. I would grind away on the crud a bit, check resistance and repeat. Once I was able to consistently get nearly 0 resistance through the fuse no matter where I set the probes, I re-installed it. The referenced image on the top-right, shows both the result of some filing (on the ends) and the built-up crud in the center. That crud covered the entire fuse bar.

Grinding Starter

new adapter

Had I not allowed the glow-plug situation bloom into a dead-bus condition, I would have been driving that next day. Unfortunately, In my repeated attempts to start the engine, the symptoms went from won't start to won't start and now it's grinding. Neat. I was having a minor flashback to the last time the bus was stranded, and started to conclude that the glow-plug circuit was probably the originating cause then too. Anyway, I got under the bus, and noted that the starter was a little loose. I tightened everything down, and tried again. The engine tried to turn a little bit, but then returned to grinding. I removed and re-installed the starter. Same thing happened. Thinking maybe I fried the starter again, I removed and tested it. The gear popped out and ran like mad. So, nope, starter seems good. I did note, however, that some of the edges of the teeth were ground/broken off. Much of the gear, however, looked brand-new. I re-installed and had the same experience. One other observation: the addition of the rear anti-sway bar significantly impacts the freedom of movement under the bus around the starter. The bar is right where either your arm or your head wants to be for starter work. I am glad I have the bar when I'm driving, but, wow, it's hard to work around.

At this point, it was finally getting too dark to see. So, I put the tools away and thought about things. I concluded that the adapter that I bought and modified all those years ago was the true issue. Had the glow-plugs not prevented a start, I probably could have kept going for years. Instead, that weakness helped point out another one: the adapter is too thick, so the starter gear only engages for the first, maybe 1/2 to 2/3 of the gear width. Since repeated failed starting attempts caused many of the tips to chip off, there simply is not enough meat on the gear to mesh enough with the flywheel to actually turn the engine. Fortunately, there are now adapters designed for the TDI start mating to an old 002 transmission. I ordered one ($89US from Dune Buggy Warehouse), hoping I would not need to replace the starter again when the only thing wrong with this one are the chipped teeth. Since the starters cost double the price of the adapter, I felt this was worth trying.

hanging adapter

In the images on the above right, you can see that the starter seats slightly deeper into the newer adapter. The actual adapters seem to be about the same thickness, but the cut-out for the nose of the starter appears to be slightly deeper with the new one. The new adapter delivered with bolts that were far too long, and includes studs/nuts rather than bolts to hang the starter. I really like the change to studs, since the installer is otherwise holding the starter in place with one hand while setting bolts. This new design means that you can hang the starter on the bolts and then set the nuts. The kit also includes a small tube of blue locktite, which is to be used to set the studs and hex bolts.

The install was very easy, and the adapter seated very well. One of my challenges with the original adapter was that it did not seat perfectly. Recall, I had to grind some of the adapter to sit against the transaxle (See TDI Install Retrospective: Primary Electrical for more details). I believe it was still imperfect, as I noticed that the starter had a slight wobble when I installing and re-installing it. The new adapter, however, sat perfectly flat, and by re-using the (8mm hex) bolts from that old adapter (with some blue locktite), it popped right on and held firm. The starter set on the studs, and the 19mm nuts threaded on without issue. The kit includes lock-washers, which I hope will help prevent the nuts from backing off. The primary electrical (13mm nut) was next and then the trigger plug.... which suffered a splicing failure and needed repair. Considering that splice lasted 12+ years and multiple starter install/removal/re-install cycles, it's failure comes as no surprise.

bolt differences

With the starter in, I hooked up the battery again and realized that I had not put it on a charger after the failed start attempts. Well.. it was at 12.45V when I did the glow-plug thing, so I figured there was enough there to start. I was right; with a turn of the key, the engine fired immediately. I mean immediately, I never heard the starter, didn't hear the engine think about starting. I turned the key and the engine was running. I cannot remember Hapy starting that fast before.

So, that's it for today. With Hapy running, he has returned to my daily-driver. I have been sitting in on bass around Hillsboro, so having a means of getting myself and my stuff to an event independently was fairly important. After Hapy, we only have ToyoTruck as a dependable daily-driver since we are unloading GoRo (per Car-Go-Round).

Thanks, as always, for following along-

Another Tow

In my last post, I lamented a little bit at the end about dropping into a version of limp mode (1200 rpm symptom) and sporadic misses. Today's post covers the start of what I did to resolve it. I split it into two posts because I tend to get wordy.

Muir's Divination

If you haven't read How to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive by John Muir, you absolutely should, even if you don't own an old Volksie. His tone and humor can still be felt on some VW boards and the YahooGroup member mail. Somewhere in his book, he writes about the promises we make to our cars of future repairs, if he-she-it just gets us home. Old VW's seem to have a soul, and they respond to those promises (sometimes) with safe passage home. The return trip from 4Peaks was one of those moments. About the time I was re-starting the engine to reset the engine from the 1200 RPM symptom every 50 feet, I promised Hapy that I'd get him fixed before I drove him again. He just needed to get us home. Like a good soldier, Hapy settled down and took us home with little trouble. Since my usual sled (Flash, the TDI Jetta) was still being driven by my 18 year old son while he completed the repair on his car (subaru clutch job), I reneg'd on my promise to Hapy and drove him to work the next day. It was under 3 miles, but it was still breaking the promise. Hapy let me know how he felt when I went to leave work at the end of the day.

Repo-Style Tow

Hapy would start and drop immediately into the 1200 RPM symptom from the first start after work. By the way, I'm not calling it limp mode anymore since "limp mode" is actually a different condition. I was able to get positioned in a parking lot that allowed for a tow truck to get at the bus while also in the shade (90*+ day), and waited for AAA to send the usual flatbed. What arrived instead was what I'd call a repo-truck. It was small and had a relatively non-descript towing rig attached to the rear. As it pulled in, the tow rig looked like a large iron cross jutting up from his rear bumper. When lowered, the cross would abut against whatever tires it could and then latch around from the other side. All told, this truck was able to snatch a car in under a minute. The driver slapped on the safety straps, and magnetic marker lights and we were on our way inside 5 minutes after he arrived.

On the route home, the driver shared that this was his first boost of the day and that he was heading over to the Hillsboro Hops field for opening day next. Apparently, lots of folks park illegally at that park, so he spends a few hours at every game snatching illegal parkers and hauling them a few miles away to impound. Not exactly my definition of a dream job. He was able to drop Hapy in the "fixit spot" at the end of our long driveway, though (see picture).

Un-Rat's Nesting

in process

Before

My friend Justin will probably be the first to agree that the wiring I didn't do when I did the TDI install was long overdue for a cleanup. I did what Agile tells us to do: the very minimum to achieve the desired end state. When conditions indicate that things need to be redone, do it then. Well, with the 1200 RPM symptom and the other codes getting thrown, I think it was time. Or past time. So, circuit by circuit, I removed unnecessary wiring. I started with plugs in the rat's nest that weren't plugged into anything and tracing those wires to their termination at the fuse box, ECU or a junction. Then, I pulled the unneeded plugs and wires from within the engine bay the same way. This required significant unwrapping of cables and subsequent re-wrapping for cleanliness. Last, I dug into the fuse box. This last step could have been my first. By verifying circuits at the fuse against the fuse diagram in the Bentley, I eliminated more wire than I retained. In the process, I discovered a possible root cause: I had one main ground, and it had started to shake loose. By removing so much wire, I was able to reduce how many brown wires connected into that ground as well. The end result looks much better, but the relay frames and the fuse box still need to be attached to the body. And, the 1200 RPM symptom didn't go away. Drat.

I decided that the cause of the 1200 RPM symptom wasn't in the wiring nearest the computer. So, it must be the wiring or the potentiometer at the pedal. In the next post, I'll dig into what I found and how I fixed it.

As always, thanks for following along..

discards

... and a Stella at the Stube

Today is all about weather, sliding and moving my bus around.  No new work, but I have a couple of codes to chase down.

Spring has Sprung

It is definitely Spring in the Pacific NorthWest.  The temperature has risen into the 50's(F) during the day and we're enjoying that donut-hole of dry weather in the middle of our typical wet season.  If you don't live here, the rumors of our rains are generally true.  The "spring" rains start in February and continue nearly unabated until Independence Day.  There is one exception to this: April.  Since I moved here 20 years ago, a hole in the wet season has appeared covering most of the month of April.  Last week we entered April, and the hole hasn't been as pronounced as other years.  Since Spring Break has ended, and the kids are all back at school, it seems yet another creul joke has been played upon them: Rain for the week they're out of school and the second week back it's in the 60's(F) and dry.

T Birthday? T-line

It was T's birthday early last week, so Boo and I took the whole brood of bears up to Timberline on Sunday as an early celebration.  The conditions were really good.  By this time of year, you start expecting Spring (a euphemism for bad) conditions: slushy, bare patches and generally slow.  Timberline, however, had very good conditions, especially further up the mountain on Magic Mile.  The snow was powdery and there was hardly any wind.  The rest of the mountain was okay, but there were slow spots.  The bigger boys played on the terrain parks, and had great things to say about the jumps.  Across the resort, though, the place was not busy.

... and a Stella at the Stube

riding Pucci lift

Yesterday, neither Boo nor I had our boys, so we took a late run up to the mountain for some afternoon snow.  Unlike the week prior, Magic Mile was the worst snow of the day: heavy winds made getting off the lift almost dangerous.  The granular snow wasn't much fun for sliding either, but it was fast!  We spent most of our time working the slopes feeding into the Jeff Flood and Pucci lifts.  There was a new half-pipe at the top of Pucci that we didn't see until it was our last run, unfortunately, but that will bring us back next week.  Timberline closed the mountain at 4, but we'd only had a few hours of snow-time, so we packed up and drove the 20 minutes to SkiBowl.

Rather than jump right into any "should we slide" decisions, we hit Beer Stube and grabbed a couple Stella's.  We watched fellow snow-lovers work their way down the lower bowl face and the rail-riders in "Jesse' Flight" terrain park from our window seats.  One beer later, and we decided we'd take a couple runs.  We did Random on the Upper Bowl face and discovered a new large jump terrain park at the end of Dog Leg.  I tried the first jump, had bad body position on my board and landed flat on my back.  I finished the run and took 2 more, wanting to conquer the jumps.  Ultimately, those really large jumps are more that I should be starting with.

TDI Codes

So, with all the fun snow out of the way, I mentioned the shift linkage in my last post.  The linkage is still held together with a zip-tie.  I'm only driving the bus around 200' every other day lately, though, so it isn't a big deal.  I'll explain the 200' thing another day.  Today, let's hit the Check Engine Light (CEL) codes that are being thrown by the computer.

First, I'm getting a P1403 which decodes to "Exhaust Gas Recirculation System 17-00 Control Difference Readiness: N/A".  Since I blocked off my EGR system (its a '72, so no smog test, the EGR clogs the intake with goop and I run B10, so my emissions are still better than the old '72 engine was), this code should be expected.  I can get a computer modification (aka tune) that deletes the EGR, but that's money, or I can ignore it.

Second, I'm getting a P0380 which decodes to "Glow Plug/heater Malfunction".  Yeah, I've seen this one before.  Either the glow-plug harness has become unwired again or some other wire bit has broken free.  Regardless, neither are a big deal, especially as Spring approaches and glow plugs aren't really going to be useful for a while.