[Gasification] SFC for De-rated EnginesWas:smallscalegasifiers for those that need them

[Harmon Seaver]

   Yup, I've got a nice old '82 VW Vanagon Westphalia camper with a 1.6L
diesel in it. The speedometer has a red line at 55. I can drive at 60,
much more than that it starts blowing oil out. I have to be careful on
long uphills that I don't over rev it. And it's only got 113,000 miles
on the engine. Those same engines in the smaller cars often go 450,000
miles between overhauls. I really should do a ring and valve job on this
one, but I've been looking for a good deal on a later 1.9TDI engine or
even better one of the 2.5TDI's from South Africa.
   It's amazing how disadvantaged we are here in the US for diesels --
almost none of the car manufacturers have ever imported all those nice
diesels they sell to the rest of the world. Even VW only ever gave us a
couple of the many they've made. Almost seems like a conspiracy. 8-)


Peter Singfield wrote:
> At 09:40 PM 7/1/2007 -0500, you wrote:
>>   Even small diesels do that.
>>
>>
>> -- 
>> Harmon Seaver
> 
> Dear Harmon;
> 
> I drove nothing but a series of 1981 Volks Rabbit diesels here in Belize
> till my last one died in about 2002 -- 
> 
> Some of those engines were terribly "tired" -- they could be only push
> started (in low gear -- then jump in -- hit the starter -- release the
> clutch -- at the same time!!)
> 
> The blow back becomes so much that they will rev totally out of control on
> crankcase fumes.
> 
> So -- I started collecting used oil for the crank -- I would start the
> engine -- let it warm up -- then get on the highway and go -- hit the right
> gear at say 50 mph -- and the motor would run -- steady -- with the fuel
> pump switch turned off.
> 
> I did thousands of miles like that -- getting better than 150 mpg diesel --
> and about 2 quarts of used oil in the crank every 60 miles of so.
> 
> Those Volks diesels are precombustion chamber models. And in a good engine
> (less than 200,000 miles usually) -- you could motor along in over drive at
> 45 mph -- actually lugging the engine -- and get better than 75 mpg on flat
> roads -- the engine being very happy about that to -- as your barely
> touching the pedal!!
> 
> What wore those little suckers out was running them at 85 mph steady -- not
> running them better than 50% "derated" in over drive at 50 mph!!
> 
> Come on guys -- "think" -- 
> 
> If your running at 50 mph in over drive going up a grade with the pedal to
> metal -- sure -- your going to hurt that little diesel -- black smoke pours
> out the back to!!
> 
> But at 50 mph flat smooth roads in overdrive?? No black smoke -- the pedal
> barely depressed -- that diesel would run a million or more miles!!
> 
> Anyone that ever drove a Volk's Rabbit diesel in over drive knows all about
> running precombustion chamber diesels in derated mode!!
> 
> And I'll bet I am not the only one on this list that has ever done that!!
> 
> And oh -- how do you stop a worn out Volk's rabbit diesel that has gone
> "run-away"??
> 
> Well -- that only happens if you were foolish enough to rev in neutral --
> or maybe miss a shift -- or not come to an almost complete stop before
> shifting into neutral -- etc.
> 
> But all you could do then was depress the clutch as far as you could -- and
> quickly -- very firmly -- grind the tranny into fourth -- then release the
> clutch while holding brakes on - -to stall it.
> 
> You then had to get out and push start as described above.
> 
> And you might as well throw in a few more quarts of used oil in the crank
> case while your stopped ---
> 
> Peter/Belize
> 
> 
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-- 
Harmon Seaver