Date:         Thu, 29 May 2003 00:29:34 -0500
Reply-To:     boroko <marokus@VOYAGER.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         boroko <marokus@VOYAGER.NET>
Subject:      Interesting Trip and Bench Seat
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"

HI all,

It's been a while since I've been on the list, but here goes...

Two items for this post: an unbelievable trip and a middle bench seat that has to go.

I have just completed a trip from Orlando, Florida to Northern Michigan in my wife's '87 Syncro GL.  
That in itself isn't all that wonderful,(well, it was for me) but the facts surrounding the trip might interest some that doubt the capabilities of our vehicles.

I needed to move my family of 7 on this trip and I needed to haul a few things. When I was near the end of the trip, I decided to run across some scales and find out just how much I was hauling.   

Front axle: 2500#,
Rear: 3000#,
U-haul 6x12 trailer: 5000#.  
Total: 10,500 # !

The Van has a recent AA transaxle and about 175,000 on the engine.  
The trailer hitch was self-fabricated 2" box tube hanging on the tow loops with reinforcement from the loops to the original horns.  Stock mounts and bolts to the frame.
Started out in creeper to get the thing moving and to save the clutch, then carefully ran up the gears.
The trailer had a surge brake, so stopping wasn't too big of a problem.
As you can imagine, 5 kids, 2 parents, a dog, and two cats had the thing pretty well packed to the gills.

The only problem was in Atlanta, where, while stuck in rush hour traffic and 90 degree weather, the fact that I hadn't attended to a bad low speed fan led to some problems.  I noticed some steam coming out of the louvers while at a dead stop in the middle lane of what seemed like a 15 lane road.  I started to make my way to the edge of the road.  While nervously watching the temp gauge, I made it to an off ramp and coasted to a rest.  The heat and load was starting to make itself known with a ugly pinging as I applied any load.  After a rest and a cool down, I limped down the exit and coasted into a parking lot where there was a muffler/shock/tire kind of repair shop.  Friday night, bad part of town, closing time, etc, etc... 
Surveyed the damage, I determined that the plastic manifold that connects the heads and the heater hose to the main radiator pipe had ruptured on a seam and was going to be a challenge to find at Pep Boys. Why can't we ever loose a common hose or something?  I was going to get on the phone to normal suppliers but decided to get some water from the shop first in case they closed before I could figure out what to do.  The service manager (Doug) overheard my plight and offered to stay over and put it on a lift for a look.  Luckily, I had packed some Devcon Plastic Welder (really great epoxy, BTW) and between Doug and I, we managed to clean off the crack with carb cleaner, scratch up the area a bit, and made a Band-Aid out of a pop can.  One layer of Plastic Welder, the aluminum can patch, a hose clamp, and some more Plastic Welder, and after about 1/2 hour of set time, we were filling her back up.  

I know Malcolm Stebbins once related to me that he had the same failure in the desert in Egypt.  I'm going to have to ask him how he got out of his mess.

KiSseR (the van) ran flawlessly for the rest of the trip.  I am impressed that I was able to pull off such a silly abuse of otherwise nice equipment.  The hills(!?) in KN and TN were interesting, but she made them in 3rd. 


On to the next item.  I have a middle bench seat setting in Orlando at a friend's house that needs a good home.  Anyone in the area interested?

It is said that God looks out for the Ignorant and the Innocent.  I am neither, but He sure gave me a break on a trip that could have turned out to be a nightmare.  Thanks.


Mark
'87 Syncro Westy with 306,000 mi
'87 Syncro GL with 175,000
'81 Westy
'82 Diesel Rabbit
Way to many memories of other soldiers in the war of transportation.