[Vwdiesel] alternator adjustments

[Val Christian]

> Has anyone encountered the A2 alternator in a Golf with AC. I was having =
> problems with the battery going dead and my daughter said the alt. light =
> on the dash sometimes had a dull glow.

	Most often, for me, this has been when the brushes are 
	worn.  Perhaps you can pull the brushes from the ALT
	and measure how far they extend.  Check it against
	Bentley, Haynes, or have someone (me) look it up for you.
	The brushes can be readily replaced.  I buy them from 
	an altenator and starter motor rebuilder, and pay the 
	outrageous price of $1 each.  ($5 for a set of starter
	brushes.)

	There were two ways I saw glow on my A2s.  First when the
	load was high, and RPMs were low.  This was usually 
	brushes.  The second was when the load was light, and it
	was dark.  Then there was sometimes a glow until more load
	was put on the electrical system.  I never figured this out
	but several cars had it.

	
> I set out to adjust the belt tension and found a broken pivot bolt and a =
> bolt missing from the bracket to the AC compressor. The bolt in the =
> bracket may have been left off because it was a royal PITA to install!! =

	Belt tension could be a factor as well, if the belt is 
	slipping.  My assumption is that you have the belt problem
	resolved.

	Personally, I've never broken any bolts on brackets.  But I 
	have seen quite a few friends cars with them broken.  The only
	explaination is that someone moosed it on at some point, or 
	they tried to compensate for not having all the fasteners.

	My experience with brackets and adjustments, is visit your 
	dealer and get all the hardware you need to make it right.
	If the brackets aren't working right, it will be a continuing
	problem.  It doesn't hurt to lube or neverseeze the adjuster
	threads, if you have those.  (I think your car is too old for 
	those.)

	My worst VW experience was with a car where the AC and ALT 
	attach points were threaded and stripped, and with elongated
	holes.

> What was VW thinking when they designed this car??! This one also has =
> the fuel filter with the two tubes sticking out the top instead of a =
> spin-on like the older models.=20

	I think you may have had the prior owner substitute another filter.
	In the 80's, several owners around here got GM filters because they
	were readily available at parts counters.  Just a guess.
	
	Many owners had significant problems with high parafin content 
	and high water content, as many gas stations trying to play the
	diesel game failed to properly handle diesel fuel.  Particularly
	when the WX was cold.  I even had one try to thin it with 
	gasoline when we had several days of below zero (F) days.