Just returned from trip down California =
coast on
Hiway 1. Allowed three days to get from Portland, Oregon to So =
Cal, but it
was not long enough. Turns out that the smelling of the roses, =
cleaning up
the camp and stopping for photos really cuts into the time. We had =
a time
restriction to meet with family in Lebec, near Ft. Tejon (top of famous
Grapevine Hill). Did not get to camp at any of the suggestions =
made
by fellow listees. Timing was wrong. Did =
stay at Big
Lagoon in Humboldt County, Bodega Bay, and Big Sur =
campground.
Also made it to Prescott, =
Arizona, to
visit daughter and sundry relatives.
Summary of vanagon performance =
over 3500 miles
of steep hills, freeways and desert -- FLAWLESS! Two quarts of oil =
and
maybe a pint of coolant added. Gasoline usage was considerably
higher.
Pre-trip service: Flush cooling =
system,
pressure test, replace flakey-acting thermostat. Also had the =
Oxygen sensor
and radiator fan switch replaced as part of gradual sensor swap-out
program. New fan switch resulted in the low fan not coming on =
'till the
needle was 3/4 of the way to the high mark. (It usually controls =
with the
needle just on the top half of the LED) Mechanic said "They all do =
that". (never heard that one before). Argued and he replaced =
the
switch. Ok now. Drove it to work a few times before =
departing, just
to make sure.
Second day of trip, oxygen sensor =
reminder light
came on. I have the worst case of "wassernoia" of all, and =
periodically
seeing the red light on the instrument cluster resulted in hundreds of =
little
adrenaline injections that served to keep me alert.
The first 23 miles of Hiway 1 in No. =
California are
extremely steep and have such switchbacks you wind up shifting back to =
first
gear to keep moving forward. The turns are so sharp that you can =
look over
and read your own rear license plate!
The California coast north of San =
Fransisco is the
most fantastic scenery. It's a winding road along thousand foot =
cliffs
with usually no guard rails. Really windy up there and not much
competition on the road. Almost no RV's. Most pleasing to me =
was
that every time I used a turnout, the car passing me waved or =
beeped. Even
the motorcycles that were really abundant gave a beep when they =
passed.
This kind of courtesy could be contageous!
Only got to San Simeon before deciding =
to head
inland to meet relatives. Turning East put us into the hot weather =
and
away from the idyllic coastal views. After phase 1 of reunion-ing, =
headed
to Prescott. Tried to travel at night for cooler weather. =
Temps
are still in the mid-90's at night and I found that with the A/C =
on, the
high radiator fan would kick in even at 70 mph. Old radiator =
switch did
the same thing.
On the way back, left at 6:30 am to try =
and beat
the heat. Arizona's 75 mph speed limits are nice, 'cause you can =
get a run
on the hills and keep the tach at the top of the green most of the way =
up.
Got back into the mid '90's on I5 heading back to Oregon. Slowed =
down and
tried to use the A/C, but the high radiator fan kept coming on. =
Ran the
van hard for 17 hours straight with minimal oil use and no coolant level =
drop.
With 20-50 oil, the buzzer only came on =
a couple of
times. Expectedly when it's really hot and the revs lug down to =
2500 in
4th. Also when the wife forgets its not an automatic and pulls =
into a rest
stop without downshifting.
Almost stayed at a Wal Mart, but no =
place to
pee. Yes, I know that Westies have a sink, but it wouldn't be fair =
to the
wife - she keeps sliding off ;o)
There's not a drop of any fluid under =
the van - no
oil, no coolant, so I feel pretty good. Especially so, since I'm =
the worst
wassernoid around - always thinking that any drips where I park MUST =
have come
from my van. Nothing like a successful trip to renew the
confidence.
Before we left there was a thread "How =
do you
outfit your Westy...?". I wanted to mention something my wife has
done. She bought a flannel sheet, cut it up and sewed bags =
for all
the dishes, pots, pans and pan lids we carry. This protects them =
and lets
you stack them together without all the rattling.
Later,
Tom S.