[Vwdiesel] Biodiesel Questions

[Val Christian]

> 
> In a message dated 10/13/2008 4:26:02 AM Pacific Daylight Time, 
> val at mongo.mongobird.com writes:
> 
> > It would be interesting sharing cold weather stories, because 
> > my experience is that if you're driving 40 mph, and temps are 
> > below -20F, the engine will never even show temp on the gauge.
> > 
> 
> 
>   One winter the Dasher was "parked."  Something happened to the 
> other car we were driving so Dad and I got the crawler and dragged 
> it out and through the snow.  We drove it in town for close to a 
> week, never getting any heat out of it.  I finally grabbed a piece of 
> cardboard to stick in front of the radiator, figuring the thermostat 
> had stuck.  I opened the hood and the radiator was still fully packed 
> in snow from dragging it out!  Finally got it on the highway and in 
> less than 1/4 mile the gauge started moving and heat came out of 
> the vents!  I figure that's efficiency!
>      Loren
> 

	Yep, at low speeds, the cooling exceeds the heat generated,
	and the radiator stays cold.  In 77, I was doing passion 
	runs to Va Tech, and going down the 11 mile hills on I-81
	at -3F, the heat would stop, and the gauge would peg on C.
	Going up the hills, I'd get some heat out of things.  

	My first diesel Rabbit was my first lesson in "binary throttle".
	In the hills, it's either foot off the pedal or to the floor.

	Eventually, I learned to block the radiator, and carried 
	cardboard cut to fit.

	When the speed limit raised, that helped things.  At 55 mph,
	on a level road, a 48hp VW puts out little waste heat.  
	At 70 mph, the heat doubles and the noise is 10 db more.
	
	My tests and calculations show, and confirm that 38 mph
	with my first 4 speed, and 42 mph with my first 5 speed 
	are optimum speeds for economy, and for minimal heat.