'84 Rabbit

Hello! I picked up an '84 Rabbit L for a fun/project/daily driver and
had a few questions:

Where do I find a VW badge for the front grill?

Why do the dashboard electronics (dash lights, odometer, clock, etc.)
work intermittently and how big a project is it to get in there and
fix those?

Also, the car seems to run hot-- after about ten minutes of driving-
the temp guage runs up to the red but not quite in the red.

That's it for now. Thanks in advance.

On 25 Apr 2007 21:50:35 -0700, Ears <bubblegumgorilla (AT) yahoo (DOT) com> wrote:

Hello! I picked up an '84 Rabbit L for a fun/project/daily driver and
had a few questions:

Where do I find a VW badge for the front grill?

Seems for a time these VW logos were a collectable item for
street punks. A junk/recycle yard would be a good place
and if the mounting tips snap off you can rtv (silicone) it in place.
Or your local vw dealer.

Why do the dashboard electronics (dash lights, odometer, clock, etc.)
work intermittently and how big a project is it to get in there and
fix those?

The dash cluster removes fairly easily except for getting the speedometer
cable off the back. Removeing the left hand vent and pushing the duct work
back and out of the way is the only way I can get my bighands to
the sp/cable release. Bulbs can be purchased at the dealer.
The clock also is a recycle/parts yard item.
The odometer/trip meter isn't a electronical / electrical problem.
Ususally on the tripmeter there is one gear that slips on it's shaft
causing the trouble.

Also, the car seems to run hot-- after about ten minutes of driving-
the temp guage runs up to the red but not quite in the red.

As a test : put your heater controls to high heat and the air directed
all to the defrost ( if your car has a/c disconnect the clutch wire on it
so it's not running) .. After it's up to temp. you should "JUST" be able
to hold and KEEP your fingers in the air out of the defroster with the fan
on high. The position of your gauge just might be normal on your car.
Does it get hotter if driven further? Let us know your test results..
Using the heater and its fan can help cool the engine if the thermostat
is not operating up to par or the radiator itself is in poor condition, or
if you're in town and the radiator fan isn't kicking on.

That's it for now. Thanks in advance.

Does the radiator fan turn on? If not look for bad connections at the
radiator fan or at the electric fan thermoswitch at the bottom of the
radiator. Don't drive it until you figure out what the real deal is
with the water temp. You could jump out the thermoswitch at the bottom
of the radiator. If the fan does not turn on look for a bad fuse and
go from there.

On 25 Apr 2007 21:50:35 -0700, Ears <bubblegumgorilla (AT) yahoo (DOT) com>
wrote:

Hello! I picked up an '84 Rabbit L for a fun/project/daily driver and
had a few questions:

Where do I find a VW badge for the front grill?

Why do the dashboard electronics (dash lights, odometer, clock, etc.)
work intermittently and how big a project is it to get in there and
fix those?

Also, the car seems to run hot-- after about ten minutes of driving-
the temp guage runs up to the red but not quite in the red.

That's it for now. Thanks in advance.

When my 86 Quantum ran close to the red mark, it turned out to be a
severely rusted radiator that was causing the problem. A radiator
flush will not fix the radiator when it is severely clogged, so the
best fix is a replacement radiator.
As another person stated -- Don't drive it until you address the
problem, because you could warp the head and then you will have to
spend a lot of money to fix it.
If I were you, I would check to see when the previous owner last
changed the timing belt and if it was more than 60000 miles ago, I
would replace the timing belt, timing belt tensioner pulley, water
pump, thermostat, expansion tank cap, and radiator. Also, make sure
that your radiator fan is turning on when it should (if not you will
have to buy a replacement sensor switch. If you can do this yourself,
the parts will run you about $220 US.

All of these parts are available form www.partsplaceinc.com . They
also carry the grill emblems for $14 US.

Craig


On 25 Apr 2007 21:50:35 -0700, Ears <bubblegumgorilla (AT) yahoo (DOT) com>
wrote:

Hello! I picked up an '84 Rabbit L for a fun/project/daily driver and
had a few questions:

Where do I find a VW badge for the front grill?

Why do the dashboard electronics (dash lights, odometer, clock, etc.)
work intermittently and how big a project is it to get in there and
fix those?

Also, the car seems to run hot-- after about ten minutes of driving-
the temp guage runs up to the red but not quite in the red.

That's it for now. Thanks in advance.

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Just to be a smart aleck an aluminum and plastic radiator cannot rust.
A copper radiator cannot rust but a Rabbit has an aluminumand plastic
radiator.

On Sun, 13 May 2007 18:50:46 -0400, I'm a Movie
<c..osb.o..rnAT.ep.ix.n.et> wrote:

When my 86 Quantum ran close to the red mark, it turned out to be a
severely rusted radiator that was causing the problem. A radiator
flush will not fix the radiator when it is severely clogged, so the
best fix is a replacement radiator.
As another person stated -- Don't drive it until you address the
problem, because you could warp the head and then you will have to
spend a lot of money to fix it.
If I were you, I would check to see when the previous owner last
changed the timing belt and if it was more than 60000 miles ago, I
would replace the timing belt, timing belt tensioner pulley, water
pump, thermostat, expansion tank cap, and radiator. Also, make sure
that your radiator fan is turning on when it should (if not you will
have to buy a replacement sensor switch. If you can do this yourself,
the parts will run you about $220 US.

All of these parts are available form www.partsplaceinc.com . They
also carry the grill emblems for $14 US.

Craig


On 25 Apr 2007 21:50:35 -0700, Ears <bubblegumgorilla (AT) yahoo (DOT) com
wrote:

Hello! I picked up an '84 Rabbit L for a fun/project/daily driver and
had a few questions:

Where do I find a VW badge for the front grill?

Why do the dashboard electronics (dash lights, odometer, clock, etc.)
work intermittently and how big a project is it to get in there and
fix those?

Also, the car seems to run hot-- after about ten minutes of driving-
the temp guage runs up to the red but not quite in the red.

That's it for now. Thanks in advance.



----== Posted via Newsgroups.com - Usenet Access to over 100,000 Newsgroups ==----
Get Anonymous, Uncensored, Access to West and East Coast Server Farms at!
----== Highest Retention and Completion Rates! HTTP://WWW.NEWSGROUPS.COM ==----