Tony Ricketts - Going at Last!

1
I have just had a call from Tony Ricketts and he is under way at last.  The parcel of parts sent by camel train was supposed to have been delivered to him in iron Knob but it finished up in Whyalla!  Tony managed to get the Syncro started and managed to get it to Whyalla, bucking and misfiring all the way.
 
Fortunately, the parcel had gone to Ian Melville, the mechanic in Whyalla that Alf Anderson had tracked down via Dean Hosking at Inparts in SA.    Ian fitted the new parts and, where most mechanics would have stopped at that, he proved to be one of those rare gems who quietly and methodically went through everything else that might have contributed.  When he was satisfied that he had checked everything possible, he fired it up and they went for a test drive.  Around the block?  No way! 
 
They went for a 50 kilometer test drive!!!!! 
 
Ian pronounced himself satisfied and Tony is now heading towards Ceduna, a very relieved man.  When Tony gets home, he will give us a summary of his adventures. 
 
In the meanwhile, many thanks to Alf Anderson, who contributed much to the good outcome.
 
Les
 
 
 
 
 
2
Les,
Is there any idea what the actual fault was?



> Les Harris <leslieharris@optushome.com.au> wrote:
>
> I have just had a call from Tony Ricketts and he is under way at last.
> The parcel of parts sent by camel train was supposed to have been
> delivered to him in iron Knob but it finished up in Whyalla! Tony
> managed to get the Syncro started and managed to get it to Whyalla,
> bucking and misfiring all the way.
>
> Fortunately, the parcel had gone to Ian Melville, the mechanic in
> Whyalla that Alf Anderson had tracked down via Dean Hosking at Inparts
> in SA. Ian fitted the new parts and, where most mechanics would have
> stopped at that, he proved to be one of those rare gems who quietly and
> methodically went through everything else that might have contributed.
> When he was satisfied that he had checked everything possible, he fired
> it up and they went for a test drive. Around the block? No way!
>
> They went for a 50 kilometer test drive!!!!!
>
> Ian pronounced himself satisfied and Tony is now heading towards Ceduna,
> a very relieved man. When Tony gets home, he will give us a summary of
> his adventures.
>
> In the meanwhile, many thanks to Alf Anderson, who contributed much to
> the good outcome.
>
> Les
3
Phill,
 
I didn't get the full details from Tony but will do so later.  The parts changed were the modified AFM harness, the injector O rings, ignition harness and fuel filter.  Ian checked a large number of functions but didn't change anything else that I know of. 
 
Les
 
 
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Friday, April 03, 2009 6:11 PM
Subject: Re: [Syncro_T3_Australia] Tony Ricketts - Going at Last!

Les,
Is there any idea what the actual fault was?

.

4
Tony arrived in Ceduna tonight - we haven't caught up yet as we have
been out all evening. He was keen to head off and cook dinner and
have a shower so is in a park for the night. He is going to call
around tomorrow morning when we will attempt to diagnose another
(hopefully minor) issue.

From what he said it sounds like his low coolant sensor light is now
coming on, and for the last x km his temp gauge started creeping up.
I suspect low coolant with maybe a small leak somewhere - hopefully
not the dreaded wasser p####r leaks .

I will give the van a thorough inspection for leaks but need a little
advice on topping up the coolant:
If, as I assume the level is low but the van is ok to head across the
Nullarbor, what is the best liquid for him to use until he gets home?
I have a tiny bit of G11 left from when I was running the VW engine,
but we are talking only 100 to 200 ml so not likely to make much
difference. I have Subaru coolant, rainwater and of course we can buy
distilled water or off the shelf coolant.

Recommendations please!

Cheers,

Andy.
5

Andy,

Top up his cooling system with distilled water as this will be compatible with whatever coolant he has in the engine and when he reaches home suggest to him a  flush and complete refill. I now use a long life Toyota coolant which last for 40 000km or 2yrs. All the best with the leak detection.

Regards,

Yurik

 

From: Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com [mailto:Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Ruth Phillips / Andrew Johns
Sent: Friday, 3 April 2009 7:03 PM
To: Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [Syncro_T3_Australia] Re: Tony Ricketts - Going at Last!

 

Tony arrived in Ceduna tonight - we haven't caught up yet as we have
been out all evening. He was keen to head off and cook dinner and
have a shower so is in a park for the night. He is going to call
around tomorrow morning when we will attempt to diagnose another
(hopefully minor) issue.

From what he said it sounds like his low coolant sensor light is now
coming on, and for the last x km his temp gauge started creeping up.
I suspect low coolant with maybe a small leak somewhere - hopefully
not the dreaded wasser p####r leaks .

I will give the van a thorough inspection for leaks but need a little
advice on topping up the coolant:
If, as I assume the level is low but the van is ok to head across the
Nullarbor, what is the best liquid for him to use until he gets home?
I have a tiny bit of G11 left from when I was running the VW engine,
but we are talking only 100 to 200 ml so not likely to make much
difference. I have Subaru coolant, rainwater and of course we can buy
distilled water or off the shelf coolant.

Recommendations please!

Cheers,

Andy.

6
Les

Thanks for your extraordinary help in this situation. I am sure Mr Ricketts felt quite alone at the beginning, yet soon found a willing community of helpers.

Thanks to Les and others who helped for upholding the good name of Syncro owners everywhere.

Regards
Mark.

On Fri, Apr 3, 2009 at 6:03 PM, Les Harris <leslieharris@optushome.com.au> wrote:

I have just had a call from Tony Ricketts and he is under way at last. The parcel of parts sent by camel train was supposed to have been delivered to him in iron Knob but it finished up in Whyalla! Tony managed to get the Syncro started and managed to get it to Whyalla, bucking and misfiring all the way.
Fortunately, the parcel had gone to Ian Melville, the mechanic in Whyalla that Alf Anderson had tracked down via Dean Hosking at Inparts in SA. Ian fitted the new parts and, where most mechanics would have stopped at that, he proved to be one of those rare gems who quietly and methodically went through everything else that might have contributed. When he was satisfied that he had checked everything possible, he fired it up and they went for a test drive. Around the block? No way!
They went for a 50 kilometer test drive!!!!!
Ian pronounced himself satisfied and Tony is now heading towards Ceduna, a very relieved man. When Tony gets home, he will give us a summary of his adventures.
In the meanwhile, many thanks to Alf Anderson, who contributed much to the good outcome.
Les

7

Andy,

I meant to say if he has lost more than half of the coolant capacity it would be advisable to flush and refill there in Ceduna as the lubricating properties may be reduced  to much by topping up with distilled water.

Regards

Yurik

 

From: Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com [mailto:Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Ruth Phillips / Andrew Johns
Sent: Friday, 3 April 2009 7:03 PM
To: Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [Syncro_T3_Australia] Re: Tony Ricketts - Going at Last!

 

Tony arrived in Ceduna tonight - we haven't caught up yet as we have
been out all evening. He was keen to head off and cook dinner and
have a shower so is in a park for the night. He is going to call
around tomorrow morning when we will attempt to diagnose another
(hopefully minor) issue.

From what he said it sounds like his low coolant sensor light is now
coming on, and for the last x km his temp gauge started creeping up.
I suspect low coolant with maybe a small leak somewhere - hopefully
not the dreaded wasser p####r leaks .

I will give the van a thorough inspection for leaks but need a little
advice on topping up the coolant:
If, as I assume the level is low but the van is ok to head across the
Nullarbor, what is the best liquid for him to use until he gets home?
I have a tiny bit of G11 left from when I was running the VW engine,
but we are talking only 100 to 200 ml so not likely to make much
difference. I have Subaru coolant, rainwater and of course we can buy
distilled water or off the shelf coolant.

Recommendations please!

Cheers,

Andy.

8
Thank you Yurik.

If you have time when you pass through please drop by and have a cuppa.

Andy.
9
. I now use a long life Toyota
> coolant
> which last for 40 000km or 2yrs.

I'd use that if I had a Toyota.

G12+ is the correct coolant.
If the level is OK, try cleaning the sensor.
10
Andy,
 
I was out to dinner last night and did not check the email before I went to bed. 
 
If the temp gauge is creeping up, it is probably coolant loss and this can be hard to locate if the loss is occurring whilst under way but not when idling.  If it can't be found, he can probably get home by constant topping up on the way.  Any good quality coolant would be acceptable to get him back to Perth, where it can be flushed out and the correct coolant put in.   
 
The most recent of the series is now called G12 Plus, 12 Plus or 12+, depending the manufacturer, and is used also by Audi, BMW, Mercedes and probably others.  It is violet colour but it is also described as purple.  It is made by a number of companies in Germany and is sold under the vehicle manufacturers label or the coolant manufacturer's label.  (The one I use is made by Vaico in Germany, is labelled VA-012 Plus and is used by Audi/BMW workshops in Melbourne.)   Look for "12" and either "Plus" or "+" on the label as well as the colour. 
 
Thanks for your help, Andy.
 
Les
 
 
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Friday, April 03, 2009 10:03 PM
Subject: [Syncro_T3_Australia] Re: Tony Ricketts - Going at Last!

Tony arrived in Ceduna tonight - we haven't caught up yet as we have
been out all evening. He was keen to head off and cook dinner and
have a shower so is in a park for the night. He is going to call
around tomorrow morning when we will attempt to diagnose another
(hopefully minor) issue.

From what he said it sounds like his low coolant sensor light is now
coming on, and for the last x km his temp gauge started creeping up.
I suspect low coolant with maybe a small leak somewhere - hopefully
not the dreaded wasser p####r leaks .

I will give the van a thorough inspection for leaks but need a little
advice on topping up the coolant:
If, as I assume the level is low but the van is ok to head across the
Nullarbor, what is the best liquid for him to use until he gets home?
I have a tiny bit of G11 left from when I was running the VW engine,
but we are talking only 100 to 200 ml so not likely to make much
difference. I have Subaru coolant, rainwater and of course we can buy
distilled water or off the shelf coolant.

Recommendations please!

Cheers,

Andy.

11
Just make sure of the + plus and the colour purple. G12 is not suitable and is pink.



> Les Harris <leslieharris@optushome.com.au> wrote:
>
> Andy,
>
> I was out to dinner last night and did not check the email before I went
> to bed.
>
> If the temp gauge is creeping up, it is probably coolant loss and this
> can be hard to locate if the loss is occurring whilst under way but not
> when idling. If it can't be found, he can probably get home by constant
> topping up on the way. Any good quality coolant would be acceptable to
> get him back to Perth, where it can be flushed out and the correct
> coolant put in.
>
> The most recent of the series is now called G12 Plus, 12 Plus or 12+,
> depending the manufacturer, and is used also by Audi, BMW, Mercedes and
> probably others. It is violet colour but it is also described as
> purple. It is made by a number of companies in Germany and is sold
> under the vehicle manufacturers label or the coolant manufacturer's
> label. (The one I use is made by Vaico in Germany, is labelled VA-012
> Plus and is used by Audi/BMW workshops in Melbourne.) Look for "12"
> and either "Plus" or "+" on the label as well as the colour.
>
> Thanks for your help, Andy.
>
> Les
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Ruth Phillips / Andrew Johns
> To: Syncro_T3_Australia@yahoogroups.com
> Sent: Friday, April 03, 2009 10:03 PM
> Subject: [Syncro_T3_Australia] Re: Tony Ricketts - Going at Last!
>
>
> Tony arrived in Ceduna tonight - we haven't caught up yet as we have
> been out all evening. He was keen to head off and cook dinner and
> have a shower so is in a park for the night. He is going to call
> around tomorrow morning when we will attempt to diagnose another
> (hopefully minor) issue.
>
> From what he said it sounds like his low coolant sensor light is now
> coming on, and for the last x km his temp gauge started creeping up.
> I suspect low coolant with maybe a small leak somewhere - hopefully
> not the dreaded wasser p####r leaks .
>
> I will give the van a thorough inspection for leaks but need a little
> advice on topping up the coolant:
> If, as I assume the level is low but the van is ok to head across the
> Nullarbor, what is the best liquid for him to use until he gets home?
> I have a tiny bit of G11 left from when I was running the VW engine,
> but we are talking only 100 to 200 ml so not likely to make much
> difference. I have Subaru coolant, rainwater and of course we can buy
> distilled water or off the shelf coolant.
>
> Recommendations please!
>
> Cheers,
>
> Andy.
>
>
>