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eikel1we · 09-16-2008, 08:59 AM

My dad used to say, "Life's great .... if you don't weaken!" Terry, you and Marie have proven to be pretty sturdy, but geez -o- pete - enough is enough already!!! We're going to have to start calling you Murphy, as in Murphy's Law! Maybe Murf for short.

sue

ps The new truck is sharp! and do you still have the B-van?

overlander63 · 09-16-2008, 11:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eikel1we

ps The new truck is sharp! and do you still have the B-van?

Thank you, and yes, we still have the B-van.

Diesel1 · 09-16-2008, 11:44 AM

Is there power to the fuse? If not, if you power up the fuse from the battery it may bring the harness alive.

overlander63 · 09-16-2008, 11:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Diesel1

Is there power to the fuse? If not, if you power up the fuse from the battery it may bring the harness alive.

Yes, there is power to the fuse (40 amp maxi fuse). It seems the BCM is what controls where the power is routed, and it was never "flashed" for the tow package it had. I have to take it to the dealer for warranty work tomorrow I'll see if I can talk one of the techs into reprogramming it for me as a professional courtesy. Maybe buy him lunch or something...

Diesel1 · 09-16-2008, 12:16 PM

If the bribe does not work ,try to find the relay that the 40 amp fuse runs through. I think that the PCM would switch the relay on, so if you can ID that relay you could switch it on with battery power and that should power up the harness.

sd90mac · 09-20-2008, 06:14 AM

Yes, we still have the b-van, and I drive it all of the time.

I broke the radio already. I put the conversion cassette for my mini Ipod in, so I can listen to my favorite music, and it's stuck. When I say stuck, I mean, impossible to remove stuck. Never to come out again stuck. My son wants to know how in the devil did I get it stuck. Me too. Terry has tried everything to get it out.

The worse part is it skips. The music will play for 3 seconds, then silence for 2 seconds. It drives me and Sophie nuts! The cassette drive needs to be cleaned, but we can't get the Ipod conversion cassette out.

He-- with it, I will visit yard sales, and send Terry to local junk yard to find one, and we will replace it then break the old one and get the cassette out.

Other than that, we are on the less than a week countdown to leaving for Ca.

Marie

overlander63 · 09-20-2008, 06:20 AM

I am temporarily among the ranks of the unemployed, but that doesn't mean I'm not busy. I loaded up my tools, and departed work around 5:30 last evening. It took almost an hour to get out of the place, no one really wanted me to leave. Interestingly, the entire sales staff walked out (as in quit) earlier this week. Seems I am not the only one that had issues with upper management.
Now I can spend some time checking the wiring in the new truck. I have checked with my friends at GM, and they tell me there is no reason to brake controller and charge line don't work. It is not involved with any computer, which is good, as I have never had to have a computer reprogrammed to tow a trailer before.

After that, I have to go back to Firestone (shudder) for another tire. When I bought the truck, it had no spare. I got a spare wheel, but it had no tire on it. I am not going 3000 miles with no spare, that will be asking for a flat tire, probably 400 miles from any place that sells tires. I'll let you know if any further drama unfolds getting (hopefully) the last tire...

sd90mac · 09-20-2008, 06:23 AM

and fix the radio in the van.

Marie

overlander63 · 09-20-2008, 01:01 PM

I have the spare successfully mounted in the truck, the people at Firestone couldn't figure out the lift mechanism for the spare

. So, after I got home, and put the spare where it goes, I turned my attention to the wiring. I pulled stuff apart there should be no reason to pull apart, and lo and behold, there were 3 wires not hooked up to the main fuse panel under the hood. There was one wire not connected to another one, and two wires not mounted on the lugs for the power bus. Naturally, I didn't have the proper sized nuts (I only have a few hundred lying around, none in those sizes), so off to Ace Hardware I went. 65 cents later, I had the correct retaining nuts, and everything works like it should.
Later, I'll be installing the license plate light and bracket for Bertha. The light was out, and when I tried to disassemble it to replace the bulb, it crumbled to dust in my hands. The only thing holding it together was the chrome.
And so it goes...

bolou97 · 09-21-2008, 09:07 AM

Marie are you driving the B-Van and Terry pulling the trailer with his new pick-up to CA?
Lou

sd90mac · 09-21-2008, 10:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bolou97

Marie are you driving the B-Van and Terry pulling the trailer with his new pick-up to CA?
Lou

Yes, I am driving the guest house and Terry is pulling the coach behind his new toy, uh truck.

He has the Garmen in the truck, so if we get lost it's not my fault. Of course he never gets lost. No really he doesn't. I think he has a Garmen in his brain. The man can find any place we are going.

I detailed the van yesterday, and the dog this morning.

Sophie was funny, she heard the water running when I called her she took off and hid behind Terry. He picked her up and put her in the tub, she looked at him as if to say "traitor". She does smell better, and her coat is soft.

So we are winding down to launch time Saturday morning. Last day at work for me is Thursday, Friday is finish laundry, load van, and a few other odds and ends.

Oh Yea, the radio in the van was fixed yesterday, Terry got the ipod thingy out. Had to take the radio out to do it, but he fixed it! Thanks Terry.

Marie

overlander63 · 09-21-2008, 10:34 AM

This morning started off clear and sunny. I had a couple of errands to run, so I hopped in the new truck (trying to put some miles on it so I can see if there are any real "issues"--so far, so good), and headed off to the store. It was a warm morning, so I put on shorts instead of the jeans I normally wear. First place I stopped, I went in, picked up a few items, and went to stop 2. Stop 2 happened to position the truck so the driver's seat was in direct sunlight. Florida sun is hot, and Florida sun in Summer is hotter. Add to that I had the windows rolled up (Florida in Summer can become very wet, very fast, as in rain), and taking longer than I thought I would in the store.
Bear in mind, every vehicle I've owned for the past 20 or so years has had cloth seats--for a reason. The new truck has vinyl seats. Vinyl seats tend to get very hot when exposed to direct sunlight. I came out of the store, unlocked the door, and hopped into the irradiated driver's seat. The vinyl seat that had been in the sun for an extended period. While I was wearing shorts.
Holy Crap!!!!

I thought I'd sat on a pile of nuclear waste, or at the very least, molten lava!

I think the back of my legs are fused to the seat now... I hope the burning sensation will stop soon! Wow! I don't think I'll do that again for a while...

richinny · 09-21-2008, 10:37 AM

are you taking turns riding with sophie? :-)

CanoeStream · 09-21-2008, 10:38 AM

Terry, what ever happened to 'Welcome to my world?' That could happen up here if you tried it on a cold winter morning. 'cept I've never had shorts on to try it. I remember wearing shorts when I was 14 once...

**azflycaster** · 09-21-2008, 10:39 AM

If you have vinyl or leather seats in Arizona it is suggested that you spray them with PAM before you sit down. I have always has cloth seats just because of the sun and heat factor. I also dislike the smell of burning flesh.

sd90mac · 09-21-2008, 10:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by richinny

are you taking turns riding with sophie? :-)

Sophie will decide where and with whom she rides. This could be interesting.

Marie

richinny · 09-21-2008, 10:43 AM

that's the second hot seat story i heard in 12 hours. my friend was on the island of Cyprus for a few weeks. he told me that if you think your car gets hot in summer, don't dare got to Cyprus! i think winter in FL is hot!

**azflycaster** · 09-21-2008, 10:51 AM

How are you going to keep in touch with each other on the road? If we see you guys going by, maybe we could give you a shout! We will be on the road 10/2 & 10/3 headed from Phoenix to Albuquerque for the Balloon Fiesta.

overlander63 · 09-21-2008, 11:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by azflycaster

How are you going to keep in touch with each other on the road? If we see you guys going by, maybe we could give you a shout! We will be on the road 10/2 & 10/3 headed from Phoenix to Albuquerque for the Balloon Fiesta.

We will have our cell phones, plus we have personal 2 way radios, for areas without cell service.