2014 Express AWD cargo van PNW 4 season camper

[iridewheelies]

I found a phone number on http://techwebasto.com - (800) 860-7866. I spoke to a tech support guy who didn't sound surprised when I explained my problems at altitude. He told me the self program probably wouldn't fix it and that I need to go to a shop that can plug in a laptop with the support software. They should be able to set the fuel mixture for altitude. I called Van Specialties first. They don't have the software installed. I was recommended Pacific Truck in Ridgefield http://www.pac-truck.com.

I spoke to someone in the service department. He told me they could do the job but not until next week. According to the webasto tech support guy I expect it to be a quick and easy procedure.

 

[Petrolburner]

It's too bad they didn't just send you the software. I'd try to twist their arm and say, "Hey, if I need this software for the damn thing to work right, then email me the software!"

 

[iridewheelies]

It's more than just software. There's a box between the laptop and the heater. I found a place in Yakima that was willing to help me out. Mobile Fleet Service Inc.

They hadn't done the altitude adjust before but were willing to give it a shot.



Here is the co2 adjust screen



We adjusted the co2 from 75 to 8 (It's showing the values in hexadecimal).

Hopefully this works!!

 

[Accrete]

...One day I was looking around the internet at camper van forms and I came across Accrete's van on the sportsmobile forum: http://www.sportsmobileforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=5996

When I saw his van with the hightop on it I knew it would be perfect for me. I made the decision to sell the vanagon and get a chevy right then and there...

Wowzer, your build is going great! How did I miss your thread these past months. I'm honored !!

If you two find yourself planning a trip to the Oregon Coast during summer months give us a PM. We can show you some fun free dispersed camp areas just south of us near Manzanita. We stay away during the fall-winter as the blackies and kitty-cats migrate to the lower valley (where campsites are).

I'm going to follow your thread as the fuel-run heater is on our list too.

...I'll rotate the spare in to give longer life and keep all 5 tires at the same wear level. That way, if one tire gets a fatal tear in the sidewalk I won't have to buy 4 new tires...

Great idea. I've got about 3k on a new set (we went to 265/70/r17s after the lift was installed) and will have Les Schwab put #5 in the rotation.
> >Great choice with the coopers < <

...I haven't seen a drop in MPG. I don't keep detailed records of each tank but On Star is still showing 15 MPG for the life of the van, I'm just over 20,000 miles now.

I don't know how much the top weighs. I don't feel any extra burden on the van or effect on the suspension at all.

Our rig turned 5 years old last October. It now has ~33K miles on it being used as our adventure rig and Cari's daily driver (a whopping 10 mile round trip commute 5 days a week). So it is sort of just broken in? : ) We see ~13>14mpg around town loaded for adventure (~7k at scales full tanks and us in the cab + ~2 weeks food/water/gear). Out on the highway we see ~15>17mpg. There have been a couple trips where winds were a bother, like driving from Mt.Hood west on I-84 in the Columbia River gorge.

...I can get several days of fridge and fan power out of them without solar or running the engine.

Your fridge fitment is nice. I'm still playing around with the idea on our rig. For now we use one of the Engle Deep Blue 80qt coolers for cold (with ice) and the other for dry food locker. We bring them outside and cook there so we do need everything with food to be in a bear certified container or the rangers where we frequent can give out tickets if in the mood to boost income : )

On stealth? At this point we've given up the whole idea! Ha... no way does ours pass as anything other than someone's adventure van.
As I type, Greg and Van Specialties is putting the final touch on a quote from Aluminess for front/rear bumpers and galley box + jerry can box. The idea is we want a quicker setup with cooking than our present setup. The weight well be a small gain over the stock steel...but we will gain an outside galley : )

Happy New Year and best wishes on your continuing (isn't is always?!) build,
On the SOGGY Oregon Coast...
Thom

 

[TeleSteve]

I have been having similar issues with my Webasto. it worked fine for this first week trip with two nights at 5000 and one at 9400. Then I came home and made the altitude adjustment ( same as you listed above) and it gave a no fire code first time at 7000, but it fired right back up. I then went to work at Kirkwood for 4 days. It ran non stop for the first three and then stopped and I was unable to fire it up after that. After spending another night there with no heat, I had to work two days at Sugar Bowl, but I was able to plug in and use electric heat.
When I got back home at 4000 feet it still wouldn't fire. I blew compressed air in the combustion intake as it attempted to fire and a ton of carbon build up came out and it has been running since ( several days at 7000 feet). It still smells like it is running rich to me, so I may have to find a Webasto service center, the nearest one is in Reno 6 hours away.
Curious to see how yours works with the dealer adjustments.

 

[BigC]

Snoqualmie Pass is a good place to be right now! I was just up in Stevens Pass for a couple of days last week and it was phenomenal, sounds like conditions where similar for you at Snoqualmie, doesn't really feel like early season right now!

It's a bummer you've been having trouble with the Webasto. I know they're slick units and I'll be curious to see you resolve this issue. I'm definitely thinking about getting one for my van, but if it won't work at elevation there's no reason for me to. Have you looked at what the box to program it costs?

 

[Ranchero]

Great build! How much standing height do you have with the high-top?

 

[iridewheelies]

update.... two more nights in single digit temps with no heat. It's so freaking cold up there, I couldn't stay another night with no heat. At the gas station across from the RV lot it was 1 degree this morning. The fridge was still at 29 degrees so at least some of the beer didn't freeze.

The adjustment made by the tech in Yakima seemed to make the heater run better at first. I ran it for several hours hanging out in Yakima. If you ever find yourself thirsty in Yakima make sure to stop by Bale Breaker Brewing http://www.balebreaker.com/#

I even shut the webasto down a few times and it started right back up. I thought my problems were over!

We left it on during the drive back to White Pass. It ran nice and hot all the way back to 4500', providing some great heat in the back for my poor freezing dog. We spent a few hours with some friends in their RV then off to bed in our nice warm van, until around 11:45 then the webasto shut down and wouldn't restart. This was not good for morale. My girlfriend is not a big fan of the webasto or sleeping in an unheated van when it's 9 degrees outside.

I tried starting it once in Packwood (1050') on the way home this morning with no luck. Error code #1.

I'm back home at about sea level now. I tried blowing compressed air in the intake like TeleSteve did, and saw the same black carbon soot blow out of the exhaust. When trying to restart it now I either get a code #1 and it won't start at all or I get a code #2 after it limps along trying to stay lit for 3 cycles.

I've read everything I can find about the AT2000st on the internet this afternoon and I still don't know what to do. I'm going to put it out of my mind for the rest of the weekend and call Webasto tech support again on Monday morning. I'm going to fix this thing. I'm not giving up!

 

[iridewheelies]

Great build! How much standing height do you have with the high-top?

Thanks! It's 6'3" from the floor to the roof in the center of the van, a little shorter in the back. Finished out with insulation I'm expecting it to be a little over 6'. I'm only 5'9" so it's just fine for me.

 

[TeleSteve]

Did you blow the compressed air in the intake while it was attempting to start up or with unit off? If it was off try it during startup and if it lights blow it out one more time after it is warmed up and running. If it still won't fire you may have to take it apart and clean it.
On another note i have been searching for ways to get the Webasto Thermotest software and connection box. There seems to be a lot of third party adapters with the software on eBay for $45-150.
You can download the software free from this sight:

http://www.disco3.co.uk/wiki/Fuel_Burning_Heater#Build_your_own

That sight also includes information on how to make or buy the adapter needed.
I haven't tested it yet, but since I have the Smartemp control with the USB diagnostics port I am hoping I can connect directly to it.

 

[Accrete]

Great build! How much standing height do you have with the high-top?

: ) What he said...

And on our build (same van same top) we had Van Specialties do quite a bit of work inside including a headliner. The finished headroom in ours is about 5'11" to 6' plenty for me and my wife.

Thom

 

[iridewheelies]

Did you blow the compressed air in the intake while it was attempting to start up or with unit off? If it was off try it during startup and if it lights blow it out one more time after it is warmed up and running. If it still won't fire you may have to take it apart and clean it.
On another note i have been searching for ways to get the Webasto Thermotest software and connection box. There seems to be a lot of third party adapters with the software on eBay for $45-150.

I was thinking about just making or ordering the adapter too but I only own a macbook - the software seems to only run on a pc. I could possibly try using Bootcamp and installing windows or borrowing a laptop from someone.

I just went out and tried restarting it while blowing low pressure compressed air into the intake tube and it actually started! There was a lot of smoke at first. I've had it running full blast for about 30 minutes now and it's running clean. I'm going to leave it on full blast for a few hours to hopefully clean all the carbon out of the burner. Thanks for the tip Steve!

 

[86scotty]

Sweet build in a sweet van! I have been meaning to read your whole thread and finally got a quiet night at work. Really cool. I'm definitely thinking of going this route on my next van.

 

[iridewheelies]

Update on the Webasto AT2000ST.

I spoke on the phone last week with Webasto tech support. He was really helpful. I asked a ton of questions and got some great info.

My heater didn't come with a fuel filter or the fuel damper so I ordered both items on eBay from a seller in the UK. I installed both the filter and damper a few days before my first trip to the mountains after Christmas.

If you go back a page or two I posted about a very successful first night snow camping with the Webasto at Alpental ski area, around 3100' elevation. It worked great, we were nice and warm, life was good. My problems didn't start until after Christmas when I was camping at a higher altitude, White Pass ski area, which is 4500' of elevation.

When my problems first started I assumed the higher elevation was the cause. I tried manually adjusting it for high altitude with the method I posed above from the sprinter forum but it didn't work. Next I had a truck shop adjust it with a laptop and the Webasto software, still no luck. They hadn't ever done it before so I'm assuming they didn't do it correctly.

While explaining my problems to Webasto tech support he asked if I had a fuel filter and where I got it. He told me that I absolutely had to use a genuine webasto fuel filter and fuel line for the heater to operate correctly. He had stories of people using fuel hose and filters from Home Depot or the auto parts store, it won't work. The filter I ordered on eBay was not a genuine Webasto filter. Further more, he told me the gasoline heater does not require the damper. He instructed me to remove both items and give it a shot.

I pulled the filter and damper that night. Right away I noticed the heater would fire up quicker and seemed to run much better, I was so happy. I was sure my problems were over and I could move on to the rest of my build. There was still a possibility it wasn't adjusted properly for altitude but I had no way to test it. Webasto tech support told me that the only way I can guarentee it will run properly at 5000' and at sea level is to set the co2 level at each location.

To properly set the co2 level for proper operation at altitude you do not need the webasto software or a laptop, you only need a co2 analyzer. Fantastic! I found the procedure at the bottom of this post in a webasto shop manual and verified it with my friend at Webasto tech support. It's all good, but I don't have a co2 analyzer and I don't know anyone who does. Also, you can only program it for your current altitude so my adjustment will need to be made in the ski area parking lot! Why does this have to be so difficult? Are other people having this same problem or is there something wrong with my heater?

We drove up to White Pass on Saturday morning and my heater fired right up. I set it to 3 o'clock on the dial and everything seemed great. At around 10 pm it shut down with error code #2 and wouldn't start back up. Attempts to start it gave error code #1.

Unfortunately, we spent another cold night in the mountains. This is getting old.

Back at sea level I couldn't get it to start back up until I crawled under the van and used the compressed air trick from Telesteve. It's running fine again now down here at sea level.

I'm not ready to give up yet. What can I do? The only next logical step I can come up with is to try to reset it to the factory settings and start over with the original tune. Second step would be finding a co2 analyzer and program it in the ski area parking lot.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.2.1 SETTING THE CO2 CONTENT

The CO2 content in the emissions is set using the adjustment knob on the control element. At a constant blower speed the volume of fuel is controlled by changing the metering pump cycle.

CAUTION: The CO2 measuring instruments must be calibrated.

The heater must be switched off.

1. Connect the CO2 line to minus.
2. Turn the adjustment knob on the control element to the centre setting. The heater will start and go automatically to low-fire rate mode. NOTE: If the heater can be adjusted, the operating indicator will flash as if the control unit has suffered an error.

Diesel Unit: 3. Set the CO2 value by turning the adjustment knob. Turning it anti-clockwise will reduce the CO2 value, whilst turning it clockwise will increase it. The measured CO2 content at low-fire rate (1.5 kW) must be between 5.0% and 8.0%. In high-fire mode, the CO2 content should be 10.3 +/- 0.5% v/v after the setting has been made.

Gasoline Unit 4. The CO2 content may only be measured when the unit is at operating temperature. The unit must be run for at least 8 minutes for this purpose. After this the CO2 content is to be set to 6.1 - 6.2% v/v in low-fire mode (1 kW). In high-fire mode, the CO2 content should be 9.9 +/- 0.4% v/v after the setting has been made.

5. If the CO2 value is within this range, disconnect the CO2 line from minus. This saves the setting.

NOTE: The heater will now run in normal mode again and can be switched off as normal using the control element. The heater is set at the factory to match the fitted combustion air blower.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

[instantkarma]

Thank you for the continuous Air Top updates. I've been planning on installing one in my Safari, but am now anxiously awaiting to see if it is able to work reliably at elevation.

TeleSteve, are you still having issues with yours as well?