RE: Sunbird
For 37yr. we have always spent some of the summer on the central and north Oregon coast. We usually pick late July or early August as being the best time to go weather-wise.
RE: looking for a light weight toad
This is for Road Princess. I suggest you re-check the California DMV statutes with respect to a towed vehicle, viz:
California Vehicle Code Division 12 - Equipment of Vehicles
Chapter 3. Brakes
Article 2. Operation of Brakes
Control and Stopping Requirements
26454. (a) The service brakes of every motor vehicle or combination of vehicles shall be adequate to control the movement of and to stop and hold such vehicle or combination of vehicles under all conditions of loading on any grade on which it is operated.
(b) Every motor vehicle or combination of vehicles, at any time and under all conditions of loading, shall, upon application of the service brake, be capable of stopping from an initial speed of 20 miles per hour according to the following requirements:
Maximum Stopping Distance (feet)
(1) Any passenger vehicle 25
(2) Any single motor vehicle with a manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating of less than 10,000 lbs. 30
(3) Any combination of vehicles consisting of a passenger vehicle or any motor vehicle with a manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating of less than 10,000 lbs. in combination with any trailer, semitrailer or trailer coach 40
(4) Any single motor vehicle with a manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating of 10,000 lbs. or more or any bus 40
(5) All other combinations of vehicles 50
* The bracketed information has been added editorially to meet accessibility requirements and is not part of statute.
Amended Ch. 443, Stats. 1965. Effective September 17, 1965.
Braking System: Towing Vehicles
26458. (a) The braking system on every motor vehicle used to tow another vehicle shall be so arranged that one control on the towing vehicle shall, when applied, operate all the service brakes on the power unit and combination of vehicles when either or both of the following conditions exist:
(1) The towing vehicle is required to be equipped with power brakes.
(2) The towed vehicle is required to be equipped with brakes and is equipped with power brakes.
(b) Subdivision (a) shall not be construed to prohibit motor vehicles from being equipped with an additional control to be used to operate the brakes on the trailer or trailers.
(c) Subdivision (a) does not apply to any of the following combinations of vehicles, if the combination of vehicles meets the stopping distance requirements of Section 26454:
(1) Vehicles engaged in driveaway-towaway operations.
(2) Disabled vehicles, while being towed.
(3) Towed motor vehicles.
(4) Trailers equipped with inertially controlled brakes which are designed to be applied automatically upon breakaway from the towing vehicle and which are capable of stopping and holding the trailer stationary for not less than 15 minutes.
Amended Ch. 121, Stats. 1991. Effective January 1, 1992.
RE: RVing from Vancouver BC to DisneyLand
If you wish to go to Astoria from Port Angeles I would suggest that you take 101 to 108 to 8 to 107 then back on 101.
I drive this route twice a year going to and from the Oregon coast and it is an excellent route. Not much traffic and I usually drive at 55mph.
RE: Hwy 101 in northern CA and OR
This is for "roadglide".
You are right about there being a very steep grade when leaving Crescent City in California, but your sense of direction is wrong. The steep grade is south of Crescent City on the way to Arcata / Eureka, not north on the way to Smith River or Brookings/Harbor.
RE: towing saturn l200
I sent the following to you in a private message email.
2007 ION Switch (wiring in a switch versus pulling fuse #41)
1 Radio Shack rocker switch #275-0712 has 3 legs on it marked Ground Load Power.
1 in line 40 amp fuse holder
1 40 amp fuse
Heat shrink tubing
5 female/male lugs (make sure that female/male lugs will fit over fuse box male/female lugs )
1 O-ring to waterproof switch to fuse box
The two legs for the 40 amp fuse will be located on the Ground and Load legs of the switch. The two wires for the 40 amp fuse legs will be located on the Load and the Power legs of the switch.
Since there are two wires on the Load leg join one of the fuse wires to a 6" wire that will be one of the wires that goes to the fuse block leg. A second 6" wire will sit on the Power leg of the switch and the other end will be the second fuse block wire.
The 4 wires will be: (see first photograph)
1 In-Line Fuse wire on the Ground lug of rocker switch
2 In- Line Fuse wire & Fuse block wire on Load lug of rocker switch
1 Fuse block wire on Power lug of rocker switch
As you look at the switch as shown i.e. Ground Load Power (see photograph 3),with the Rocker switch pressed down on the left or front – this the GO position. With the rocker switch pushed down on the right or back this is the TOW position.
If you have an VOM place it on the Ohms setting. With one of the leads connected to the third wire i.e. Power, take the other VOM lead and touch the center pin and the other pin.
In the GO position (rocker switch down on the left side) you should read approx. zero ohms on both pins.
In the TOW position you should see a flashing 1 saying open circuit.
I need an email address for you to send pictures and a wiring diagram. My own email address is iansanderson@juno.com
Some things I found out about the #41 fuse.
Your warning buzzer will no longer sound when you place the switch from GO to TOW.
It controls the ignition lock. If you have your key in the lock and you put the switch in the TOW position you are unable to remove the key from the lock.
Canadian Travel Health Insurance
I believe that the following should be mandatory reading for all Canadians who travel outside of their own province.
I just spent some time reviewing the statements (over 200) made by people who thought they were covered should a medical problem unexpecetedly occur whilst travelling.
This is the location of that file with video and comments:
http://www.cbc.ca/marketplace/2012/trippedup
The most important fact brought out is that you should be extremely careful when you fill out any medical questionnaire. If you have any questions regarding your state of health and the question(s) asked, contact the insurance company who is underwriting the policy for an answer.
RE: best route to hemet from nanaimo
Folks, I'm a little confused here. The MV Coho (BlackBall ferry) runs between Victoria, B.C. and Port Angeles, WA.
There is also a Washington state ferry that runs between Sydney, B.C. and Anacortes, WA.
I believe the person is talking about the ferry to Port Angeles and then Hwy. 101 to Olympia, WA to connect with I-5 and therefore would miss all of the traffic congestion found in and around the Seattle area.
I travel I-5 south first week of January every year and as mentioned by others you have to check the weather forecasts for the Siskiyous between Ashland, OR and Redding, CA with the worst weather usually found around Mt. Shasta at Weed to Dunsmuir. Further south the Grapevine on I-5 and Tehachapi on Hwy.58 can also be closed due to snow.
Fortunately these roads are mainline truck traffic corridors and any closures will be kept as short as possible by the Dept. of Highways for the regions involved.
P.S. I have had to route to Hwy.101 some years due to a chain-up requirement on I-5 at Ashland, OR. I do carry chains but will not use them. When I reach Grant's Pass, OR is when I either continue on I-5 or divert to Hwy.101.
RE: Do tow bars need to be replaced periodically?
I have an original Stowmaster 5000 (1992) from Roadmaster. It has about 75,000 miles of service over the last 20yr. and has been on three towcars since I bought it, 1991 Dodge Colt, 2002 Saturn SC2 and now an 2007 Saturn ION. The ION is the heaviest vehicle at 2805lb. the others being 2450lb.
About every 5yr. I have gone to the Roadmaster factory now located in Vancouver, WA previously in Portland, OR and have them overhaul the towbar, always free of charge.
This year after their inspection and overhaul at their factory, the young technician who brought the unit back noticed that when I did my final check that one of the motorhome brake lights was not working. He went back into the factory and returned with a new bulb which he then installed, again free of charge.
Roadmaster's customer service is still one of the best.
RE: water stain on the ceiling
Many Many Many years ago (1977) I was visiting Harrah's old car museum in Reno, NV. I was very interested in watching them do the restorations and got a chance to talk with one of the older workmen.
Since most of the vintage vehicles had cloth upholstery I asked him how they got rid of stains. His answer, use pure ammonia, spray it on generously (make sure you have some sort of towel to collect the excess) and let it sit a while, then dab the area with a clean cloth, keep repeating this until the stain is gone.
Fast forward some 17yr. to 1994. My class C Jamboree's roof antenna sprung a leak and there is a fairly large rust colored stain all around the AE crank handle area. Remembering what the technician at Harrah's had told me I spent about 3 days off and on spraying the affected area with ammonia. When I was finished there wasn't a blemish in sight.
RE: 101 in February
I usually take this route Southbound when the Siskiyous require chaining up. Here is the reverse route Northbound.
Take I-5 to I-580 to Mountain House Parkway (near Tracy, CA.) to J-4 to CA-4 to I-680 to I-780 to Curtola Pkwy to Mare Island Way to Wilson Ave. to Hwy. 37 to Lukeville Hwy. to US-101 at Petaluma.
This avoids all of the congestion in and around San Francisco.
RE: Brake assist for toads...yes or no?
For CA Traveler
Don't know where you got your information but auxilliary braking devices are not normally required for towed vehicles in Canada provided you meet certain requirements.
Canadian Regulations http://www.rvda.ca/ProvBrakeReqts.asp
I live in the Province of British Columbia, Canada where the rules for auxiliary braking requirements when towing are quite simple and very easy to understand:
MOTOR VEHICLE ACT REGULATIONS Continued
B.C. Reg. 26/58 Division 5 Brakes
Section 5.02. (7) Brakes and coordinated brake control are not required on a towed motor vehicle that has a laden gross vehicle weight less than 2000 kg and that is less than 40% of the gross vehicle weight rating of a motor home towing it via a tow bar.
B.C. Regs. 69/59, s. (j); 46/67, s. 10; 226/67, s. 4; 205/72, s. 6; 343/77; 459/77, s. 2; 256/84, s. 6; 257/96, s. 1; 109/97,
FYI: 2000 kg. is 4409.2 lb.
The 40% rule will apply to vehicles that weigh less than 5000 kg. or 11023.1 lb.
P.S.1 As far as I know, none of the auxilliary braking systems available today meet any kind of FEDERAL / STATE or PROVINCIAL standard.
P.S.2 In British Columbia, the same people that make the DMV rules i.e. the Government of B.C., are also the same people who insure us - ICBC, the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia.
Additional information:
home.roadrunner.com/~morodat/toad-brakes-by-state.html
http://www.airsafehitches.com/Towing_Laws.pdf
http://www.readybrake.com/state_laws.html
http://www.towingworld.com/articles/TowingLaws.htm
ONTARIO
http://www.mto.gov.on.ca/english/pubs/recreational-vehicles/part3.shtml#b
Brake Requirements
Service brakes are required on house trailers if the trailer's axle(s) transmit more than 1,360 kgs (3,000 lbs) to the road when the trailer is attached to the towing vehicle. This applies to cases where the trailer is loaded or empty. If brakes are required, at least one axle of the trailer must be fitted with brakes.
Brakes are not required on towed motor vehicles, whether towed with a tow bar or on a dolly. Tow dollies do not require brakes whether or not the dolly is carrying a motor vehicle.
House trailers with electric or hydraulic brakes are not required to have trailer breakaway braking devices or parking brakes while being towed in Ontario. Breakaway devices may be required in other Canadian provinces, the US and Mexico. Please contact those jurisdictions for their requirements.
1999 F53 left front leaf spring
My 1999 F53 is leaning low by about 2" on the drver's side. I understand that the cure is to have the long leaf springs re-arched.
We are currently on the North Oregon coast at Seaside, then north into Washington where we will be at TT La Conner for 2wks in late August.
Does anyone have a recommendation as to where I can get the front leaf spring re-arched. TIA.
RE: Battery reads 10.3 volts... what to do?
Charge each of the batteries independently. A fully charged battery should read 12.7 v D.C. If you are still getting only 10.3 v D.C. after charging then you have a dead cell.
RE: Questions on Braking System
For PI_Tom
Would you please provide a reference for this statement:
"With all the talk about braking on tow vehicles, especially after the BC government decided to legislate mandatory braking,"
