We just got back yesterday from our first camping trip in the Westy. We camped at Lopez Lake in San Luis Obispo, which was 187 miles each way. The van mostly performed great, and even accelerated uphill on occasion. I'm a slow driver, so I generally kept it at 60-65, and used the cruise control (for the very first time!) Coming home, going through the Santa Barbara area, there were 2 very steep inclines, and the van slowed down to around 37 mph. The first one was scary because I wasn't expecting it, was not in the slow lane, and nobody was letting me merge over. On the second one, I was already in the slow lane, so it wasn't that bad. I'm wondering if slowing down to 37 mph is normal and to be expected, or if something needs to be fixed. We didn't bring anything heavy with us - just normal stuff such as clothes and food. We didn't carry anything on the roof. While in the area, we visited GoWesty, planning to have the propane tank upgraded, but upon inspection, Chris said there was nothing wrong with the one I had, so instead, I got a 3-window tent installed, which was also on my "wish list." I also picked up a few odds and ends to avoid shipping charges later. While the tent was being installed, Chris lent us a Vanagon to drive around in. It seemed to have more power than mine, but it was just a van and didn't have the weight that the Westy was carrying. We slept in the lower bed, which was very comfortable. While closing the curtains, I noticed all kinds of snaps which I'm going to have to take pictures of so I can about them. Also, the very narrow metal curtain track above the rear passenger side window was hanging down, and I don't know how to make it stay up. The same track that follows along the side door has openings in the track in 2 places, and the curtain tabs fall out of it. I'm not at all familiar with Westy curtain technology, but I'm lucky enough to have all of the curtains, including the front one. I snapped it in, but didn't know how it was really supposed to go. In all, I was very pleased with my Westy, and will probably end up putting in a few more upgrades! Patti |
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