RE: Flat towing 2010 Honda Odyssey
After thorough research, we satisfied ourselves that Honda pulled their sanction for towing post-2004 Odysseys (earlier models were approved) due to the concerns of lawyers and accountants, as opposed to engineers or mechanics.
So, we bought a new 2009 Odyssey, specifically to tow, and did so uneventfully for several years. We followed the same pre-tow procedure Honda recommends for the earlier models (ie, a three-minute warmup, followed by a shifting through all the gears, being sure to end up in N from D, not from R).
We'd still be towing it now, had we not had to give up RV'ing due to health issues. We still have the Odyssey, though, and other than a couple of holes in the grille where the baseplate was removed, it doesn't seem to have suffered any ill effects.
I still have the Blue Ox baseplate, if you'd rather have that than the Stowmaster (pretty sure it fits the 2010, although you'd want to check with Blue Ox to be sure). If you're interested in that, or just have some questions, drop me your phone number via a PM and I'll give you a call.
Denny
RE: Towable vans
Although factory sanctioning ended with the 2004's, newer Odyssey's (through 2010, at least) are towable as well (using the same procedures as the earlier models). We towed our '09 since new with no problems whatsoever, and would be towing it still if medical problems hadn't pulled us off the road. I've removed the Blue Ox baseplate from our Ody-- it fits '08 through '10 models, plus some models of the Pilot, if anybody needs one.
RE: 2008 through 2010 Odyssey weight
I never weighed mine (should have, especially since I had a handicap lift and wheelchair in the back), but it was heavy. Not unreasonably so, just could tell it was there (as opposed to previous, far lighter toads that I had to check for in the camera now and then).
Arch, check your Private Mail.
RE: A Pirate Wants To Buy My Bigfoot!
Dewey, sorry to have to disappoint you on two fronts:
1. It's a Bigfoot motorhome,not a Bigfoot leveling system
2. It's been sold
RE: A Pirate Wants To Buy My Bigfoot!
Well, I'm sorry you missed it, it's a terrific rig! That other one on the Bigfoot board looks like a great deal, if you don't mind the twin sofas in lieu of the queen bed-- their asking price is almost $6000 less than what I got for mine.
EDIT: Just noticed that one's a 30MH29RQ, as opposed to my 30MH29SL... doesn't appear that model has a slide. That's a dealbreaker for a lot of folks, might explain the lower price.
RE: A Pirate Wants To Buy My Bigfoot!
Update for those that might be curious: the Bigfoot sold in just less than a month-- and it was the ad on Craigslist that sold it.
While the emails from scammers that the Craigslist ad generated were amusing, the "we can sell your motorhome" robocalls that the rvtrader.com ad generated are downright annoying-- we're still getting five and six of those a day, most from the same Las Vegas number, despite the fact that I talked to a human there and told him the rig was sold.
I did break a couple of the recommended practices to sell it though. The buyer is 2500 miles away, and has not only never seen the rig, but won't see it for a couple of months. He did send his mother-in-law (who lives nearby) over to take a look at it, but she's not an RV'er, so hers was more of a cosmetic inspection than anything else. He's seen lots of photos, though, and was confident enough in it's condition that he declined my offer to give him a live tour via Facetime.
As for payment, the buyer overnighted a cashier's check to the mother-in-law. After she saw the rig, she followed me to the bank, where we got the title notarized and I deposited the check. Since the check was drawn on the same bank where I was depositing it (BofA), they were able to certify it's authenticity. In fact, they insisted on it-- they had a small computer glitch in progress, and refused to give me the receipt for my deposit until the computers came back up and they were able to ensure that the check was good.
They say they do this because, even if the check is good, it's all too common that the buyer stops payment on the check before it clears. Their process prevents this, so the funds are guaranteed and available to me immediately. Has to be a BofA check, though, they can't do this for checks drawn on other banks.
So, we're no longer motorhome owners. Kinda sad, since we started our life together literally in the shade of one-- we surprised our folks by getting married at an FMCA rally they were attending in 1977.
My wife's medical issues came early (she's only 56), so we're ending our RV life at the point most folks are just starting theirs. The moral of that story is: Life Is Short-- Eat Dessert First. If we hadn't retired and hit the road early, we'd have never had a chance.
Thanks to all for the great information I've received here over the past few years-- if not for this forum, I wouldn't have known about the Bigfoot line of motorhomes. While they were designed for winter use, the same insulation that keeps the cold out also keeps the a/c in, so we found it ideal for our (often) hot weather operations.
RE: Kindle Paperwhite
No, there's no SD card slot. With the exception of the micro-USB plug and the power button, the whole device consists of nothing but screen and bezel-- no other buttons, doors, or latches.
If wifi won't work for you, for $60 more, there's always the Paperwhite 3G, which will download books over the cellular system as well. There are no monthly fees with that, just the added upfront cost and you can use it free forever.
My original Kindles don't have wifi, only cellular, and our early models use the Sprint system. Which worked fine for years, but when we moved a couple of years ago, it was to an area with very weak Sprint coverage. So, I've had to use USB or wait until we drove into town to download. The wifi on my new Paperwhite is working out great for us.
Now that I've had the Paperwhite for a few days, I'm still very pleased with it. It arrived showing it was halfway charged, and although I usually plug things in and fully charge them before using them, this time I just started using it. Although I've used it extensively every day, I still haven't had to charge it.
RE: Kindle Paperwhite
BTW, I looked on Ebay to see if there was a market for the old Kindle 1, and there really isn't.
But, I have a friend with an elderly father that can't read normal type anymore, and Pop has so far resisted all attempts to get him to use technology to overcome the problem. I sent the old Kindle off to my friend, and he's loaded 150 books on it that he thinks his dad will like:
"Gee, dad, it's like you're getting 150 books, all with large type you can read-- for free!"
"Free" usually works, no matter how old you are. :)
Kindle Paperwhite
I've had my original Kindle 1 since they first came out (2007?), and it's remained my favorite reading device, even after the Ipad came out. Except, of course, at night. Some nights I put up with the eyestrain of the Ipad screen, others I put up with a PITA clip-on light for the Kindle-- but neither was a really good bedtime reading experience. I considered getting a later model Kindle with one of lighted covers, but after borrowing one for a few days, found the light too spotty to really be of much use to my 61-year-old eyes.
So, I was really looking forward to the arrival of the new Kindle Paperwhite. It arrived today, and is all that the rave reviews claimed it would be. Even with the cover, it's about half the size and weight of my original Kindle, and while the light is a little spotty at the very, very bottom of the screen (where the LED's are), the entire reading area is even and bright. I won't be doing much reading on the Ipad anymore.
BTW, I got the $119 model with the ads, figuring I'd probably fork out the $20 to get rid of them later. But, now I'm thinking, maybe not-- the ads are totally unobtrusive (just the screensaver and the bottom of the home screen), plus the first couple, at least, were useful: the first one was for a book that looked good (and was free to borrow with Amazon Prime), and the second was $5 worth of free music downloads. I'm sure they'll get me to spend some money later, but for now, free is good!
RE: A Pirate Wants To Buy My Bigfoot!
4. I will not sell to anyone that lives far away. You have to live nearby.
I actually prefer that my buyer live far away-- if somebody is interested enough to shell out air fare and get on a plane to come look at the Bigfoot, I know I've got a buyer, not a lookie-loo.
Funds transfer is equally perilous, whether it's a local buyer or somebody from out-of-state. Apparently, cashier's checks are easily forged these days-- when I bought the Bigfoot, the seller's bank said that if I used a cashier's check there would be be a ten day hold on the release of lien. I used a wire transfer instead; it cost $35, but the funds were accepted immediately.
RE: A Pirate Wants To Buy My Bigfoot!
Is there some sort of (literally) "global search" function on Craiglist?
Found the answer to my own question:
http://craigsnationwide.com/
The good news is, a search for "Bigfoot Class C" found the ad for my coach instantly. The bad news is, there's an ad for a similar Bigfoot just above mine-- and he's only asking half the price. Of course, his coach is two years older, and has 125,000 miles on it-- hopefully, folks will just take that as testament to Bigfoot quality, and opt for mine instead! :)
RE: A Pirate Wants To Buy My Bigfoot!
Surprisingly, the only scammers I'm getting (so far) were easily spotted and (except for the post here for entertainment value), easily ignored.
Question I'll bet someone here can answer though-- why are folks in faraway places seeing my Craigslist-Phoenix ad? When I was shopping for a motorcycle a few months ago, a search of Craigslist yielded only Phoenix-area results-- which is exactly what I wanted at the time, so I didn't investigate it further.
So, when I went to list the Bigfoot, I intended to place the ad in Phoenix, Tucson, maybe Albuquerque-- but found the Craiglist TOS prohibits that, says only one geographic area at a time. Fine, I listed it in Phoenix-- but I've received serious inquiries from people in British Columbia and Minnesota. Is there some sort of (literally) "global search" function on Craiglist?
A Pirate Wants To Buy My Bigfoot!
At least, I think he's a pirate-- that's what you call somebody that lives at sea and tries to steal your money, right? The Bigfoot has been on Craigslist less than a week, and I already have at least three scammers. This one's the most creative so far, but it's still so generic he must be sending them out by the thousands on just about anything for sale:
"Hi there, Thank you for getting back to me. Can you assure me that it's in good state and that i will not be disappointed with it? I'm ready to pay your asking price and to be honest, i want to buy this for my Dad as his birthday gift. I a marine biologist that works on the sea at the moment. phone calls making and visiting of website are restricted but i squeezed out time to check this advert and send you an email regarding it so my only quickest payment option is PayPal as i can send money via PayPal anytime.Since I'm requesting this transaction to be done via PayPal, i will be responsible for all the pay pal fee/charges on this transaction and if you don't have an account with paypal,its pretty easy, safe and secured to open one. Just log on to www.paypal.com. I hope we can make the purchase as fast as possible? I have a mover that will come for it once payment clears . i will like to see more pics i look forward to hear back from you soon. details that i needed are below Your PayPal e-Mail Address : Full name: Firm Price: Your cell phone number: God bless you ."
RE: Looking for opinions.
I had the SMI Stay 'n' Play in our 2009 Honda Odyssey for three years, and it worked flawlessly. Very progressive braking (as opposed to the "on" and "off" feeling that some systems have), and with the light installed on the dash of the motorhome, it was easy to both see and feel how the SMI was doing. The Ody is heavy (5000 pounds), and we were towing with our 29' gas-powered Bigfoot Class C, so the extra braking was really nice to have.
Mine was professionally installed, the main box went behind the front bumper. Hookup to the coach couldn't have been simpler-- the only added steps the SMI added to the process were to attach a small cable between the motorhome and the breakaway on the front of the Ody, and flick a switch inside the Ody to turn it on when under tow.
Unfortunately, we've had to hang up the RV keys due to medical issues, so the Bigfoot and most everything related to RV'ing is going up on the market. The first thing to go? That SMI system. A friend of ours has been wanting one ever since he saw ours, so last week I paid the same place that installed the tow package to remove it, The Aventa LX and the SMI were gone before I even had a chance to put the Bigfoot or Odyssey baseplate on Craigslist!
RE: Brake assist for toads...yes or no?
I find that my MH actually stops better in an aggressive stop situation, with the brake-equipped Wrangler toad, than without any toad attached. I wouldn't have believed that unless I experienced it myself.
It ain't just you-- that's exactly what Unified Tow Brake says they found in their testing, as well:
http://www.usgear.cc/utbstop.htm
Uh-oh, next thing you know there'll be people on here preaching about how dangerous it is to drive your motorhome without a brake-equipped toad attached..... :R
RE: iPhone 5
I heard rumors that many put their old iPhones for sale on eBay and such in anticipation of the new phone, which is a little over the top, IMHO.
That's no rumor-- that's sound fiscal policy.
For reasons unknown to me, last year's model iPhones sell on Ebay for at least $100 more than the $199 that Verizon will charge me for a new one (with contract)-- so even folks who aren't really concerned about having the "latest and greatest" will often benefit by trading up. New phone, new battery, new warranty, plus you walk away with more cash in your pocket than when you started-- what's not to like?
RE: Odyssey towable 4-down?
Honda removed their sanction for towing Odyssey's beginning with the '05 models-- but many of us have been towing post '05 models for many thousands of miles, with no adverse effects (by following the procedures Honda published for the pre-'05 models).
IOW, there is no indication that Honda withdrew their sanction due to mechanical unsuitability for the task. More likely, the change was made due to legal and liability concerns.
Remco would be happy to sell you a lube pump if they could, but they're so sure it's not needed that they don't even offer one for Odysseys.
Check your PM.
RE: Transfer of Air Force One Braking system to new vehicle
Since we have some people here knowledgeable about the SMI systems, I'm not clear on the difference between their two main products, maybe you can help me out:
I have a Stay-In-Play Duo installed in my Honda Odyssey, which we've been towing with our Bigfoot Class C (gas rig, on the Ford E450 chassis). Due to health problems, we're going to be hanging up the keys, selling the Bigfoot and tow car equipment.
A buddy of mine with a Tiffin Allegro Bus wants to buy my Aventa LX tow bar and the Stay-In-Play, to tow his Jeep. Is the Stay-In-Play compatible with a big diesel Class A pusher like his Bus? Or does he need to get an Air Force One for that application?
Thanks!
RE: Shiny RV with Red Max Pro (pics)
Thanks for the reply, sounds like this is just what I need. While I was good about keeping the rig well waxed for a long time, we've been dealing with health problems for the last couple of years, so the rig has just been mostly in storage-- I run the engine, genset, and systems every month, and drive it 20 or 30 miles at least every every month, but it hasn't had any cosmetic care whatsoever. Since we're in Arizona, there isn't any worry about corrosion, but the (mostly white) finish is fairly dull.
I'm having a new stainless kitchen sink installed as we speak (to replace the original plastic one, that cracked), plus an oil change, new air filter, and anything else else needed to bring things up to snuff. But when I put it up for sale, first impressions are everything, so I'm afraid all of that will be for nothing if I don't get a good gloss on the finish.
I'm not in shape to be doing this sort of thing myself these days, but we've got a couple of industrious kids in the neighborhood looking for odd jobs-- so I figure I'll give them one!
RE: Shiny RV with Red Max Pro (pics)
The results you folks are getting with this process is amazing. Our ten year old Bigoot is in great shape other than the dulled finish, and since we're going to be putting it on the market soon, I need to get to work on it (or, more accurately, get the sixteen year old kids I plan to hire working on it!)
Obviously, Red Max Pro or Zep are the final step, but there appear to be a lot of different opinions as to the best way to prep. My rig probably has no old wax left on it, so I'm thinking the process should be:
1. Wash the rig thoroughly with Dawn.
2. Go over it again with Bar Tender's Friend, eliminating all black marks, etc.
3. Apply the Red Max, probably four coats.
Any other suggestions?
