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mazdeuce
mazdeuce UltimaDork
4/28/17 6:05 a.m.

Have a great time. I'm sorry there's no reason at all for your travel path to come through Houston. I'd let that beast clog up the driveway and give you and the creatures a night in the Grosh to relax.
Safe travels.

Spinout007
Spinout007 UberDork
4/28/17 7:53 a.m.

have fun!!!!

paranoid_android74
paranoid_android74 UltraDork
4/28/17 6:11 p.m.

Some inspiration for you...

https://www.youtube.com/embed/yLA5s05c604

You two have fun and be safe!

¯\_(ツ)_/¯
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ SuperDork
4/28/17 8:10 p.m.

Thanks everyone! We'll be setting off first thing tomorrow morning, and the rig is as ready as it's going to get:

I won't be turning on my phone unless it's an emergency, so hopefully there won't be any updates until we're back. In my absence, this thread can turn to wild speculation about how terribly things must be going for us

java230
java230 SuperDork
4/29/17 11:17 a.m.

Have a great trip!

Ian F
Ian F MegaDork
4/29/17 1:41 p.m.

Wait. When are you supposed to be back? IOW - when do we starting worrying?

mazdeuce
mazdeuce UltimaDork
4/29/17 1:55 p.m.

In reply to Ian F:

Have you met his wife? Even if things go terribly pear shaped he'll be fine. I'm not sure we ever have to worry about him again.

Dusterbd13
Dusterbd13 UltimaDork
4/29/17 2:03 p.m.

He proposed during a stage rally. She was his navigator.

They got this.

Have fun yall!!!

bluej
bluej UltraDork
4/29/17 5:30 p.m.

An undisclosed source has confirmed they've made at least one parts store stop so far. Makes sense on the first day. I bet they'll be good from here on.

paranoid_android74
paranoid_android74 UltraDork
4/29/17 9:00 p.m.
bluej wrote: An undisclosed source has confirmed they've made at least one parts store stop so far. Makes sense on the first day. I bet they'll be good from here on.

I saw the same info. No f-bombs flying yet, so I imagine they got it going again.

irish44j
irish44j UltimaDork
4/29/17 9:35 p.m.

Yes, thankfully someone is on facebook/instagram documenting things?

Ian F
Ian F MegaDork
4/30/17 6:23 a.m.
mazdeuce wrote: In reply to Ian F: Have you met his wife? Even if things go terribly pear shaped he'll be fine. I'm not sure we ever have to worry about him again.

Yes, I have met his wife. When she was still on the fence about navigating, I threw my hat into the "potential" ring and went to his house to test-fit into the RX7. It seems being able to read in a moving car without getting sick is a desired skillset.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ SuperDork
5/2/17 11:43 p.m.

Well, after a few really pretty awesome days of travel, we're in Las Cruces NM with a transmission that seems pretty unhappy.

Does anyone know if there's anything different in a motorhome 700r4? Any ideas? Seems to have lost third and fourth gear as well as its ability to engine brake.

Pete Gossett
Pete Gossett UltimaDork
5/3/17 6:12 a.m.

In reply to ¯_(ツ)_/¯:

Is the TV cable adjusted properly? Honestly, at this point if it was out of adjustment it's probably too late.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ SuperDork
5/3/17 6:59 a.m.

It wasn't messed with, but I would agree that the trans is probably cooked. Trying to work out diy potential vs shop price​ vs how hard it might be to sell the rig as is where is. Any ideas would be appreciated, we're trying not to give up here

Ian F
Ian F MegaDork
5/3/17 7:29 a.m.

I'm trying my google-fu searching for a used trans in Las Cruces NM. In your case, I'd start calling salvage yards as near to you as you can find. Hopefully you can find one that has a 700R4 and might be willing to swap it for you.

Good luck. If I find anything I'll post it, but so far not having much luck. You will likely need to get on a phone and start calling.

Ian F
Ian F MegaDork
5/3/17 7:34 a.m.

Black's Auto Salvage?

Address: 1430 Thorpe Rd, Doña Ana, NM 88032
Phone: (575) 382-9008
Hours: Open today · 8:30AM–5PM

bluej
bluej UltraDork
5/3/17 7:38 a.m.

Where's the nearest large RV campground/Homesite? If you called them, they might have a better idea of where to go for local rv resources.

Sucks

¯\_(ツ)_/¯
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ SuperDork
5/3/17 7:43 a.m.

In reply to bluej:

We're in it- there's an RV shop next door that opens in a little over an hour.

In reply to Ian:

There's a rebuilt transmission on CL in El Paso, we'd need to get it here somehow though.

Pete Gossett
Pete Gossett UltimaDork
5/3/17 7:43 a.m.

In reply to ¯_(ツ)_/¯:

Can you access the upper bellhousing bolts through the cabin? When I swapped the one on my old 1/2-ton pickup that was the worst part of the job. If you can access all the bolts, and get the RV high enough in the air to slide the trans out/in, it's not too bad a job to r&r it - though I'd recommend a transmission jack to prevent injuries.

I picked up that trans for $50 used, but it was probably a lucky score since it worked fine. I'd suspect $200-$400 should pick up a used one now. Keep in mind they used different tail housings on the 700r4 depending upon the vehicle. You can swap them, though I'm not sure of the difficulty or if anything else needs swapped too(like the tailshaft?).

Edit: Also, don't turn down a TH350/400 if you find one. Just make sure it has the same length tailshaft, and get the kickdown mechanism too.

Slippery
Slippery Dork
5/3/17 7:52 a.m.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ wrote: There's a rebuilt transmission on CL in El Paso, we'd need to get it here somehow though.

Hertz has an economy car for $36 at the airport. Take the bike to the airport and leave it at Hertz for a few hours. Should not cost you more than $50 total with gas.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ SuperDork
5/3/17 8:00 a.m.

berkeley, just got a good look at the trans for the first time in daylight, it's a 4l80e! Sorry for the confusion

java230
java230 SuperDork
5/3/17 10:05 a.m.

And say berk it?!

¯\_(ツ)_/¯
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ SuperDork
5/3/17 10:23 a.m.

Getting a suitable replacement trans looks bad from a cash​ standpoint and really bad from a time standpoint, we don't want to live in Las Cruces for the next week. Investigating options for continuing in a rental and storing the RV to sell.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ SuperDork
5/3/17 10:24 a.m.

In reply to java230:

I'm pretty sure this is worse than what the stop slip can fix

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