43 - Final Posting

SOLD

2017 Coachmen Orion 24RBT

We have reached a new and unfamiliar stage -- No RV ownership. "Phrynie," our Orion, is now under new management. We made the last trip as a delivery to Sterling, Colorado, where we handed the keys and title over to her new owner. The final two weeks of ownership consisted of a removing all our personal goods and doing a thorough cleaning and fixing minor things. I also attended to answering questions from our listings and doing some showings and demo drives.

The new owner said she looked at three similar coaches; one in lesser condition, one a year newer at a lower price, and ours. She opted for Phrynie because of the additional features like the ladder and solar that I added, and because of the complete background that this Blog provided for her.

I intend to maintain this Blog online, but with no added material, for as long as there seems to be interest. I am happy that many have found useful information in my various ramblings. I will continue to entertain any questions or comments and respond as able and appropriate.

Thanks to all for the interest and feedback. If you have an Orion, happy continued RV-ing. If you are thinking of getting an Orion, maybe reading through this Blog will support your decision.

Happy travels.

 

42 - Odds & End(ing?)

At our usual winter location of Yuma, AZ, since late October '23 to today, April 2, 2024. The season is winding down and we begin preparations for the return trip to Colorado. Phrynie, our faithful Orion, has mostly been parked in the Resort storage lot. She only got exercised once last week when I drove it a few miles into town for an appointment and to fill her gas tank. I have regularly run the generator every month.

We have reached the decision to offer Phrynie for sale after our return to Colorado. It is hard to consider after so many good years of travel and enjoyment, and our long-time ownership of all types of RVs. I estimate we have spent at least four years of our married life living in an RV. I can't estimate the tens of thousands of miles traveled; maybe a hundred thousand to most of the states and five Canadian provinces. The factors now are our age, increased costs of insurance, taxes, maintenance, and most everything else connected with RV travel. And frankly, I am getting weary of maintaining the equivalent of three houses and three motor vehicles. I believe we will find other travel adventures, and we can always rent if the RV travel bug bites us bad enough.

So, a well-maintained and much-loved 2017 Coachmen Orion 24RBT for Transit Class C motorhome with relative low mileage will be available for sale around the end of May.

One final detail. A few folks have asked how I mounted the shelves in the rear side compartment. I used the wire shelf mounting brackets as shown in the photo and screwed them into the side and rear walls as shown in the picture. I put a dab of epoxy glue on each, but I'm not sure if the glue sticks well to that kind of plastic. At any rate, no problems or loosening have developed, and I put a fair load on the shelves.

41 - New Stuff

In Post #39 I described getting two new front tires, and Post #40 I pictured some cracks that developed in the windshield. Both issues are now resolved.

Tires - The two Michelin front tires I had to buy in Tucson were recalled for mis-labeling soon after returning home in May. There was no physical or manufacturing defect with the tires; they were labeled as snow tires but not certified as such. I was not satisfied with them as front tires at any rate. They were more aggressive and suited for trucks and 4-wheel drives. They didn't track well and tended to wander, requiring more steering effort. The replacement offer was welcome, so I elected to get six new tires. It seems wasteful to discard tires only half worn out, but the OEM Hankook tires were seven years old and had cracking along the sidewalls. And regard the fact that one failed. Of the choices available, I decided on Firestone Transport tires. They are rated equivalent to Hankook and other brands, and I had good experience with Firestones on our previous RV. I wanted Nokian tires, but they were not available. My seat-of-the-pants assessment is that the Firestones seem to be smoother riding than the Hankooks.

Windshield - I went by a former service shop and found it had been converted to a Novus auto glass shop. So I figured I would ask about replacing the Transit windshield. I expected to pay the cost because the cracks were not from driving or hazards except for a stone chip that did spread at least four years after the fact. The manager offered to contact my insurance company anyway. As he did, I provided my policy info and answered a few questions giving an approximate incident date. The result was 100% coverage, no deductible, and expert installation of a new windshield. I even got my upper tinting done like I did before (Post #11) and paid by insurance.

Paint and finish - I continue to experience fading, cracks in the front cap, and general dullness of the side panels. I am resigned to the fact that a fiberglass/plastic body RV will degrade over time from weather and sun exposure. Two previous FRP RVs developed similar problems. I try to keep up with washing and waxing, but extended time in storage and harsh elements takes a toll.

The arrow points to a fade spot that like a layer of gel or color that has come off. I covered the cracks with Gorilla tape (circle).

To the left of the red lines is what the coach panels looked like one year after three days of laborious polishing and waxing, plus an additional professional cleaning and waxing five months later. On the right side of the lines is the result of my latest effort. My process involved spraying a light film of WD-40 on the side and then rubbing with a cloth. The result from ten minutes of work was equivalent to an hour of tiring polishing with an orbital polisher. I have been criticized for using WD-40 on the coach, and perhaps the long term will prove them right. I definitely AM NOT recommending this. I treated all the side panels and decals this way and then washed them with mild detergent and a rinse. I used no wax or other treatment. After a month exposed to the usual in storage, everything still looks reasonably shiny. We shall see what it looks like next summer from the WD-40 treatment.

40 - Rear Camera Monitor Relocation

 I have previously noted (Post #37) that the rear camera monitor fell down during a trip and I had to glue the windshield mount back on. The mount, which is for a much lighter rear view mirror, detached from the windshield and pulled a chunk of the glass with it. That caused a crack to spread from the damaged area downward. Since then, another crack has emerged spreading from the top of the windshield downward as seen in the picture below.

The monitor is fairly heavy and really puts a lot of stress on the mount. Looking at the reality of replacing the windshield, I was not going to repeat a faulty installation method. So I made a bracket to attach to the Transit's overhead shelf/headliner, on which to hold the monitor. I used materials I had on hand. The color for the bracket was not the best choice for the gray interior, but it doesn't show much.

I attached the bracket to the overhead unit using screws and epoxy glue, and then bolted the monitor mount to the bracket. While the attachment is solid, the whole plastic overhead unit does flex a bit, so the monitor jiggles a little while driving on rough roads. I couldn't position the monitor much further away from the windshield due to the length of the attached electrical cord.

Here is the driver's view. The monitor is now further up and more out of the view to the front. The original mount point is visible in the bottom center of the center solar grid. The arrows point to the cracks that have developed.

39 - Forced Re-tire-ment?

April-2023. This it the time of year for our return trip from Yuma AZ to our Parker CO home. Because of our activity schedule and unseasonably cool weather, we did not use the Orion at all during the whole five month winter season. I only checked on it periodically in storage to run the generator for a few minutes, and drive the coach a couple of miles for "exercise". To prepare for travel, we spent a couple of days cleaning, washing, waxing, checking fluids and tires, and flushing the water system. Then we loaded all our stuff, which seems to increase each year.

Our usual route is I-8 to I-10 at Casa Grande, to Las Cruces NM, then north on I-25 to the Denver area. Fully loaded and towing Baby Mac (Smart car), the trip started normally. Just past Casa Grande, I started to feel some vibration. I stopped and checked all the tires and looked for any problems but didn't see anything. As I drove on, the vibration got worse and the steering wheel was shaking a bit. I slowed down and we managed to get to a tire store in Tucson. The service guy pointed out a slight bulge in the middle of the right front tire. This store did not have the odd Transit size (195/75-16C), but he called and located tires at a store in southeast Tucson (luckily, on our route). 

They only had Michelin tires in the right size. Michelins are great tires overall, but I would not pick them given a choice because they are the most expensive, and I thought the tread pattern was overly aggressive for highway driving. The OEM Hankook tires have performed well despite the one failing. Phrynie's tires are about seven years old which is considered end of life, and there is some sidewall cracking. So, I need to accept that it's time to replace them all despite the fact that they have plenty of tread left.

Given no option, two new Michelin tires were installed on the front. The tire problem cost us about four hours delay, but we still managed to get to our planned campground. The rest of the trip home was uneventful and I have to admit that the Michelin tires seem perfectly fine; smooth riding and quiet. Now I have to plan to have the four rear tires replaced before our next trip.

When we are enroute and not staying in an area, it's always nice to be able to get a nice pull-through campsite and just hook up to shore power. I didn't have to unhook the car the whole trip home. This is our spot at Black Mesa Casino north of Albuquerque.

When I say we are loaded during our migration trips, that means all our food and clothing and tools and hobbies and computers and tech gear and stuff that we transfer between our two houses. We usually have four modular boxes of goods placed in the shower stall. A large tote box of food and kitchen stuff is in the back of the car along with hobby stuff and bags of shoes. The coach compartments get miscellaneous odd-sized stuff along with my tools and coach service stuff. Since I don't want to own duplicate equipment, I pack a circular saw, hand grinder, saber saw, nail gun, drill kit, and complete tool set. Of course, the fridge is full along with the pantry and closets. Yes, it all fits and we can still live comfortably, and still under the gross combined weight limits for Phrynie.

Here is how I make use of the large side rear compartment by adding a couple of wire shelves and using a cargo net to keep stuff in place. I've got a full set of dual leveling blocks on the bottom there. I keep four more single blocks spread out under the passenger floor mat. I mostly use those because they are easier to access and I usually don't need more than one or two.

38 - Maintenance and Trip Prep and a Disclaimer, October 2022

PLEASE READ MY DISCLAIMER BELOW.

Time for the annual oil change on the Transit came up in September. I decided to go to the local Valvoline Instant Oil Change station near us. I had a less than satisfactory experience at Grease Monkey more than once, so thought I would try the competition. Both stores have entry doors and bays big enough for the Orion, and they use pits to access and service from underneath rather than putting the vehicles on a lift like most dealers use. Valvoline proved to be fine. Very courteous and efficient service, and they didn't try to sell me every filter and wiper blade that I didn't need.

I opted for their top full synthetic oil. The charge was $91 for oil and filter and $16 for labor. Including tax, the total came to about $113. This compares to about $85 I had been paying for the regular semi-synthetic blend oil before. So, not out of line.

I changed the generator oil myself. It is pretty easy and there is no oil filter to deal with. I used a high grade full synthetic oil for motorcycles. I figure that a motorcycle engine is similar to a generator but operates at much higher RPMs and more hours, so should be plenty adequate in this application. Our generator doesn't get much use--barely 35 hours in five years. I am only changing its oil every second year.

We are preparing for our annual migration to Arizona. "Phrynie" has been at the storage location most of our time here in Colorado except for the Yellowstone trip, one weekend getaway, and occasional short trips to exercise her or do some minor maintenance or cleaning. Other than clearing out a few dead bugs that managed to crawl inside, the coach is in fine shape. The battery has been on maintenance charge from the solar all the time and checks out OK. It looks like the weather will hold with no freezing, so I can avoid winterizing the systems before we leave.

I am seeing some cracks in the tires along the sidewall/tread area. I really should put covers over the tires during storage to slow sun exposure. But after losing two sets of covers to winds, I just wasn't motivated to get another set. Undoubtedly dumb thinking considering the cost of covers vs. six new tires. I am told these are surface cracks for now but to keep an eye on them. I will check on my emergency road service plan.

DISCLAIMER:  I should add a strong caveat: all the procedures I do and products I use are working for me. I have selected these based on my own research and experience. I do not intend in any way to recommend to you any product or procedure described in this blog. Do your own research and thinking. Make up your own mind. What you do or prefer is your own responsibility.

37 - July 2022 Trip to Yellowstone

 The Orion has been idle since our April return home. I have been neglecting the outside appearance and the coach siding was looking dull. I tried a bit of rubbing compound on the rear and found the gloss was still under the layer of oxidized polish or general grime. I proceeded to hand rub and polish one side and part of the rear over two days before coming to the conclusion that (1) it was a lot of work, and (2) the result by hand wasn't consistent. So I bought an orbital polisher and finished the job properly. Obviously, a job that needs to be done more than once every six years. The rear cap that discolored from UV exposure cleaned up pretty well and the color mismatch is not so obvious now.

Test area - The gloss is under there!

We made a 1,430 mile trip to Yellowstone Park in late July and early August. We towed the Smart car and got the usual low 13's MPG with the a/c on most of the time. I paid up to $5.00/gal. for gas, and was elated to find $3.60 gas in Casper, WY. The Transit chassis remains trouble-free and performed well. The coach part is also holding up although there are some cracks on the top of the front fiberglass cap near the sides. There are about a half-dozen from one to two inches long in three clusters. I have put some clear Gorilla tape over them and that seems to be holding up. I had similar cracks appear on the caps of our former Class A coach. It's disappointing that the material is not more resistant to cracking, but the environment we are in is pretty severe for temperature and solar UV extremes.

On a previous trip, the camera monitor mounting point came off the windshield and the whole unit dropped until hanging by the wire. I epoxy glued it back on. When it detached, some of the inside glass surface came with it. Now a crack has developed starting at that monitor mount area and spreading downward. Luckily, it is right in the middle of the windshield and not too noticeable from either seat. It also got a couple of small spider web dings from stones that seem to be slowly growing.  I suppose a windshield replacement will eventually be required. That monitor is too heavy for a basic rear-view mirror mount. I think I will investigate a way to mount it to the overhead structure.

Windshield crack

On this trip, we dry-camped a total of seven nights. I was very pleased with the performance of the lithium battery and solar system. One night was quite cold and the furnace cycled for three or four hours, along with normal use of lights, water pump, and refrigerator operation. There was never a hint of low voltage. The battery was fully recharged from the solar by mid-afternoon, even with partial shade some of the time. The camping experience also proved that the holding tanks have about four nights use capacity, and can stretch to five with some conservation. That is with our style of living.

36 - Yuma to Denver in April, 2022

We made our annual snowbird return migration, driving 1,190 miles in four days. Other than dealing with steeply inflated gas prices, the trip was trouble-free and quite enjoyable. We made overnight stops in Willcox, AZ, Las Cruces, NM, and Las Vegas, NM. Fuel mileage was typical at mid 12's to low 13's loaded and towing the Smart car.

The Orion was loaded with full water and gas plus all the goods we transfer between our winter and summer houses. We had four fairly heavy boxes plus one suitcase containing food, clothing, and miscellaneous gear distributed between the shower stall and the car. The refrigerator and freezer were crammed full. I also carry a tool box plus two saws, a grinder, and a drill set for projects at both places. I am pleased with myself with how much I can cram into both vehicles and still have some room left over.

I continue to be pleased with the performance of the Transit in our particular configuration of travel. The repairs I had done over the winter were successful with the furnace and rear-view camera and monitor working perfectly. I like having the monitor set up to be in the rear view all the time, and not be distracted by the view changing when I put a turn signal on.

Phrynie is showing her age a bit now. The rear cap is mostly all faded to a lighter color now. The side panels are also not looking as glossy as new. I probably need to spend some time and effort to polish and wax the coach box soon. I tried a "ceramic" wax. It seemed better at first, but maybe is worn off now. That wax seems to work better on my cars than the panel siding of the coach. At about 30,000 miles, all six Hankook OEM tires still have lots of tread remaining. No sidewall cracking either.

Plans for this summer include some local camping trips and a late July run up to Yellowstone. We will have a chance to exercise the solar charging and lithium battery then because of planned extended dry camping.

35 - Professional Repair Work

 Winter - 2021-22

We are again at our winter residence in Yuma, AZ. I had a couple of maintenance items on my to-do list that needed professional attention. These were (1) inspect and re-caulk roof seams as needed, and (2) fix the side/rear view camera and monitor system. I don't much care to do roof work any more and wanted a thorough inspection of it. No problem there, just doing preventative maintenance. The camera/monitor system has not been working reliably as reported in previous postings, and had been more intermittent through last summer and fall. It seemed the rear view would not come on just at the times I needed it most for backing up, and the left view wasn't working at all. On our trip from Colorado to Yuma in late October, a new problem surfaced. The furnace would not come on, and that on a very chilly night in Las Vegas, NM. Naturally!

Since I didn't buy our Orion in Colorado, I don't have a dealer or go-to service shop there. When I called the one listed dealer for Coachmen motor coaches, they were booked up way beyond our departure date. So, I contacted the Yuma dealer, RV World, and was able to get a mid-December appointment -- the earliest available. I have taken Phrynie to RV World before, and they are very good. The service manager is super and very considerate to make sure everything needed is done. I don't consider their charges to be unreasonable either.

Upon completion within one day, the roof was cleaned and nicely caulked. The furnace needed a new limit switch. That is not something I could have fixed on my own. And the cameras and monitor system now work perfectly. It turned out to be damaged wiring somewhere between the left camera and control module. After rewiring, they did a "reprogramming" of the camera system. When I picked the coach up, the service manager showed me how to set the various options on the monitor. I have it so that it is on the rear view all the time. I never liked the side views and never used them as I think they are more distracting than just looking in a rear view mirror. Bottom line cost was right at $400 for all that, and everything in Phrynie is working great now.

I made a short three day trip to Quartzite in January to attend the big RV "circus". I had never been to that event before. I spent two nights dry camping with my brother in the desert west of town. It was a good chance to test the lithium battery. I was extremely pleased that the battery easily ran the furnace and refrigerator through both chilly nights with almost no drop in voltage. My 100 watt solar system had the battery fully charged in a fairly short time. And it easily maintains charge while Phrynie sits in storage.

 34 - Facebook Group

I want to recommend all Orion owners and other interested folks to join the Facebook group "Coachmen Orion Owners Group".  It's always good to have community support. The link is below, and I can provide an invite if needed.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/821043631790878

 33 - Five Years of Ownership & A Few Problems

October 2021 is the fifth anniversary of owning our Orion. Problems happen. We are fortunate in not having had any significant or costly problems in those five years. But I will list four that have occurred, one of which I fixed, one that is ongoing, one which is pending a dealer repair, and one that is disappointing but does not affect performance.

The fixed problem: On last year's migration to Yuma, we stopped for a night in Las Cruces, NM. I happened to look at the rear door frosted window and noticed that I could see out clearly through the upper 2 or 3 inches of it. In fact, I could put my hand through the space because the glass had slipped down into the bottom of the window frame.

I disassembled the window by removing the screws in the frame and separating the inner and outer halves. Two issues were apparent. The caulking that served to seal the window on the outside as well as be an adhesive had dried and failed. There are also plastic tabs on one frame half that locate and hold the glass on four sides, but the tabs at the bottom were broken. This allowed the glass to slide down to the bottom of the frame. My fix was to invert the tabbed frame so that there were good tabs on the bottom. I applied new caulk in the frame caulk channel and then applied poly adhesive on the perimeter of the glass and reassembled the works. Some of the glue seeped out and shows a little (OK, I'm not a perfectionist), but it's holding together now.

The ongoing problem: The plastic drawer latches (left, below) are breaking one-by-one. The little plastic spring catch in the square part eventually fails to stay snapped open when the drawer is opened. Then when we shut the door, the hook part hits and breaks the catch piece off. I bought a package of four replacement latches like the originals, and now I have used them all.

I ordered a set of the simple U-shape spring clamps with nylon catch plates as shown on the right. I'm thinking simple ought to be better, so these will be installed when the next OEM plastic ones fail.

Need dealer help problem: I have had problems with the side/rear view camera and monitor system as noted before (Post #21 & 29 ). The left camera view has not worked for at least three years. Then the monitor would sometimes stick on the right side view instead of turning off or reverting to the rear view. On this last trip, the monitor either did not work at all either by shifting into reverse or trying to power it on manually. Maybe one time in five, it would work. I tried to trace the wiring and locate the control module, but Coachmen has it buried somewhere I haven't discovered. This could be a costly problem, but I really need the rear view working at least. I can do without the side views as I find them too hard and distracting to focus in on safely in the heat of traffic.

The disappointing problem: As I mentioned in Post #30 , the rear cap surround of the coach has discolored and faded. I'm assuming that this is made of fiberglass, and either the finish coat failed or the base color was not sun/UV resistant. It is noticeably lighter in color than the wall panels now and has a somewhat dull flat patina. Like I say, it does not affect anything otherwise, and it has mostly faded to a consistent shade overall with only a couple of patches of the original color remaining around the right tail light and lower area.

I have no option but to store the coach in the strong sun of Colorado and Arizona. However, the front cap and other trim pieces seem to be holding up so far. I can probably live with the two-tone look.

 32 - Lithium Battery Installation

I replaced the two group 24 lead-acid coach batteries (see Post #17) weighing 90 lbs. with one 28 lb. lithium battery. I almost bought a 130 lb. 200 amp-hour AGM battery before deciding that lithium made more sense for the same price. I doubt I was getting more than 60 amp-hours from the former before the voltage dropped below 12. The LiFePo4 battery is rated at 80% of 100 amp-hours and is supposed to maintain less voltage drop over a longer discharge cycle.

My battery requirements are pretty constant; support the coach systems I use for one night between sunset and dawn without draining the battery excessively which would shorten the life. These include ...

- maintain refrigerator operation even though it is on propane

- using lights as desired

- operating water pump as needed

- operating furnace as needed

- capacity to start generator

- intermittent or occasional use of other 12V items (e.g., bed operation, using or charging electronic devices)

Installation and modifications: The single battery fit easily and left room for storing an auxiliary charger and small compressor. The battery has built-in management system and low-temperature protection. It is a generic Chinese-made battery from Amazon (brand name "Lisuateli") that has good reviews. The Victron solar charge controller (Post #19) has a lithium charge profile option which I set via the phone app. I have not changed the coach charger/convertor unit, nor the Transit's battery charge system from the standard lead-acid setup for now. From what I have read, regular chargers may not fully charge a lithium battery or take too long. But in limited use so far, the combination of the solar and regular systems is getting the full 14.6V recommended into it according to the Victron app, and I assume the battery's control system protects the unit from overcharge. Time will tell.

Lithium batteries must not be charged at below-freezing temperatures. I am not inclined to trust the battery's supposed low temp protection, so I installed a primary cut-off switch at the entry step (red key-switch in picture). This totally disconnects the battery from getting any charge (from either alternator, house convertor, or solar controller). The coach battery disconnect switch on the wall by the entry only disconnects current to house circuits (lights, fridge, etc.) but still permits charging. So I will switch off the battery totally during below-freezing temps.

I have only had one night of dry camping experience so far. The voltage before retiring was 13.2, and it was 13.1 the next morning. The old batteries went from 12.6V to 12 or less overnight. (Digital voltage reading at a coach power outlet--usually reads 0.2V less than at battery terminals. I don't have the equipment to measure actual SoC or capacity.) My solar system has proved to be adequate in fully recharging the batteries after a night of dry camping. It is keeping the lithium battery at full charge now during coach storage. I believe this one 100 amp-hour rated lithium battery will outperform the two deep-cycle batteries it replaced.

31 - Ford Transit Maintenance

 As of August, 2021, the Orion has accumulated 26,600 miles. We have had no issues to deal with other that the continued fading of the rear cap as previously reported. I had a full 30k mile interval service performed at my Ford truck service center. This one proved the most costly so far at $325, but was comprehensive. I opted to upgrade to full-synthetic engine oil for which they charged me triple the cost of the synthetic-blend used before. And they ripped me more by charging $9 to top off the windshield washer fluid. I will be more selective about what services I get if I have to go to Ford again; otherwise, I will have a local shop do oil changes as I have done before.

I decided to change cabin air filters on my three vehicles this summer. As usual, I looked for a You Tube video to get an idea of what to do. The guy in the video for the Transit filter showed that his Transit did not have an air filter installed at all even though there is a slot for one. I checked mine and, sure enough, there was no OEM filter. Begs the question why Ford doesn't provide a cabin air filter to begin with? At any rate, the procedure is very simple; just drop the glove box and remove the filter slot cover and insert the filter. Shown below is the new filter I got from Amazon, and the filter slot.

We have a couple of trips planned soon. I have ordered a new AGM battery to replace the two 12V house batteries under the entry steps. They are questionable for holding a charge now. I will post the installation of the new battery when the job is done.

30 - Goofed Again!!! And minor paint issue

It's the end of June, 2020, and it's been a year since I last posted. As far as anything of significance to report, there has really been nothing which is mostly why no blog update. And that's good. The problems I had were self-inflicted.

We took our annual winter get-away from Parker to Yuma the first week of December, 2019. It was cold and snowy when we loaded, about 20 to 30 deg. F and ice on the driveway. Not fun. I wanted to have water available for the trip which meant flushing anti-freeze out of the plumbing and charging the lines with water and filling the tank about one-third full. In the process of pressurizing the system, I was greeted with water flowing out from within and below the kitchen sink cabinet. I managed to get the pressure cut off with only a couple of quarts of water to mop up. The problem turned out to be with the 1/4" plastic water line from the water filter to the faucet that I had installed previously (Post 15). Apparently I did not push the line into the faucet fitting far enough to get a proper grip, and it chose that time to come out. Lucky catch, really, even if it was a bit of a mess and a hassle.

The trip to Yuma loaded with all the stuff we move between houses and towing the Smart car was uneventful. I did have to park and connect to electricity in six inches of snow at our first overnight stop in Las Vegas, NM. But we were warm and snug and slept well.

I put the Orion into the resort storage lot soon after arrival after draining all the liquids and adding fuel stabilizer, where it remained until we prepped it for return to Parker this May 4. I had hoped to make a couple of short trips in it this spring, but the Covid situation put the stop to our plans. I did take Phrynie (Orion's name) out for a couple of drives to circulate everything, and ran the generator at least once a month. One of the outings was to a Yuma shopping center to meet up with Terri from San Diego. She is a follower of this blog and was traveling through in her Orion.

We had an uneventful trip back home during the virus lockdowns. There was no problem getting gas. We only stopped for one meal which was takeout; otherwise, we made our meals in the RV. Our first night was spent at the Lordsburg, NM, rest area. The second was at the same Las Vegas, NM, campground we were at in December. Thankfully, no snow.

So, my second goof was a repeat of last year. I put Phrynie in storage and, yes, I forgot once more to shut off the furnace while leaving the propane and battery switches on. After a week, I went to check on her and did a readout of the battery charge history. Yes, basically drained to dead every night and charged back up by the solar during the day until it ran out of propane. I wonder if I will ever get this right? Another check list?

I got the propane tank filled up and brought Phrynie home to check the batteries. Other than the water level being low, they seem to be OK for now. I may have shortened their life though. I did clean up the battery compartment and remount them more securely.

The one issue that belongs to the Orion is some fading/discoloring on the right side of the rear cap. It's probably a sun issue. She sits in the open in storage so, other that getting a cover of some kind, not much I can do. I have waxed the coach yearly with a good quality ceramic sealant that is supposed to provide some UV protection. I can live with it, but kind of disappointing for only four years old.

29 - Napa Valley Trip (and goof)

We had a planned trip to Stockton, CA, in mid-June which extended to visiting relatives in St. Helena in the Napa Valley. Our first two nights were dry camping on Lake Dillon near Frisco, CO, at 9,000 ft. altitude. And it was cold. Down to upper 30's at night. We ran the furnace for a bit and I went to check the propane level gauge, which I forgot to do before. I thought we had plenty, having filled the tank the season before and not using much. I was shocked to see "empty" on the gauge. So we used the furnace sparingly to save propane for cooking until I could refill. In the morning, I tried to start the generator to have electric heat, but that was no-go due to altitude and low temp. I got in the Smart car and drove to Frisco to the propane dealer only to find, being it was Saturday, they were closed for the weekend. I finally found the only open propane outlet a few miles away in Silverthorne, so I returned to the Orion and we got it ready to drive. At the propane store, a seemingly competent young man hooked up the supply hose and started to fill. He stopped after about two gallons saying the tank vent was stuck and he couldn't put any more in. I figured, oh great, another thing to deal with. But I was happy to get enough propane to get us through the weekend and on to a service shop.

Our first overnight after Frisco was Green River, UT. I took the coach to a Pilot station to see if they could do any better filling the propane tank. And they did as if there was no problem at all. I don't know if the Silverthorne guy just didn't do it right, or maybe altitude and temperature were factors. Anyway, there was no problem after all and we proceeded with the trip.

Now all that is a result of operator error on my part. When I put the coach in storage around the first of May, I unknowingly left the furnace on. I did have the battery disconnect switch off for some of the time, but I turned it on for some work and the furnace must have run some during cool periods, which depleted the propane supply. Another lesson learned..... I hope.

From Green River, we traveled Highway 50 across to Carson City, NV. The "loneliest road in America" was sometimes that, but a very scenic and mostly good drive. There are a lot of up and down passes through the various mountain ranges which the Orion handled just fine towing the new Smart. Carson City was a very pleasant stop for a couple of days including a trip to Lake Tahoe in the Smart. From Carson City, we took Highway 88 over the Sierras to Stockton. That had an amazing 50 mile downgrade it seemed from the high point. I really appreciate the tow-haul transmission mode and manual gear shifting. Sure saves on the brakes.

We had a great time in Stockton, the Napa area, and made the return via Interstate 80 to Cheyenne and back home. All coach systems continue to perform well. Driving and living in the Orion suit us perfectly. Calculated mileage for the 2,600 mile trip was 13.4 mpg. The drain valves even behaved and didn't leak. The new Smart (now aka "Baby Mac") towed as well as the previous one. I couldn't tell any difference in how it trailed or impacted the coach performance, even though it is about 150 pounds heavier. The procedure to set it up to tow is different than the older car, but it got routine after a few times. I did have a dead battery in the Smart after three days of continuous towing. I thought I was disconnecting the battery via a knife switch, but discovered two non-OEM ground wire still connected that were keeping the computer and some systems on. Rerouting those ground wires cured the problem.

I have one issue now; the side/rear-view camera system. I get no picture from the left turn signal, and the rear view sometimes goes out. I don't have any changes planned for the Orion except minor ones; adding hanger hooks and adding a shelf to the over sink cabinets. Removing the outside TV to provide storage space for the sewer hose is working well. The driver-side storage compartment is now better organized. Time for an oil change and good wash and wax.

28 - New Smart Towed Car

We upgraded our towed car. Per my previous post, the choice was a newer Smart to stay within the Orion's towing capacity. I found this 2016 Smart Passion model at a Denver dealer at the lowest price I had seen in looking for a few months. The price was even better when I saw that the car already was equipped with a tow baseplate, through wiring to the tail lights, breakaway switch, and battery cut-off switch, all worth at least $1500 more as installed. The trade deal for my 2013 wasn't good, so I bought the car outright and sold the '13 for a better price.

Old (left) and new (right) Smarts

I did have to do some work to get the new car compatible with the Orion. I had Roadmaster equipment--tow bar and Smart baseplate. The new Smart has a Blue Ox baseplate. Fortunately, I could get Blue Ox inserts for the baseplate and Roadmaster to Blue Ox tow bar adapters much cheaper than buying a new tow bar.

Tow bar end with new Blue Ox parts (top), old Roadmaster adapter (bottom)

27 - Remove TV-Gain Storage

Like many current RVs, the Orion comes with an outside TV. We have absolutely no use for an outside TV in our travel and camping style. Taking inspiration from another Orion owner, I removed the TV which opened up a decent bit of storage potential. The lower unit containing the DVD player and speakers is a pretty complicated installation with lots of wiring and impossible to remove from the outside without destroying the unit, so I decided to just leave it be.

Another motive was that I wanted a separate place to keep the sewer hose. I was putting it in a tote tray inside the small outside storage compartment behind the driver's door. That took a lot of space and also was where I stored my water hose and some spare parts. There is really no other outside area on the Orion to put a sewer hose container. The little compartment Coachmen provides is too small to stow a longer hose with the fittings attached.

I constructed a box to fit in the space where the TV had been. It is just big enough to hold a 15 ft. hose with fittings and the end adapter. Now I have extra space in the other compartment for tools.

26 - Hail Damage

One of the hazards of living around the Rocky Mountain front range in Colorado is hail. A hail storm came through where I store the Orion just a couple of weeks after our late April 2019 return from Yuma. When I checked, I found the front and rear roof vent covers were broken from the hail. I put some tape over the cracks and holes to keep rain out until I could replace the covers.

I ordered replacement covers through Wal Mart online, which were delivered in a few days. I bought Camco brand, hoping they were made of a sturdier and more UV resistant plastic. The forward vent is over the drop-down bed. The old covers were translucent white. I ordered a black tint cover for over the bed thinking it would be darker to keep night light out, and cooler. Wrong. I could see through it better than the white one. So I coated it with white Flex Shield spray. I ended up with a white translucent cover after all, although it cuts the outside light more, and maybe the coating will protect it better.

25 - Ramblings

Feb-Mar 2019. As I mentioned in the last post, we did a 500 mile round-trip from Yuma to Oceanside and Temecula, CA in late Feb. Towing the Smart, got 13.2 MPG average. We dodged snow, cold weather, and rain but were comfortable. SoCal driving is nuts, but we manage. No new issues have surfaced in either the Transit or the Coachmen systems. The water system worked fine other than continuing to fight leaky drain valves as previously posted. Love the new faucet.

Studying the layout of the drain valve plumbing under the range, everything is really tight under there. I don't see enough room to put in the type of valve I pictured. All piping is PEX with crimp connections, and there is very little room to even reach in there, let alone work with tools. I think some major component removal will be necessary, like taking out all drawers, divider panels, and the microwave. Hate doing that. Maybe talk to the dealer or a RV repair shop for an opinion.

I have read about the changes Ford will be making starting with the 2020 Transit. There are many that will be improvements for RV use. From what I see, there will be new more powerful engines, a 10-speed automatic transmission, swiveling front seats option (are they moving the parking brake handle?), and lots of electronic options. Looks like a new dash design. It will be interesting to see what new RVs will become available based on the redesigned Transit. I would like to see a little more GVWR and towing capacity. A possible trade in our future? A #11 RV? Never say never. I still want a McLaren, but that will require some lottery success. Well, dream on...

24 - Those Darn Drain Valves

Back in Post 21, I described the problem I had with the little plastic low-point drain valves located under the cook top in the cabinet at floor level. I took both apart and replaced the O-rings. On the first use on our trip to Yuma in December, the valves held pressure, didn't leak through, and didn't cause the water pump to cycle every so often to rebuild pressure.

We are in Oceanside, CA, on Feb. 20, and the valves are leaking. The pump started cycling right after we set up camp. I looked under the coach and the drain line from the cold valve had a steady trickle. I opened and shut and turned the valve handle trying to get the O-ring to seat better and only managed to slow it a bit.

Those valves are going to be replaced. They are not suitable for regular line pressure. There's not much room to work with under there, so it will require some engineering and thinking about what parts would work better, and if I can do it myself. Or maybe hand the problem off to a shop?

These look like a possible solution...  Stay tuned.

23 - Stuck with 2000# Tow Capacity

After considerable research, I finally verified that this Orion tow hitch is rated for 2000 lb. There is no label or stamping on the hitch itself, but I confirmed the rating on a factory spec sheet. I went to a Yuma tow specialty and welding shop to see if it would be feasible to strengthen the existing hitch, or it could be replaced by a 3000 lb. hitch. The purpose of all this was because we would like to tow a slightly bigger car than the Smart. It would be nice to have the extra seats and room. I looked at a Ford Fiesta hatchback that weighs about 2700 lb., is flat towable, and we liked a lot.

The analysis was that replacing the hitch without strengthening the frame was not advisable. Beefing up the existing hitch would involve considerable modification and add weight to the coach. Plus, the shop really didn't want to try for liability reasons.

The pictures below show the issues. The first shows the hitch mount at the rear of the motorhome. The hitch end brackets are attached to the frame extension with only two bolts on each side (circled). I have to trust that Coachmen provided strong enough bolts for the rating, but four bolts are probably not sufficient for 3000 lb.

Even if the hitch was stronger, the frame extensions that Coachmen used are bolted to the Transit frame using eight bolts total. One side of the frame is shown below. This design may be sufficient to support both the weight of the rear part of the coach body and 2000 lb. of towing, but who knows what the reserve capability is? And that hitch connection is five feet back of the frame to extension joint, which means amplifying the sideways and vertical forces from the tow bar to the hitch.

So, I will take the safe route and stick with the current tow setup. That will limit our car options to a newer Smart at best, as any other towable car weighs at least 2300 lb.

22 - Winter Water Woes

We planned our annual departure from Colorado to Yuma for early December. The Orion had been in storage since our October trip except for one outing for dealer service. We had some very cold freezing weather and I found out how good my winterizing procedure was. Answer: not good enough.

In prepping the coach for travel, I connected to city water to flush the system and fill the tank for the trip. I immediately had a flood of water coming out from the cabinet under the kitchen sink. So an emergency mop-up and analysis. My first discovery was that I had forgot to remove the drinking water filter under the sink, which froze and split open. Not having a spare filter, I was glad to find that the water would bypass directly to the filter faucet through the filter unit without a filter being installed. But then when I turned on the sink faucet, water flowed from the head and base as well as the nozzle. Turns out that particular type of faucet head retains a considerable amount of water, and the air I had blown through and the meager amount of anti-freeze pumped through it was not enough to displace all the water. The plastic waterway inside the faucet extension was cracked. I smeared some epoxy glue on the crack which helped to get most of the water to the end with minimal side drips.

Once we got past the water woes, we had a good trip to Yuma. We used the kitchen sink sparingly. Fuel mileage was good for being well-loaded and towing the Smart at 13.3 mpg, with one tank at 14.6. I had more water woes in our Yuma house, but that's another blog. After getting settled, I ordered a filter and a new Peerless faucet from Amazon. Received them in two days and installed in an hour. I opted for a plain high-rise faucet with no spray which my wife said she didn't need in the RV. Less parts. All metal unlike the cheap plastic OEM faucet. And I have added two more steps to my winterizing procedure. Hopefully next year will be less dramatic.

21 - Two years with Orion

Update to October, 2018. We have now had our Orion for two years and have put about 14,000 miles on it. The coach continues to perform well for us and fits our needs well. Since arriving in Colorado for the summer, we have taken one 4-day camping trip in the Colorado mountains (reported in previous post) and a 13-day trip to Branson, MO.

The trip to Branson in October provided a couple of different experiences. While overnighting en route in east-central Kansas, we were in an all-night torrential rainstorm that started about 10 PM and didn't let up until breakfast time. I'm not sure how much rain, but it had to be over three inches. There was a lot of flooding at some intersections in towns and in fields, but we had no delays getting on. The good news was that the Orion was tight and we had no leaks. It was rainy and cool for most of the trip, but we were very comfortable all the time. We saw another advantage of our set-up. Some of our campsites were tight, and being only 24 ft. with no slides was an advantage.

I would have to say that the total of problems we have had in two years is pretty normal and relatively minor overall. One of the low point drain valves developed a slow leak which would cause the water pump to cycle ("burp") every couple of minutes. Very annoying when we were not hooked up to city water and needed to use the pump. I am not fond of the cheap plastic valves Coachmen uses. But I found they can be dis-assembled to replace the O-rings, which solved the problem for now.

The drain valves

Another problem that cropped up was with the rear/side view camera and monitor system. When we started home from Branson, the monitor was stuck on one side camera view and was unresponsive to input from the controls. It was intermittent after that--occasionally working or stuck on one view or not working at all. Now that we are home, it is functioning as if nothing was wrong. I sent a request to Coachmen and got a response of where the control unit is located to do some trouble-shooting. I'm just waiting to see if it misbehaves again.

Coachmen has been pretty supportive to my requests for information. They sent me a set of electrical schematics which I like to have for reference. I have asked twice about the tow hitch capacity but have had no response so far. I want to know if I can tow more that 2000 pounds, up to 3000 pounds because we might consider getting a bigger tow car, like a Ford Fiesta which is about 2600 lbs.
I also took the coach to the Ford dealer for an oil change and for the Transit recall which had something to do with auxiliary wiring. The bad news was that it took four hours to get done while I waited. The good news was my bill for under $100 for elective service. Again, happy not to have a diesel unit and the extra cost.

Finally, since we are not going to AZ until December, I had to do my first total winterizing. Everything was straightforward until I tried to suck antifreeze into the water lines from a container using the water pump. Nothing happened. After some inspection of the plumbing setup, I discovered an in-line shut-off valve between the water tank and pump. Closing that allowed the pump to draw from the antifreeze container rather than the tank. No wonder people pay the price to have a professional do the winterizing. If you don't have the experience and aren't analytically inclined, you would be lost.

20 - Mountain Driving and Camping

End of July 2018. We did five nights of camping in the Colorado mountains. We drove from Parker to Frisco and spent two nights in a USFS campground on the shore of Lake Dillon. This was totally dry camping; no hookups. All systems performed perfectly and we had more than adequate battery capacity thanks to the solar setup. The first site was only a bit uneven but not too long. This is the advantage of having a shorter rig.

Then we drove to a CO state park on the Colorado River just east of Palisade. Here we had a nice pull-thru site with full hookups. Good thing as it was over 90 every day and the A/C ran from about 10 AM until dark.

(aside) There are some comments and concerns about the bed covering a vent and A/C outlets when it is stowed against the ceiling. The vent is no problem, because it wouldn't be open when running A/C. The two A/C outlets would be helpful in cooling the forward part of the coach. I found that opening the main register halfway directs some air to the ceiling vents, but most comes out directly in the middle. This seems to be the most effective for total cooling. I will sometimes drop the bed about 4 inches which allows some air to come out to the front. I also set a small electric fan on the floor by the bath door blowing forward. Overall, no real issue with the bed "up there" affecting cooling or ventilation, in my opinion.

After four days of use, I emptied the holding tanks and refilled the fresh water before departing.

Our return trip took us back to the Lake Dillon campground where we found one empty site. The pad sloped quite a bit but I was able to get "bubble centered" level with a bit of work using ramps and a jack. The jack under a frame crossmember got me the last inch I needed. Some criticize those who strive for perfect level saying it isn't necessary because new refrigerators have more tolerance for slant. That may be true, but I like the comfort factor, not having doors swing, as well as being nice to the fridge. If I can get it level, why not?

TRANSIT MOUNTAIN PERFORMANCE. We had full water tank, full fuel tanks, moderate household goods, and towed the Smart car. Our route is from 5,900 ft. to over 11,000 ft. elevation at the I-70 Eisenhower/Johnson tunnels, and Vail Pass. Going westbound seems easier than eastbound due to the longer approaches. The most strenuous tests for our rig were the 6% grade from Georgetown to Silver Plume westbound, and the eastbound climbs to Vail Pass summit and I-70 tunnels from Silverthorne. I was able to maintain 45 mph at 5,500 rpm in 2nd gear on the steepest parts; otherwise, 50 to 55 was practical. I have no complaints about performance since these extreme grades and altitudes are such a small part of our travels. As I stated earlier, a 1978 Minnie Winnie 20' Class C we once owned barely maintained 35 mph in low gear all the way up the I-70 climb to the tunnel, and that with a 400 cu.in. big block Dodge V8, nothing in tow, much less weight.
I also applaud the tow-haul transmission mode. I rarely had to tap the brakes on the steepest downgrades to keep speed in check. The transmission usually downshifted itself while I just steered and kept my foot off the pedals, and the speed held well.

SOLAR PERFORMANCE: Refer to details on my solar installation in a prior post. With three days of off-grid camping, the two 12v house batteries always had adequate charge for our needs. Below pic shows charge and battery data for three days off-grid, one partial and one total day on shore power. The "Today" reading is incomplete as we arrived home then. The panels are putting out over 40 volts and somehow a full 100 watts at peak. The system is performing as I had hoped, and I love the Bluetooth monitoring app.

19 - Solar Installation and Gen. Oil Change

I've just completed a maintenance item and the installation of a solar power system on the Orion. The generator oil change was straightforward and easy: run the gen. a bit to warm the oil; remove the cover panel; remove the fill cap/dipstick; put a catch pan underneath and remove the drain plug and wait for all oil to drain; replace drain plug; add 600 ml new oil; run gen. a few minutes; recheck oil level; tidy up. I only spilled one drop of oil and that was off the funnel when I removed it. I used a 15w-50 diesel oil (Wal-Mart brand). In researching oils, the better diesel oils met the viscosity and service standards recommended by Cummins/Onan. I have used such oil on previous RV generators and never had any problems. Future oil changes will be dictated by time rather than hours of use, as I've only put 18 hours on it since October 2016.

The solar installation went pretty smoothly. My main components were two Renogy 50-watt mono-crystalline panels, a Victron MPPT charge controller, and a couple of 15-amp circuit breaker switches. I installed the controller and switches inside a drawer cabinet to be out of sight, yet accessible.

I ran the battery positive lead to the always-hot terminal of the battery cut-off switch located low by the entry door. That will provide charging whether the cut-off is on or off. The components are next to the refrigerator, which made for an easy way to route the cable from the panels through the vent stack behind the refrigerator without having to drill holes through the roof.

The two panels were attached just forward of the A/C unit and near the fridge vent to minimize the length of cable run, and in some unused roof space. The brackets are screwed to the roof as well as glued with marine-grade poly adhesive.

On previous RV's, I had a 60-watt panel for two batteries and a 30-watt panel for one battery. My main objective was to keep the batteries charged through long storage periods, and provide some extra recovery charging for camping without hookups, and those served my needs well. The Orion has two batteries, so I decided on a bit more power (100 watts total). We don't boondock enough to require several hundred watts of power, and budget also was a factor. The panels are wired in series to provide 37 volts nominal output while keeping the amps the same so the feed wires don't need to be heavier gauge. Victron recommends the higher voltage setup for better efficiency.

This particular controller has Bluetooth connectivity with an app that Victron provides for smart phones. After I started the system and got the app synced with the controller, there were immediately two firmware updates that installed automatically. When those completed, I got status readings on my phone. This was morning, and the app showed 56 watts output along with charge parameters to the battery. Later near noon, I saw 84 watts output.

I believe this setup will keep the batteries in good shape. There are four modes of charging including equalize, which can be configured to be off or repeat as desired. Other parameters can also be set via the app. I am very happy with the outcome and performance so far. No more significant projects contemplated--time to go traveling and camping.

18 - April 2018 Weight Check

We made our spring migration from AZ to CO in April. We load all our clothing and food for transfer between our houses, and that was about 6 packing boxes worth. In addition, I pack a couple of bags of tools and other miscellaneous gear that we need wherever we are. So, the Orion is pretty well loaded along with towing the Smart car, plus a tank of fresh water for use during our four day trip. Since this was more heavily loaded than we would normally be, I thought it was time to get a weight check to be sure I wasn't overloading the coach.

I stopped at a CAT truck scale in Willcox, AZ. It was nice to have the 3-segment scale to get separate weights for the Orion front and rear axles and the car. Because I had to get out of the RV to press the call button, I didn't get my own weight added, but the numbers are helpful anyway. Here are the scale weights in pounds compared to the maximum GVWR published for my RV:

                                     Scale               GVWR               Margin

Front axle                     3220                 4130                    910  (740 if I deduct my weight)
Rear axle                      5940                 7275                   1335

Total                            9160                 11300                  2140

Smart car                     1960

Total combined           11120                12300                  1180

I was happily surprised that there is plenty of reserve capacity with our combination. I could load a ton more on the Orion if not towing, or I could tow a car weighing over 1,100 pounds more if desired. Another reason that we didn't seriously consider a Promaster based unit because they only have a 9,600 # GVWR. Just not enough reserve for my comfort.

The trip home was good. We had some strong tail winds and I was showing mid 14 mpg on both gauges, but I never did a hand calculation. The RV is now partially winterized and in storage. I have two 50 watt solar panels and a MPPT charge controller on hand to install in the next few weeks. I also will be changing the generator oil; a bit overdue since it hasn't been changed since purchase in Oct. 2016, but I only have put about 14 hours total on it. Looking forward to some relaxing local camping around Colorado this summer.

17 - Winter 2017-18

We came to Yuma, AZ in early December of '17 and took up residence in our park model home at a golf/RV resort. Since then, Phrynie has mostly been tucked away in the storage lot (above). I took her out for a good cleaning and one solo 3-day camping trip to the mountains between Yuma and San Diego in early February, and then to the local Ford dealer for her second oil change and checkup. The Transit and all coach systems continue to perform well with no new problems or anything needing attention. I have kept StaBil in the gas for storage and faithfully exercise the generator and A/C every three to four weeks.

We took a leisurely seven days on our trip from Colorado to Yuma in December. One night was dry camping at a Wal Mart; the remaining were with hookups in commercial campgrounds. I did not dump tanks until the last night as we had plenty of capacity.

One addition I made earlier was to add a second Group 24 deep-cycle battery under the entry step. I ordered a hold-down clamp from the local dealer but it did not arrive in time for my use, so I simply cut a piece of OSB to fit around the battery to keep it in place, and that is working fine. If I get the clamp, I will have to do something with that thick encased cable so the battery will sit tight against the compartment side like the original on the left. That cable has zero slack which is why the new battery is slightly slanted.

Another minor thing was the fire extinguisher recall. I filled out the claim on Kidde's web site but never got a confirmation or heard anything from them after a couple of months. So, I filled out a second claim and sent another email saying I needed to get the replacement extinguisher delivered before we left Yuma. Again, no feedback. But without any notification, the replacement showed up via Fed Ex finally, and it fits in the original wall holder even though it is shaped a bit differently.

I was asked about my tow hitch extension. The Orion has a stock 1-1/2" receiver, but I need a 2" receiver for the car tow bar. I bought a 3000# rated 1-1/2" to 2" adapter and hoped the Orion hitch was also rated 3000#. If it had been a 2000# hitch, the solid bar part of the adapter that goes into the receiver would be too long and I would need to cut some of the bar off. But it was indeed a 3k hitch, so all was good. I bought a high strength class-8 1/2" bolt to use as the hitch pin. Then I went to a weld shop and had the adapter welded to the Orion hitch for security, strength, and to eliminate rattles. This is permanent; I have no need for a 1-1/2" system. The weld is circled.

I plan to get a true scale weight of the coach and the Smart car when we are loaded for travel. I need to know if we have much reserve capacity for load and towing. We will be returning to Colorado around the third week of April.

Summer projects will include the installation of a solar charging system. I have two solar panels awaiting back home, and I will be ordering a charge controller shortly. More later.

16 - More Driving Impressions and Results

With almost 10,000 mi. of travel experience, am I still happy with the Transit's performance as a RV chassis? Yes.

 I have not yet weighed our rig when loaded in our usual travel configuration--clothing and personal items, food, camping gear, etc. The Smart car that we pretty much always have in tow weighs about 1,900#. The most challenging route we have encountered so far is several trips over Raton Pass between CO and NM. Raton has a 6% grade at 7,800' elevation. I can maintain the 55 mph speed limit either direction. I have not tried Vail Pass yet (7%, 10,666'), but I expect that would slow us down. The 3.7L Transit V6 revs freely and the 6-speed transmission shifts as needed, so I have no concern being able to handle most any driving situation. Also, going up steep mountain grades is a small portion of our travels anyway. We once owned a Minnie Winnie Class C that had a Dodge big block (400 c.i.) V8 that barely pulled the same grades at 30 mph in low gear, and not towing anything.

As far as gas mileage, that has been pretty consistent at 12.5 loaded, towing car, and running A/C. I have not driven much unloaded (no towing, no A/C), but when I do, the ScanGauge and dash computer both indicate 14-15 mpg consistently.