RE: Accepable Brake temps
Depends on rotor and caliper design, and pad material.
Some organic pad materials might start generating gases that reduce brake effectiveness around 700-1000 F.
With ceramic or sintered metallic pads, in road racing competition, one might run steel discs up to an orange color (about 1700F), cooling down to cherry red (1200 to 1500 F) between corners. But that heat can't be allowed to transfer to calipers or wheel bearings.
RE: Help! What is this thing? (73 Winnebago, Dodge R50 chassis?)
Old brochures are helpful, but not definitive.
Any model year, brochures are put together by the marketing department several months in advance of production based in plans made as much as a year earlier.
Not every product in the brochure gets made. As the model year progresses, production decisions can be changed, specifications change, additional models manufactured, and nobody writes new brochures to cover them. Or maybe they do, and you don't have the right edition. From my shopping in 2004, I have some radically different versions of 2003 and 2004 brochures from a couple manufacturers, e.g. totally different model offerings for 2004 Damon brochure dated 11/02 versus 2004 brochure dated 3/03, closer to start of '04 production.
Typing on top of Winnebago's online copy of '73 Chieftain brochure says "73 brochure before 73 1/2 revisions."
By 1974, the "Specifications" brochure was showing the larger Chieftains and Customs on 12,800 pound RM400 chassis, with the 440. The R50 was the next step up from RM400 in Dodge chassis size. RM375 was a step down from RM400.
Any logos on the side to say what model it is? Maybe an early '74?
RE: Can GPS learn preferred routes?
I can use Mapsource to tell my Garmin handheld the routes I want to take, controlled by waypoints I put in, and routing constraints in the program.
The handheld unit will use the set of waypoints to calculate each route, which will be the same as in Mapsource if it is using the same maps and routing constraints, but map different it the GPS is working with different maps than I used to create the route, or if the routing options are different.
Most of the high-end StreetPilots and GPSMap handhelds would do this.
I know not all Nuvis will. Not sure if any of them will. Nuvi is a different kind of GPS for a different kind of customer, one who wants the GPS to do the work with minimal input from the person using it.
Not sure how many GPS models, or mass market commercial software packages, still cater to the GPS geek who wants full control. Not many. There is lots of good software at the professional and enthusiast level, and all it needs is a dumb receiver that can say "this is where I am, now."
RE: Nuvi 250W
If you want the marine functions in the GPSMap 276, get the GPSMap 76Cx while it is still available.
If all you are using it for is driving, get a Nuvi. Consider where you will be driving, and cost of add-on maps. Nuvi 250 includes Canada and Alaska, Nuvi 200 does not.
RE: Navibe GM720 GPS, Roadnav & Vista
Did you install as administrator? Are you running as administrator?
Vista tries pretty hard to keep "ordinary users" and the applications they run away from hardware and system resources.
You might also check with the software vendor, if you need updates or a new version, to run on Vista.
RE: Check Your Tire Valves - 30 Million Recalled!
30 million tire valves manufactured in four months from one company? How many of these thing do we buy in a year?
Maybe 30 million is the potential number of replacement tire customers, nationally, for a six to nine month period?
RE: Check Your Tire Valves - 30 Million Recalled!
Just how could a bad valve cause a roll over in an SUV?
Self inflicted.
"Oh dang, something is wrong."
Stomp brake.
Yank steering wheel hard over to get to shoulder quickly.
Road rash on roof.
The above sequence occurs easily in the absense of vehicle handling knowledge which is excessively rampant.
I guess.
I have had complete blow outs that didn't cause roll overs and a valve steam blowing is NOTHING compared to a blow out.
Mike
OTOH Bill C's chubby girlfriend rolled her Explorer by looking for her purse.
RE: Digital TV Converter Box for RV/Travel Trailer
We were in Mancelona last week. Got about 10 digital stations. I would suspect that you have a bad box or bad hookup. The stations near Traverse City are quite strong.
Now admittedly, we are on the very south end of Lake Leelanau (drive by Kalkaska to get there) where our elevation is indeed low. Just to the south and southeast of us is a rather elevated area where there are/were ski lodges and such. Line of sight signal doesn't reach us real well, but if I can get these channels analog, I should get them digital it seems.
We've found that is currently not the case. Getting analog does not mean getting digital, the digital has a signal strength threshold that must be overcome.
We are 50 to 70 miles from the city that hosts our broadcast stations in the places we camp, and these being at reservoirs, usually down in a hole. We can get a poor to moderately OK signal for the analog broadcasts 3 to 7 stations depending on which, zilch on digital for these stations, except for one, rarely two.
This is on digital TVs with built-in tuners, not converter boxes. We can only hope it gets better, if they crank up power on the digital when they cut off the analog.
RE: Tiger truck camper-anyone have one?
Tiger CX is a C, by RV industry definition. It is a house built on a cutaway or cab chassis. It is not a truck camper hybrid. It is not the first C to use a conventional truck cab (consider Xplorer, Winnebago, FourWinds, Jayco, Gulfstream, Scotty, National who have used conventional cabs in past or are doing it now), and it won't be the last.
C's come in all sizes under 6000 pounds to over 30,0000 pounds, built on cutaway and cab-chassis of pickups, minivans, large vans, and class 4-8 trucks.
RE: Any problems with Firefox 3.0?
They just pushed 3.0.1 at me, two days ago. On XP SP2+.
It works at least as well as the previous version, but they've changed the Bookmark interface a bit, added something called "tags" (a bookmark for bookmarks?) that I've not yet figured out.
RE: Class C towing
If they are talking about all the equipment including brakes, and installation, $2500 is not too bad.
If you don't put brakes on the towed vehicle, and are willing to use a cheap A-frame towbar, you could probably get the cost under $1000. But a C pulling a 3500 car without brakes, don't expect any stopping performance in an emergency.
RE: Falken Tires????
It is a brand owned by Sumitomo. In the U.S. the Falken brand is used mostly for replacement performance tires, and light truck tires.
Some other companies (e.g. Michelin) put a third steel belt on D and E range LT radials. Falken does not.
Comparing prices at Discount Tire, at $100 each you would be saving $40-60 per tire compared to Michelin LTX M/S or commercial grade Goodyear Wranglers. The best tire you can get in that size is the Michelin XPS Rib, at least $200.
RE: Travel Trailer Inspection
I guess another question is has anyone ever been pulled over and ticketed for not having an inspection sticker?
Yes, but for having an expired inspection sticker.
RE: Forest River Products
Within our camping club, experience is that Forest River, in price-leader lines at least, scrimps on QC to meet a price point. Two examples:
One owner with a Sierra fiver, bought new, electric brakes didn't work. Dealer couldn't fix them during the warranty period, tried to blame the TV and brake controller. Owner asked for a wiring diagram, Forest River responded: "we don't have wiring diagrams, every RV is wired differently." Eventually the owner hired an electrician to trace the wiring, found the junction in the basement where the brake wiring had not been connected. Owner has 30+ years RV experience, says this is the worst one he ever bought.
Another owner bought a used two-year old double-slide Sunseeker, October last year (out of warranty, of course). It was a trade-in on a Winnebago. They had problems with non-functional wiring, slideouts poorly sealed, cabinetry coming apart, and general usability problems (she says: "this was designed by someone who never uses a RV!"). Used for two campouts in fall, a winter trip, then they took it back to the same dealer and traded it on a Winnebago, same size and floorplan, more or less. They are happier now; Winnie is not trouble free, but dealer takes care of things, and everything fits better and stuff works the way they expect it to, based on 40+ years and a dozen RVs experience.
RE: 1970 Olds Toronado Class C ???
That's a current listing?
That vehicle was advertised on EBay several months ago. I wonder if the reserve was never met, a sale fell through, or a buyer is reselling it?
The GMC Motorhome line, same era, also used the Tornado drivetrain.
RE: German Campervans
Westfalia was building on VW chassis as recently as 2001, using the T4 van (we called it Eurovan here). We got this van in gas engine only, and Winnebago marketed the Westfalia conversion for VW.
Daimler now owns Westfalia-Werke's camper van business unit. Don't expect Westfalia conversions on a competitor's chassis.
In Europe, you can buy VW camper vans, VW now does the work themselves. There are a number of other van conversion companies, using most of the van and minivan brands available. Minivan conversions (4000-5000# GVW) are more in the spirit of the camper on the T2 van.
If you want to try out Westfalia camping, Aloha Campers in Hawaii that has Vanagon Westies for rent, about $125 per day.
RE: Is 12 feet too far to run cable for a 2nd house battery?
If the cable is big enough.
125-150 amps charging, 12 feet, 0 gauge. Both positive and negative, to tie the batteries together.
OEM on my 2-foot connection was 2 guage, for charging loads 40 amps from converter, 130 amps from alternator, draw from slideout motors 50 amps.
RE: E350 Rough Ride
The van, cargo or passenger, has a somewhat different chassis than the cut-away or cab-chassis. These need a lower ride height at the top of the frame rails, to meet the floor-height needs of RV, mini-bus, ambulance fitters.
RE: Weight Distribution
If you are really under 1400 pounds on the front, that C is going to handle very strange, all over the road with every bump and breath of wind.
My fresh water tanks are midway between the front and rear axles. I fill them (600 pounds) to travel, because I can feel the difference with just that much more front axle load. As much of the heavy stuff as possible goes into the storage bins and under-dinette cabinets at the front of the house. I don't put heavy loads in the overhead, don't like to see it bouncing in front of me.
If you are 3180# on the front, that's not too far out of balance, but I would still try to load toward the front.
Pretty much everything you load between the front of the house and the rear axle will load about 50-50 front and rear; there is not much leverage here. Whatever you load behind the rear axle, it is 100% plus to the rear, as weight comes off the front. The further back, the worse the weight shift.
RE: Sprinter Chassis Doesn't Add Up
150 HP is adequate for an 11,000 pound motorhome, especially if the power is always available.
A lot of 15,000 to 26,000 pound vehicles got by fine on 160 to 190 turbo-diesel horsepower, until marketing got into a horsepower race. In the trucking industry, 400-450 HP is still used regularly for 60,000 to 80,000 pound loads. Your grade performance will be in the same class as these heavy vehicles.
If your expectations are that a motorhome should climb hills like a 3000 pound sedan with a 240 HP engine, that isn't going to happen, not even when you get up to the class of 600 HP pulling 40,000 pounds.
