September 14, 2004

September 14, 2004

DAY 89

 

 

I started this morning by attending the seminar on solar panels, voltage regulators, batteries, and inverters, for RV solar power. I am interested in solar power for those times when we don't have 120V power. In other words, solar power for "boondocking". We are both disinclined to go the generator route. The presenter's style was unfocused and disjointed. Plus, the seminar seemed aimed at those who already had solar power systems for their rigs. I left 3/4 of the way through. Joanne was attending the seminar on Velcro. A million uses for Velcro in your RV.

I phoned the GM dealer to get details on the work done on the truck, and to request that they send a courtesy shuttle to pick me up. Well ... some moron ... likely an after market installer ... had cut the cable between the alternator and the battery, likely meaning to cut into the battery power cable to splice in a connection for something, realized they had cut the wrong cable, and spliced the 2 parts of the cable back together ... rather poorly ... with a butt connector. It melted and short circuited. The alternator stopped charging the batteries, the batteries died, and the transmission ECM ( electronic control module ... essentially a computer chip ) flipped the transmission into "limp" mode. Limp mode is a safety feature that forces the transmission to stay in first gear, to encourage you to stop driving and recognize there is a problem with the vehicle. Well DUH ! ! !

Diagnosis, repair of the cable, resetting the transmission ECM out of limp mode, and testing the transmission ; U.S. $ 218.44 ! CDN. $300.00 !

While I went to pick up the truck in Elkhart, Joanne attended a seminar on campground discount memberships / clubs, such as the Good Sam Club which we just joined last week at Camping World. After picking up the truck, I bought some trailer parts I needed at Camping World in Elkhart, then filled the tank before heading back to Goshen. At the gas station, I noticed that the Elkhart newspaper's front page lead story was about our Escapees Club Rally here at the Elkhart County Fairgrounds in Goshen. Eleven hundred RV rigs are front page news here.

I returned just before the afternoon seminars began at 1:00 P.M.. I ate lunch in 5 minutes and rushed off to the seminar on ceiling vent fans, while Joanne went off to the Amish culture seminar. Again, I was a little disappointed in the seminar, and left half way through. Again, it was aimed at people who already had the product, not people who were considering buying it. The second seminar I attended in the afternoon was a repeat showing of the documentary video of the Escapees RV Club history and development which Joanne had seen Sunday evening. After that, we attended a meeting of the Pet Lovers BOF, then headed off to gate 5 for our 1 hour assignment as gate guards. Shortly after 6:00 we headed off to do some grocery shopping. When we came back, it was time for supper and Amazing Race. Once again, we received remarkably good TV reception with the TV antenna on the trailer. The only place we got really poor reception with the antenna was just outside Chicago last week. Go figure !

DSK