Date: Thu, 19 Jul 2007 21:53:37 -0700
Reply-To: Michael Elliott <camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Michael Elliott <camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Talk to me about AT's!
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Mrs Squirrel and I just got back from several days of camping in the
Sierra Nevada (spectacular weather, great camping, especially at site
#32 at Highland Lakes) and Mellow Yellow operated flawlessly, even
climbing the mighty 6% grade up highway 395 to Sherman Summit in 109
degree (F) weather, loaded with camping gear, w/o overheating. This was
at 7pm -- I tried to wait out the heat of the day but it hit over 105F
at noon and just stayed there. I killed as much time as I could in the
shade of a young sycamore at Tuttle Creek campground near Lone Pine, but
it just never cooled off.*
Anyhoo, on the way up, between watching the temp gauge, the tach, and
rear-view mirror to make sure that I wasn't about to get rear-ended by a
faster vehicle, I was very aware about how little I know about automatic
transmissions.
Uphill Question:
If Mellow Yellow had a manual transmission, I'd think nothing of
downshifting to second or even first gear as needed to keep the rpm's
up. But there's just something about running an automatic transmission
for long periods in lower gears that worries me. Maybe it's because the
transmission sounds at a higher pitch than I am used to -- I don't know.
I can't put my finger on it. Is it okay to stay in "1" or "2" with an
automatic transmission as long as the engine isn't being over-revved?
Downhill Question:
Some of those Sierra passes have long downhill grades at up to 26%.
Again, if I had a manual, I'd-a downshifted and used the engine to take
some of the load off the brakes. Is it okay to do that with an automatic
transmission?
* Glad I had a Norcold refrigerator instead of the original Dometic --
with its 45F max differential, the inside of the old reefer would have
been 109 - 45 = 64F, which is too warm for food safety or cold beer.
--
Mike "Rocket J Squirrel" Elliott
71 Type 2: the Wonderbus
84 Westfalia: Mellow Yellow ("The Electrical Banana")
74 Utility Trailer. Ladybug Trailer, Inc., San Juan Capistrano
KG6RCR
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