Date: Mon, 13 May 2013 09:49:01 -0700
Reply-To: Stuart MacMillan <stuartmacm@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Stuart MacMillan <stuartmacm@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: driving in gusty winds...
In-Reply-To: <CAHTkEu+QFvaC=FumamXn08gCn2EDFyLdZO9znfhrVsXBv2dwnw@mail.gmail.com>
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Years ago in my '68 Westy I got hit with a sudden wind gust that pushed me
instantly into the next lane. Fortunately it was four lane road and I was
on the upwind side or I'd have been blown off the road. These slab sided
rigs are going to be moved around in the wind.
Stuart
-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of
Don Hanson
Sent: Sunday, May 12, 2013 9:23 PM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Re: driving in gusty winds...
Thanks, yes I imagine it would help some...but there is windy and then
there is WINDY!. ...the Gorge wind is the second type....Interstate 84
runs through the Gorge and the sides of it are littered with parts blown
off trucks, cars, RVs, etc. It is quite common for the wind to gust so
hard that it picks up water right out of the river and blows it up into the
air in clouds....We call it "Smokin'' and that means it's a good time to go
windsurfing.
We also have two F-250 4x4 diesel trucks...those, too, get blown around,
but not so much as the vanagons. There are probably a dozen Syncros who
frequent the Gorge....Those, too, go all over the road in gusts...It's not
a stretch to suppose that the large boxy shape and the short wheel base
offer the wind pretty significant leverage.
What was so interesting about my trip today was that....I was probably
about 20 lengths back from the other van.....He'd go a little, then I'd go
just the same....like a pair in "Dancing with the Stars" (I suppose, having
never watched it)
On Sun, May 12, 2013 at 7:25 PM, Anthony Egeln <regnsuzanne@yahoo.com>wrote:
> I'll second this notion....
>
> When I went to 15" wheels and the 225-15-70 tires there was a marked
> difference in
> stability during windy weather.
>
> Anthony
> '89 Syncro GL (Hidalgo)
>
>
>
>
> ________________________________
> From: Robert Stevens <mtbiker62@GMAIL.COM>
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> Sent: Sunday, May 12, 2013 10:15 PM
> Subject: Re: driving in gusty winds...
>
>
> On May 12, 2013, at 8:08 PM, Don Hanson <dhanson928@GMAIL.COM> wrote:
>
> I always seem to have my hands full driving my
> van in the Gorge, even though I have been completely through all the
> suspension, steering, tires etc., When you are rolling along at 65 into
a
> 60mph gust, then it hits you from the side....then stops, then from the
> other side, etc etc....all the way along with high cliffs and through the
> various side canyons....a tall profile and relatively short wheel base
> vehicle like our vans....they 'feel' the wind....
>
> Put 15" to 17" rims/wheels on your van with good vanagon-worthy
> truck tires, and you will notice a HUGE improvement in this. It's not
> possible to describe the difference. The driving experience with larger
> rims, despite not larger overall diameter of wheels, is completely
> different from stock.
>
> bob
>
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