<VV> ring job - looking ...

[Dave Smith]

Driving it longer than I though after the belt came loose is highly
likely and that's what I assumed I did.  I'd been keeping a close eye
on the gauges since air cooled cars overheat fast. Loss of power, lots
of smoke, fan belt off.  It did turn over so it wasn't a complete
seize and it's not making any knocking sounds.

-Dave

On Sat, Jan 3, 2009 at 6:12 PM, Shaun McGarvey <shaun_mcgarvey at shaw.ca> wrote:
> Hi Dave, the oil pump problem seems to be a stuck relief valve that caused
> excessive pressure and blew out the oil filter's seal. Stuck relief valves
> are fairly common on engines that haven't run for a long time.
> The belt should only be tight enough that you can still turn the blades of
> the alternator/generator fan without hurting your finger. Is it possible
> that you drove it farther than you think with no belt? That would account
> for most of the other symptoms.
>
> yea, Vairily ... Shaun
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Dave Smith" <gornzilla at gmail.com>
> To: "Chris & Bill Strickland" <lechevrier at earthlink.net>
> Cc: <virtualvairs at corvair.org>
> Sent: Saturday, January 03, 2009 5:44 PM
> Subject: Re: <VV> ring job - looking ...
>
>
>> Hi Bill,
>>
>> I was passed a lot.  I brought a bag of tools with me on the train ride
>> down.
>>
>> I'm taking a break from riding a 1965 Ducati 250cc round the world and
>> I just got back from Nepal and India on a Royal Enfield.  I raced a VW
>> Bug at the 24 Hours of LeMons (that's lemons, not LeMans).  I expected
>> some problems and thought I was going slow enough.  It was a foolish
>> roll of the dice I know, but I've done worse and survived. That's the
>> first time I've had to be towed home in years of driving/riding old
>> stuff.
>>
>> It was a cold week.  The grapevine had been closed due to snow.  I
>> stopped fairly often, every 80-100 miles, to let the car cool down.
>> That's when I was thinking maybe the coil was going because it would
>> get harder to start. I don't know what the proper tension is on a
>> belt, but the guy I bought it from said he just had the belt replaced
>> with the best money could buy and it was perfect.  The shop I went to
>> said "wow, what a crappy belt" and I adjusted it to about the same
>> tension and the mech said it was loose.
>>
>> I'm looking for a 1960s car for around town use and trips to San
>> Francisco (80 miles each way).  I've owned a lot of 1960s Darts,
>> Valiants, and a '67 Barracuda, but I love how Corvairs look.
>> Something I can leave on the street since my NSU takes up my tiny
>> garage.
>>
>> I don't think I'd blow up a replacement engine. Breaking small things
>> is fine.  A nice intro to the world of Corvairs.
>>
>> -Dave
>>
>>
>> On Sat, Jan 3, 2009 at 2:21 PM, Chris & Bill Strickland
>> <lechevrier at earthlink.net> wrote:
>>> gornzilla at gmail.com wrote:
>>>
>>>>... drove up to Sacramento the next.  About 350 miles on I-5 doing 70.
>>>>
>>>
>>> Only 70, and you didn't get run over?
>>>
>>> It'd be my opinion that yes, you are probably looking at a replacement
>>> engine, or rebuilding yours, or having it rebuilt.
>>>
>>> Methinks that taking an unproven 40 year old car on a 300+ mile trip up
>>> an 85 mph freeway through the desert without expecting a breakdown is
>>> rather, should I say, foolhardy?  Yes, the San Joaquin Valley is a
>>> desert, and as almost all irrigated deserts, when you irrigate it, it
>>> grows stuff.  If you were keeping up with traffic, you probably were
>>> doing more than 70 -- have you checked your speedometer calibration?  Or
>>> perhaps CHP has finally clamped down really hard on enforcement out
>>> there?
>>>
>>> Certainly, a well maintained Corvair would be expected to complete such
>>> a trip, but e-Bay cars (as well as nearly any used vehicle previously
>>> unknown to you) are suspect, regardless of the stories and documentation
>>> that they come with (aka, "buyer beware"), and must be tested and proven
>>> by the current owner, and forty or fifty miles around town (less than an
>>> hours worth of driving), isn't much "proof".  I'd say you successfully
>>> tested the engine to the point of destruction, regardless of the intent,
>>> and another "used engine" will likely meet the same fate, sorry to say.
>>>
>>> Next trip to Sacramento in an old car, stick to 55 mph on 99
>>>
>>> mo, subject to change based on more accurate description of the issues,
>>>
>>> Bill Strickland
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