As expected, rain moved in during the past week. Donna and I are taking advantage of our time here in Arlington, Washington by getting caught up on dental appointments. I had my cleaning and check-up on Thursday and now I have another appointment next Monday. Head and neck radiation well over a decade ago continues to take a toll on my teeth. The dentist tells me it’s to be expected and overall he thinks I’ve done a good job of caring for my teeth.
Periods of rain and thundershowers Tuesday evening through Friday had us lying low. I have a few projects to work on and managed to knock a couple of things off the list. On our coach, the dash heater had a leaking valve that showed up during the run from Oregon. I don’t know why the designers of a 40-foot motorhome install a heat exchanger in the front to provide hot air through the dash vents. The heat exchanger is sized for a car and would never provide adequate heat for the interior volume of our coach. It might put a little warm air over your fingers and toes, but if it’s that cold, something more is needed.
The heat is provided by pumping coolant from the engine – in the rear of the coach – all the way to the front cap area. The supply line goes through a valve that has four connections. One is the inlet for the coolant coming from the engine, another is a return line to direct coolant back to the engine without entering the heat exchanger when the valve is closed. The other two lines allow coolant to enter and exit the heat exchanger when the heater valve is open. This valve was leaking coolant.
Rather than track down a replacement valve, I just disconnected the lines and plugged them with barbed plastic 5/8″ plugs and one-inch hose clamps. We’ve never used the dash heat anyway.
Although it was a wet week, the daily high temperatures were comfortable as they reached about 70 degrees. The weekend forecast was significantly better with mostly sunny skies and highs in the mid-to-upper-70s.
My daughter, Alana, and her boyfriend, Kevin, planned a barbeque at Kevin’s place on Saturday. The event was a celebration of our granddaughter Lainey’s 20th birthday. The weather was fine as promised, so Donna and I drove Midget-San to Kevin’s house up highway 9 with the top down. It was our first topless foray in Midget-San.
Midget-San in Kevin’s driveway
Earlier in the week, on Tuesday before rain came later in the day, Donna and I drove Midget-San up to La Conner for lunch. On the way back, Donna got some familiarization time behind the wheel.
Kevin had ribs and chicken in his Traeger all afternoon and they were delicious. They also served mac and cheese and an excellent potato gratin. Alana made baked beans which simmered for more than 24 hours. After a great meal sitting in yard while the youngsters played badminton and volleyball, it was time for a birthday cake. Happy 20th Lainey!
Cake timeGabi, Alana and Lainey
We’re in for another fine day today. The skies are clear and the forecast high is 78 degrees. Donna took Midget-San to Marysville to play pickleball. I’ve been resting a nagging groin pull and have stayed away from the courts for a while. I hope to get over it soon.
The Spyder is still in the shop in Mount Vernon. I hope to have some news on Tuesday, then I can move forward with selling it. Until that happens, our future plans are on hold.
We borrowed Alana’s car on Friday morning and Donna dropped me off at Sea-Tac airport. When I did the Alaska Airlines online check-in, a warning popped up advising that due to construction inside the terminal, I should arrive two hours before departure. You just have to love commercial airline travel! The line at the security station was unbelievable, but I got through it – even with a butane torch cigar lighter in my backpack. Why was I flying to Billings, Montana? It’s a long story.
Lately, Donna has been dropping not so subtle hints about growing tired of dealing with helmet hair. Since we hit the road, our mode of local transportation has been a scooter or the Spyder which requires us to wear helmets. Getting a car into the trailer would be a challenge though.
First of all, I needed to find something small. Not only did it have to fit in the trailer, but I also needed to be able to get out of the car once it was loaded. It also needed to be lightweight. I thought about a few current cars, like a Smart car or a Fiat 500. But, there were issues. The Smart car checked the small and lightweight boxes, but its reputation for twitchy handling and general geekiness put me off. I just don’t see a Smart car as our style. I wanted something more fun and engaging to drive.
The Fiat 500 is small, but it’s portly with a curb weight of 2,700 lbs or so. I also wondered about reliability and serviceability of such a car. Modern cars are chock-full of electronic control modules and require expensive specific software to diagnose malfunctions. My recent episode with the Spyder illustrates this.
When I was growing up, cars made in the 1950s and ’60s were so much simpler. They had their drawbacks, but they also were fun and you could fix almost anything on them with simple hand tools. I bought my first car in 1972 when I was 15 years old. It was a 1959 Austin-Healey Bugeye Sprite.
1959 Mk I Sprite – picture lifted from Flickr
It didn’t run – the engine was seized. I pulled the engine in our garage at home and set about rebuilding it. I’ve heard experience is what you gain when you learn from your mistakes. Well, I gained a lot of experience building that engine. That car was fun to drive – it handled like a go cart. But, it wasn’t comfortable. In fact, it didn’t have roll-up windows and the only access to the trunk was by entering a cave behind the seats! My rebuilt engine didn’t last long. I replaced it with a junkyard motor and sold the car – I swore off British cars at that point.
The Mk I Sprite was built from 1958 to 1960. In 1961, it was replaced by the Mk II version, which did away with the Bugeye look and added creature comforts. It had roll-up windows and a trunk lid to access the boot – England’s terminology for a trunk. It retained the diminutive 948cc engine and four-speed transmission. The Mk II was also marketed as a MG Midget. The Sprite and Midget were built on the same assembly line, but the Midget had different trim and cost a little more. These cars were built side by side until 1971 and cars from this era are sometimes referred to as “Spridgets.”
By this time, the engine displacement had grown to 1275cc. The MG Midget was produced until 1980. The British car industry was struggling in the ’70s and cost-cutting measures made their situation worse. It was a downward spiral for British cars. They refused to engineer and retool to meet the safety and smog standards in their largest market – the USA. The Mk III Midget with chrome bumpers built from 1972 to 1974 are considered by many as the most desirable of the line. But, it still had an engine built on ancient technology, poor electrical systems and a four-speed transmission that had the engine buzzing at any speed over 60 mph.
But, the car weighs 1,600 lbs and is very compact. It’s under 10 feet long and only five feet wide. I started poking around. The Mk I Bugeyes are collector cars nowadays and command high prices. Not anything I would be interested in. Then I came across an ad in Hemmings Motor News for a 1972 MG Midget RestoMod. The Resto in RestoMod means restored. The Mod means modified, not to original factory specifications. This particular RestoMod had chassis tweaks and a Nissan A15 engine and Nissan 60 series five-speed transmission. I was intrigued.
It was located in Huntley, Montana. After exchanging a few e-mails with the owner, I was on a flight to Montana to check it out. The Nissan A15 engine swapped into this Midget came from a Datsun 210 – before 1984, Nissan cars were known as Datsun. This engine is well-established as a reliable power plant and production worldwide spanned about 30 years. This one is set up with a Weber DGV carburetor and a hall-effect type electronic ignition. All straight forward stuff – easy to maintain and work on. No computers anywhere in the car unless I’m packing a laptop.
The owner of the car, Larry, picked me up at the Billings airport in the Midget. We drove to his place about 12 miles away in Huntley. The car didn’t rattle or shake and I was amazed at how easy it seemed to drive. We even crossed a railroad track at 40 mph without a rattle. We spent the rest of the afternoon going over the car. We put it up on jack stands and I looked at everything. Here are some pictures from the Hemmings advertisement.
1972 MG MidgetNissan A15 engineInterior stripped and refinished during restorationDoor panels sealed and replacedSuspension restored with new springs and bushings – new brake componentsCustom stainless steel exhaust systemUpdated seatbelt with shoulder strap
After a bit of dickering, we made a deal just in time to have the titled notarized nearby. I was the new owner and had a 900-mile drive ahead of me. I hit the road around 5:45pm and headed west on I-90.
The car was impressive. I cruised at 70-75 mph with ease and it was so stable, I could take my hands off the steering wheel and it continued straight down the road. I planned to drive to Bozeman and stop for the night. It was not to be. When I reached Bozeman, there weren’t any motels with a vacancy! I pressed on to Big Timber. I found a flea bag motel that wanted $139 for the night. No way! I went on to Butte. The only room available in town was a suite for $369.
I asked the clerk what was going on that had all the rooms in Montana sold out. He said it was the start of the summer season – many families rent rooms as a base camp for day trips into the north or west entrance to Yellowstone National Park. Who knew?
By 11:30pm, I made it to Missoula, absolutely exhausted. I found a room for $160 and paid for it. It was a king room with a jacuzzi. I cracked a bomber bottle of IPA and soaked in the tub. It was after 1am – I stayed on Pacific time for the trip – when I hit the sack. I woke up around 5am and couldn’t get back to sleep. After a Burger King breakfast burrito and coffee, I was back on the road by 6:30am.
I crossed a few mountain passes – Lookout Pass and Fourth of July pass in Idaho and the car didn’t skip a beat. I made gas stops every 150 miles or so and stretched my legs. Getting into and out of this little car takes some contortion. It’s not really suitable for anyone taller than about six feet or anyone with an ample waistline. I averaged only 31 miles per gallon on the first leg driving into a stiff headwind and climbing. Later I had 35 mpg and 37 mpg.
At a gas stop in Coeur D’Alene, a guy drove up and asked me if I wanted to sell the car. He said he’s been looking for a Midget, but not finding much. He asked me how I found it. I told him I did online searches. He said he doesn’t go online and doesn’t have e-mail – the government snoops on people that do don’tcha know! He said he was posting small ads asking for people to contact him with info about a Midget – he wanted the car to come to him! I wished him luck and drove on.
Not the way to find a car
At a gas stop in Wenatchee, a Toyota FJ SUV nearly backed into the Midget. The driver couldn’t see the car through her back window – the SUV was high and the Midget very low. It was a heart stopping moment for me – luckily, a bystander called out to the woman driving the SUV as I hit my horn and she stopped about 2 inches short of my rear deck lid.
After crossing Stevens pass on US2 and 10 hours on the road, I pulled into Alana’s driveway at 4:30pm. I was whipped, but driving the mountain roads was fun – mission accomplished. Donna had reorganized some things in the garage and made room for the car. I shot a picture of Donna next to the car to give a sense of scale – this is a really small car.
Donna isn’t big – the car is small
So, now I have to offload the Spyder and make room in the trailer for the Midget. Donna and I don’t normally name our vehicles but in this case we came up with Midget-San. San (sahn) is an honorific suffix in Japanese. It can be the equivalent of Mr., Mrs. or Ms. For example, if I had a old buddy named Tanaka, I might call him that. But if I were introduced to his father I would address him as Tanaka-San. If I was dating his sister, I would introduce her to others as Tanaka-San. Since our Midget has a transplanted Nissan drivetrain, Midget-San seems appropriate.
I managed to miss rain storms all the way back to western Washington. I don’t think that will last much longer – we’re sure to have rain here in Arlington, Washington. It’s inevitable.
Monday was my oldest daughter Alana’s birthday. We celebrated with dinner at Bonefish Grill with a party of family and friends. Good food and fun times with great people.
Donna conversing with our granddaughter Lainey and her boyfriend Dan. Next to Donna is Alana and her boyfriend, Kevin.
Things have been pretty low key around here. As expected, rain showers started Tuesday night and we had showers off and on since then. The temperature has been cool, only reaching the mid-60s. Tomorrow’s forecast calls for a dry day with warmer temperatures.
I’m heading out on a mission tomorrow. I’ll be flying out of Sea-Tac airport to Billings, Montana. If my mission is a success, all will be revealed after I return Sunday afternoon. Until then, stay tuned.
We were up early on Friday morning and hit the road with what had to be our earliest departure ever. We were on the road by 7:30am. I’d snagged an appointment for a chassis alignment on the coach at Brazel’s RV Performance Center in Centralia, Washington. I thought I could make the drive in four and half hours, but you never know what you might encounter driving through Portland.
I decided to take the long way around on I-205 rather than going straight through downtown Portland in I-5. This turned out to be a good decision as we only had a couple of slow-downs and no drama. We made good time and I had enough time to spare for a lunch stop in Chehalis. I went to the Subway sandwich shop while Donna fixed a salad for herself. We arrived at Brazel’s at 12:30pm and dropped the trailer in a pull-through site in their RV customer lot. This lot has full hook-ups for about a dozen and a half rigs. They took the coach into the shop right at 1pm.
The alignment job was a comprehensive chassis alignment that began with weighing the four corner wheel weight of the coach. They adjusted the ride height, checked rear alignment and thrust – no issues there – and front wheel camber, caster and toe. The front toe needed to be reset. Meanwhile, Donna used their 5G wifi to get some work done in the customer lounge area. With the work completed, we rolled out of Centralia at 4:30pm.
We got lucky and kept the wheels turning through Olympia with only a couple of slow-downs. The traffic came to a standstill just past the Martin Way exit where we left I-5. Our destination was the Cabela’s store in Lacey. We pulled into their lot around 5:30pm and called it a day. We’ve stayed at this Cabela’s before. It’s a quiet, out-of-the-way stop and good for a one-night layover.
Parked for the night at the west end of the Lacey Cabela’s
I’d planned on using the Cabela’s dump station but found they had removed it! Where the old dump station was located, they had poured concrete over the dump station hook-up. I don’t know what prompted that.
Donna made a favorite for dinner – pork tenderloin medallions with a dijon sauce, sweet potato mash and steamed asparagus.
Pork tenderloin medallions
The sun doesn’t set until well after 9pm this far north at this time of year. Consequently, we stayed up later than usual watching TV. Saturday morning we didn’t get rolling again until 10am. Once again, I opted to go the long way around and took I-405 instead of following I-5 through Seattle. I’m not sure how much it helped – traffic was terrible through Tacoma before we even got to I-405. Then we had a number of slow-downs and and full stops along the way. Once we got through and rejoined I-5 in Lynnwood, the slow downs continued. I-5 through Everett is poorly designed with traffic joining the Interstate right where lane closures or exit only lanes appear. It didn’t matter that it was mid-day on a Saturday – traffic came to a halt several times.
We stopped at the Smokey Point rest area at mile post 207 and used the free dump station there. They have three lanes for RV dump stations and we didn’t have to wait. From there, we continued north to Mount Vernon where I dropped off the Spyder. The shop there had a backlog of work, so it may be two weeks before they get to work on the Spyder. It was our best option though.
Now we’re parked in my daughter, Alana’s, driveway in Arlington, Washington. Her driveway is long enough to back in our 65-foot length of coach and trailer and set up for a couple of weeks of mooch-docking. Getting the coach and trailer lined up on the narrow residential street is a bit of a chore, but we got it done. I had us leveled and connected to the 50-amp electrical service I installed here a couple of years ago when I found out I couldn’t get Dish satellite reception. I had to pull the jacks up and move forward about three feet before the satellite antenna could lock in the signal. It’s all good now, but next time I’ll try to remember to check the satellite before I set everything up.
Mooch-docking at Alana’s
The weather has been outstanding. Mostly sunny skies with the high temperature reaching the mid-70s over the weekend and should be the same today. But, this is western Washington in June. Rain is forecast to reach the area overnight and we’ll have rain over the next few days.
Today is Alana’s birthday. We’ll be going out to celebrate over dinner at The Bonefish Grill tonight. Happy birthday, Alana!
We’ve had a couple of interesting visitors here at Richardson Park.
The first was our neighbor who set up in site 39, next to us. His name was Paul Manuel and he came down from Tacoma in his National Tradewinds motorhome. He’s a bit of a traveling minstrel – he plays the flute and attends music festivals around the area. He once owned a deli and now he and his son set up a food trailer at festivals and are known for their Philly cheese steak sandwiches. They also make subs and other fare, but the cheese steak is the most popular menu item and their claim to fame.
He sat on a picnic table in the center of the park and played his flute – he’s very good. Donna went over to compliment his playing and then invited him to visit with us for a while. He has a six-acre hobby farm in southeast Tacoma and invited us to park at his place if we’re ever in the area. He left yesterday around noon, but will return for the music festival in Veneta July 12 -14th.
The other visitor came by around noon yesterday. His name is Mike Justice – a blog follower that has a farm near the park. He came bearing gifts – he brought hazelnuts from his farm that he roasted and seasoned with a barbeque salt and they are delicious. He also gifted us with two bottles of double IPA from Pelican Brewing on the Oregon Coast. I paired it with last night’s dinner of shrimp over cauliflower rice. Nice. Thanks, Mike!
Pelican Beak Breaker Double IPA
Any time you see the word “double” in a beer description, it means the recipe has been kicked up a notch – just like adding “imperial” to the name. In this case, the beer has a higher gravity with a 9% ABV. Of course, to offset the maltiness of such a high gravity brew, additional hops are used for bittering.
With the afternoon temperature hitting 95 degrees, Donna took a floatie tube to the beach area of the lake and cooled off. I passed on going in the water as I have a small spot of dermatitis on my right foot. I took a short stroll down the path through the woods from our site to the marina area of Fern Ridge Lake.
A variety of boats at the marina
There’s a nice grassy park next to the marina and a host with a 5th-wheel trailer set up there.
People picnicking in the park on the left – another marina on the right
Richardson Park is surrounded by working farms. There’s everything from hazelnuts to strawberries growing around here. We even have a cherry tree in our site that’s bearing fruit. I could hear a farm implement at the edge of the park and wondered what it was. It turned out to be a hay baler.
Baling hay next to the parkTrail through the woods from our site
Source Engineering phoned in the afternoon and told me the sway bar links arrived. We made arrangements to have them installed this morning at 9:30am. Donna booked another night here, so we’ll move on Friday morning.
It only took about an hour to have the old links removed and new links with new bushings installed. What a difference proper tension on the sway bar makes – much better cornering and a smoother ride.
The sway bar is a “U” shaped steel torsion bar with the lower portion of the “U” flattened and elongated. The lower part of the “U” – a straight section – is attached to the front axle. At either end of the “U,” there’s a mounting point where links join the ends of the sway bar to the chassis frame rails.
Front sway barSway bar link
Here’s how it works – picture making a sharp right turn. Centrifugal force will cause the body and chassis of the coach to roll to the outside of the turn. In this example, the body rolls to the left, compressing the suspension on the left side while extending the suspension on the right side.
With a sway bar attached to the axle and frame rails, as the chassis tries to roll to the left, the right end of the sway bar is pulled up. Meanwhile the left end of the sway bar is being pushed down. This creates a torsion – a twisting force – on the length of the sway bar attached to the axle. Of course the steel torsion bar resists this force and lessens the amount of body/chassis roll. It greatly enhances vehicle handling.
Today the high temperature should reach the mid-80s. Tonight should be cool with a low in the mid-50s and tomorrow should be sunny with a high around 80. We plan to head out tomorrow morning. The wind is forecast to be fairly calm and it should be a good day for travel.
My laptop has been giving me fits, so I haven’t posted for several days. I thought my hard drive was about to crash. The cursor would suddenly freeze and the laptop would become unresponsive for long periods of time. A couple of days ago, when it started working again after about 40 minutes of no response, I found Malwarebytes was running in the background. I ended the task once the laptop resumed working and the laptop seemed fine. Last night it happened again. This time I uninstalled Malewarebytes and the laptop has been fine. I’ll keep my fingers crossed.
The weekend weather was nice in Sutherlin – temps climbed daily from 70 degrees on Friday to mid-70s on Saturday and Sunday, hitting the 80s on Monday. Saturday morning we disconnected the 50amp electric service, water and sewer and battened down the hatches for a short drive into town. Les Schwab called around 9:30am and said our tires had arrived.
We pulled behind the shop and were directed to an outdoor covered work station. I checked the codes on the new tires to confirm the production dates – they were all 1419. As I wrote in my last post, tires have Department of Transportation (DOT) codes on the sidewall. The codes are alpha-numeric. The letters indicate the factory that produced the tire and the numbers are the calendar week and year of production, so 1419 means these tires were made the 14th calendar week of 2019.
DOT code on the new tires
Having fresh tires on an RV is an important consideration. Tires begin aging soon after they’re made – especially if they’re exposed to sunlight. Our old tires had lots of tread left – the tread depth was 13/32″ deep. Tires aren’t considered worn out until the tread depth is 3/32″. But, our tires had aged out. I found weather checking on the sidewall of two of our tires.
Weather checking
The checking was wasn’t deep and we would most likely be okay for a while longer. But I don’t like pushing such an important safety issue as tires. A blowout on a motorhome can be a catastrophic event.
The guys at Les Schwab did a fantastic job and had all six tires replaced in about an hour and a half. I had Equal Flexx brand balancing beads put in all six wheels. New shoes and a smooth ride!
With the Spyder down, we had nowhere to go and not much to do all weekend. Donna took the time to make a few dishes of “comfort food” so we would have some leftovers – we plan to boondock for a few nights as we head north. She made a Greek pork stew that was tasty and a big pot of pea soup.
Greek pork stew
Monday morning we hitched up the trailer and I pulled it into the street. I tried to back the Spyder into the trailer with its wounded engine thumping on one cylinder, but it wouldn’t go up the ramp without stalling. Luckily, a couple of guys were working nearby and helped me push it up the ramp into the trailer.
We drove about 15 miles up I-5 and exited near Anlauf. From there we hit a county road called Territorial Highway. This was a twisty road with lots of short, steep climbs and downgrades – and no shoulder in parts. All along this route, we saw signs for wineries. If the Spyder was operational, I could see us taking winery tours in this area.
Our destination was Richardson Park – a county park/campground on Fern Ridge Lake near Veneta, west of Eugene, Oregon. I had an appointment set for Tuesday morning at Source Engineering in Veneta – about 10 minutes away from Richardson Park.
Last summer, we had a cooling fan failure on the coach. The cooling fan is driven by a hydraulic motor. The speed of the fan is regulated by a wax-valve thermostat. The wax in the valve expands with heat and drives a tapered piston into a seat where the fluid bypasses the fan motor. When the piston fully seats and closes the bypass, the fan runs at its highest speed. When the wax is cold – meaning the coolant is cold – the valve is open and fluid bypasses the hydraulic motor and the fan doesn’t turn.
When our wax-valve failed, the only replacement parts I could find were in England and would take a week to arrive. So, I had a stop-gap repair made that was intended to be temporary. I had the line for the bypass capped off so no fluid could bypass the hydraulic motor. This meant the fan always ran at full speed regardless of temperature. This really wasn’t harmful – the coolant temperature in the engine block was regulated by the thermostat in the coolant passage. But it has drawbacks – it takes horsepower to drive the fan. The amount varies with engine speed, but it takes an average of more than 30 horsepower to drive the fan. This in turn reduces fuel economy. Also, there’s the wear and tear of running the hydraulic motor full-speed, full time.
Later, I found out that Source Engineering had the Sauer Danfoss wax valves. They make a conversion kit to retrofit the mechanical wax valve system into late model coaches with electronically controlled cooling fan motors. The electronic control units have a high failure rate – I often hear newer Monacos or Holiday Ramblers with their fans running at high speed at start up as they leave an RV park with a cold engine. The mechanical wax-valve system rarely fails.
On Tuesday morning, we left the trailer in our site and drove to Source Engineering’s shop. We arrived at 8:15am and they took our coach in straight away. It took about an hour and a half to get the hydraulic lines uncapped and sorted and the new valve installed. They also added a restrictor to the bypass line so the fan will always run at a minimum of about 800 rpm. This is a good idea – regardless of temperature, the fan will draw air across the charge-air cooler and condenser and if the wax valve ever fails, the fan will provide some cooling. At full speed with the wax valve fully closed – this occurs at 198 degrees of coolant temperature – the fan turns at 2,500-3,000 rpm.
In the service bay at Source Engineering
I had another issue for them to look at. Our front sway bar bushings are worn and the sway bar is loose. I tried to tighten it, but it seems the loose bushings allowed the bar to rub and damage the link rod threads. I couldn’t tighten it. They checked it out and confirmed the links needed to be replaced. The bad news was, they didn’t have the links we needed in stock. The good news was, they could get them from Roadmaster in Vancouver, Washington and have the parts in a day or two.
So, we extended our stay at Richardson Park until Thursday, possibly Friday. Richardson Park isn’t a bad place to be stuck. It’s a beautiful park with paved sites and grassy areas and lots of trees. And it’s right on the lake. Fern Ridge Lake is a reservoir on the Long Tom River. It covers over 9,300 acres and is a little over four miles long. It’s a popular spot for sailboats, power boats, water skiing and fishing. In the summer, the prevailing wind from the north is strong in the afternoon making it ideal for sailing. There are boat clubs and marinas on the lake.
Site 38 at Richardson Park – 50 amp electric service and water
Before we returned from Source Engineering, we made a detour to hit Walmart in west Eugene – about 12 miles away from Veneta. Donna needed to pick up a few items to meet her menu plans for the rest of the week and I took the opportunity to stock up the beer supply.
Between the Spyder, the sway bar links and my laptop troubles, it seems like everything is going down at once. We’ll get it sorted. Next week I’ll drop off the Spyder for repairs while we visit family in Arlington, Washington.
The weather here has been unusually warm. Yesterday the high was 91 degrees – about 20 degrees higher than average. Today will hit the mid-to-upper-90s before things start cooling off. Mid-70s should be the high by the end of the week.
We’ve been without wheels since the Spyder came up with a dead cylinder Sunday afternoon. I detailed my diagnostic process in the last post. The new ignition coil module was supposed to come in on Wednesday, but when I checked with Valley Motorsports in Eugene, they told me the part wouldn’t be there until Thursday between 11am and 1pm.
Donna talked to our neighbor, Mickey, and found out that he and his wife were going to Roseburg Thursday morning. They said they could drop me off at Enterprise Rental Car in Roseburg. I called and reserved a car for pick-up Thursday morning.
I picked up the car around 9:30am and headed north – it was about an hour drive to Eugene. I had checked a map of the city and had a plan. First I stopped at Costco where I bought a few items including a new camp chair. It’s a folding director’s chair with a folding side table – not something I could easily carry on the Spyder, so I took advantage of having a car.
Next I went to the west side of town and checked out the Walmart. I wanted to see what the overnight parking situation looked like and I also needed to pick up aluminum drip pan liners for the Weber Q. From there I went to the Elks’ Lodge to see what it looked like for an overnight spot. The west side Elks’ Lodge is a no go for RV parking. The lot is tight and shared with several other businesses. I was hoping to find a place to dry camp Monday night so we could be close to Source Engineering in Veneta, Oregon where we have an appointment Tuesday morning.
After a quick stop for lunch at Taco Time, I found Valley Motorsports at 12:30pm. They said they would call when the part came in and I hadn’t heard from them yet. I checked at the parts counter and was told the day’s parts shipment had just arrived and was being checked in. I was going to sit in the waiting area and read a book while they did that, but a guy came out with my part after about three minutes!
I was 99% sure the ignition coil was the culprit for the lack of spark in the rear cylinder, but there was a small chance that it could be a fault in the Engine Control Module (ECM) which sends a signal to the coil pack. I couldn’t test for this signal without the proprietary B.U.D.S. computer program that’s only found at Can-Am dealers. Ignition components are not returnable once they’ve been installed. I rolled the dice and paid for the $170 coil pack.
An hour later, I was back at Timber Valley SKP Park and got to work. Mickey stopped by and offered to follow me to Roseburg when I returned the rental car. I told him that with any luck we’ll use the Spyder to get back from the rental car agency.
Well, my luck ran out on me and my roll of the dice was a loser. The coil pack didn’t fix the problem. I have no choice now but to take it to a dealer where they can interrogate the ECM and run through the diagnostic protocol to see why the rear ignition coil isn’t receving a signal. I know the primary voltage and grounds are good and the coil is new, so it must be a loss of signal to fire the coil that is the root of the problem. I took Mickey up on the offer to pick me up at the rental agency in Roseburg.
I have a coil pack for sale!
We’ve extended our stay here until Monday. Tomorrow morning I’ll drive the coach to Les Schwab in Sutherlin and have the tires replaced. Monday we’ll move to Richardson Park Campground on Fern Ridge Lake, just north of Veneta. After we have the work performed at Source Engineering on Tuesday, we’ll head north. Our original plan was to go to the coast, but now that’s changed.
We plan to get to my oldest daughter, Alana’s house in Arlington, Washington by the end of the week. From there, I can have the Spyder transported to the dealer in Mount Vernon and we’ll hang out in Alana’s driveway until it’s fixed. Sometimes the best laid plans go awry.
The days here have been warm – in the mid-80s until yesterday. Yesterday, the high was in the low 70s and a few rain drops fell in the afternoon. It rained overnight and showers continue today off and on. I need to bicycle into town at some point to pick up a general delivery package at the post office. We’ll be mostly homebound until we get the Spyder repaired. We’d hoped to check out some of the wineries and other sights around here, but that’ll have to wait until next time.
No post is complete without a dinner plate photo. On Tuesday, Donna prepared tortilla-crusted tilapia. This time she served it over a smear of avocado puree on the plate before she added the fish and salsa. She served corn with cilantro on the side.
I mentioned in my last post that the upcoming weekend was a “free fishing weekend” in Oregon. So on Saturday morning, Donna and I loaded the tackle box and our fishing poles and rode the Spyder up to Cooper Creek Reservoir – about four miles away from Timber Valley SKP Park just east of Sutherlin.
The west end of the lake was crowded with fisherman – they had a youth fishing event scheduled there. So we went to the east end of the lake where we had scouted out another fishing access point. There were only a few people there. We didn’t have much luck. We spent about an hour and a half there and I only caught two small bluegill that I released. Meanwhile, Donna was skunked.
In the afternoon, Donna took the Spyder to the grocery store in town and bought a few things. She made salmon cakes for dinner, but she used a different recipe. This recipe was a little more involved than what she usually makes – it included capers plus chopped red peppers and red onion sauteed in butter versus the usual mayonnaise. She served an arugula salad on the side with the apple cider dressing we bought the day before at the farmers’ market. Tasty!
Salmon cake plate
On Sunday morning, after I watched the Moto GP race from Mugello, Italy, we went back to the reservoir and tried the west end this time – it wasn’t nearly as crowded as the day before. Even though it was free fishing weekend, we still had to pay $4/day to park at the reservoir. The Cooper Creek Reservoir is a long, narrow body of water stretching west to east then southeast. It’s large enough for water skiing and we saw a water skier and few people tubing behind powerboats.
West end of Cooper Creek Reservoir
Once again, the fishing wasn’t too hot and we were both skunked. We only saw a couple of fish caught although a dozen or so people were fishing.
Donna fishing for fish
When we came home, Donna hit the ice cream social at the park – she had a coupon for a free scoop of ice cream. After she came home, I fired up the Spyder to run an errand and trouble struck. It was only running on one cylinder. I did a cursory check, then decided to leave it for Monday morning. It was hot out in the direct sun and I didn’t feel like getting too involved with it.
The afternoon temperatures have reached the low 80s for the last few days and we run the air conditioners in the coach in the afternoon. Donna made a simple dish for dinner last night – spaghetti squash topped with beef ragu and shaved parmesan.
Beef ragu over spaghetti squash
This morning, I got to work on the Spyder. The first step, as always, was to peel the onion. To do anything mechanical on the Spyder, body panels have to come off. In this case, I had to remove seven panels with numerous fasteners. It’s tedious work.
An internal combustion gasoline engine needs a few things in order to work – you need fuel and air in the proper ratio, compression and a spark for ignition at the right time. For some reason, one of the cylinders wasn’t getting fuel or spark. To get to the spark plugs, I had to remove the air box. Everything is packaged so tightly on the Spyder, this job is easier said than done. After about an hour, I could finally pull the spark plugs.
I grounded the spark plugs and cranked the starter to see if I was getting a spark. No spark on the rear cylinder, good spark on the front one. I switched the plugs in the leads and tried again. No spark in the rear cylinder. This told me it wasn’t a problem with the spark plug. Next I switched the ignition wires at the coil and cranked the engine again. Still no spark in the rear cylinder. This told me the ignition wires weren’t the problem.
Without the specialty diagnostic equipment to check further, I relied on deductive reasoning. The ignition coil is a dual-coil unit. Both coils get primary voltage from the same source. Since one coil worked, it’s not a primary voltage problem. Since the ignition wires and the spark plugs were good, it left the coil as the most likely culprit. It’s possible that a fault in the engine control module could be preventing the rear coil from receiving a signal, but I don’t think that’s it. I’m putting my money on a bad ignition coil.
I checked around and the nearest dealer is in Eugene – about 60 miles away. I had them order a new coil assembly for $170. I found one for half that on Ebay, but it was sold “as-is” with no warranty and no returns. I didn’t trust it and I also didn’t know how long it would take to get. The dealer can get one in two days. I’ll have to rent a car and drive up to Eugene to fetch it. I put the plugs back in, the airbox on and reassembled most of the body work leaving off only what I need to access the ignition coil assembly. I spent a total of about two and half hours at this point.
Meanwhile Donna went out on her road bike for about an hour. After lunch, she went back out again on her beater bike – I call it that because it’s a rigid frame mountain bike she bought used for $25 – to town for a few items at the grocery store. When she returned, I commandeered the bike and rode to town. I stopped at the Les Schwab tire center to inquire about new tires for the coach. Our tires don’t have much wear after 40,000 miles, but they’re aging out. Our tires were manufactured in 2013 and after six years they’re beginning to show some checking – small cracks – in the sidewalls on at least two of the tires. I was hoping to get seven years out of them, but I won’t push it.
At Les Schwab, I asked Jeremy at the counter for a quote on replacement tires and I also wanted to know the DOT date codes on them. The Department of Transportation requires date codes on all passenger car and truck tires. The codes indicate the calendar week and year of manufacture. He called their warehouse and they had six Toyo M154 295/75 x 22.5 tires with DOT codes of 1419. This means they were made calendar week 14 of 2019 – two months ago. We were good to go.
I wanted to replace the tires here in Oregon because there’s no state sales tax here. On a $3,200 tire bill, that means a significant savings. I ordered the tires and we’ll have them installed on Saturday – oh, I should mention that we extended our stay here in Timber Valley SKP Park until Monday, June 10th.
The forecast calls for a couple more warm days, then much cooler on Thursday and Friday with a chance of rain on Friday. Hopefully I’ll have the Spyder project done by then and dry weather when I take to the coach to Les Schwab on Saturday.
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