From: msirota@ee.rochester.edu (Mark Sirota)
Newsgroups: rec.autos.vw
Subject: Re: Screeching in the rain
Date: 10 Apr 92 19:48:22 GMT
Article-I.D.: ee.1992Apr10.194822.2004
Reply-To: Mark Sirota <msirota@socrates.ee.rochester.edu>
Organization: University of Rochester Department of Electrical Engineering

In article <1992Apr10.095525.16699@wes.on.ca> tomh@wes.on.ca (Tom Haapanen) writes:
>jmm2948@zeus.tamu.edu (Jeffrey M. Mayzurk) writes:
>> No significant changes were made in the engine compartment to cause this 
>> problem -- nearly all water-cooled VW's have done this as long as I can
>> remember, including my Scirocco.
>
> I can almost believe this, except that I have extensive experience with '86
> and '87 GTIs, an '87 European Golf and an '89 Jetta -- and none had the
> slipping-belt-in-heavy-rain problem.  :)  But then again, Mark Sirota
> emailed me saying that his '87 GTI 16V *does* have it ... so I really don't
> know any more.

Well, Tom, I'll tell you.  I've just spoken with the service and parts
managers of the three local VW dealers, trying to get the scoop on the whole
issue.

The splash shielf is part number 191.825.250.01C or 191.825.250.A01C (one
for Mexican-made cars, one for German-made cars).  $18.75 for either one, US
dollars.  It's a free repair for '90 and newer cars under warranty.  There
has been no written or unwritten recall of any kind.

The splash shield will only fit '90 and newer cars because only they have the
appropriate mounting brackets.  (That might be '89 and newer, not sure.)
Naturally, the American-made cars (like mine) won't accept it without
fabricating some brackets or something.

Generally nobody complains about the problem on earlier cars.  Either that
means we're more tolerant, or our belts are simply loose, or there's
something else wrong.  I know my belts aren't loose, and I'm losing my
tolerance.

I'm gonna have to poke my head under a newer car to see what the difference
is, and if I can make one of them fit my car.  One service manager thinks
the new front spoiler changed air and water flow under that part of the car,
necessitating the shield.  That's just a theory, though.  My car had been
riding higher than normal for a while when I was using Tokico Illumina
struts, but now I'm using Sachs Touring and the car is back to normal ride
height, and yet the problem persists.  I also was using the Autobahn front
spoiler for a while, and without the factory brake cooling ducts, and none
of that seemed to affect the problem.

All of the service managers said that even cars with the splash shield get
some of that spray on the underside of the hood, but it's LOTS more without
the shield.

Certainly we have lots of A1 and A2 expertise on this group, and we have
some knowledgeable people saying that they've done it since '74, and others
saying it's new since '90.  It's probably a matter of definition.  In any
case, I'm losing my patience, and I'm gonna have to come up with a solution
sometime soon.

Please, if you have any contribution to make to the issue, please let me
know.  More data points are welcome.  If this really is a problem with the
'89 and older cars, perhaps we'll call VWoA about it.
-- 
Mark Sirota - Department of Electrical Engineering Systems Staff
University of Rochester, Rochester NY
 Internet: msirota@ee.rochester.edu
 UUCP:     rutgers!rochester!ur-valhalla!msirota