EMERGENCY Roadside Help Needed

[wdwbound]

Not a mechanic or inclined at all, but this reminds me of a time with our first motor home while driving through Alligator Alley that we started losing power all of a sudden. Just made it out of the Glades and to a campground for the night while DH fooled around trying to figure ANYTHING out...turned out to be a fuse.

 

[BradyBz12]

My heart was pounding and my stomach was in knots reading what you went through

Here too - thank goodness you all are safe!

DH and I had a fairly new alternator go on our tow vehicle a few years back... at 2am in Mt. Kisco NY. We limped to a 24 hour diner and got permission to park for the night, then found an auto parts store close by in the a.m. Thankfully DH has been working on cars since a teen and was able to buy the parts and the tools he need to fix it in the lot.

Now we travel WITH spare parts and a big ol' tool box!


Good luck in the a.m. and hope the rest of your trip is safe and uneventful!

 

[pjhootch]

Sure glad to hear you're okay AND you have beer with that generator. What a scary thing. Would be even scarier without a beer.

I've lost power as you describe twice in my vehicles (not with the MH) and both times it was the alternator taking a powder. One other time it was my serpentine belt, but that was an old truck. I've also replaced an alternator, just to have the new one be bad right out of the box. We got a second replacement and that sucker only lasted a year.

Take care and good luck tomorrow.

 

[Shan-man]

Well, we made it safely to an RV repair garage after a very restless night between sleeping atop a stammering generator and listening to the Jake-brakes of arriving trucks and the compressor of the refer truck next to us... boy it's easy to go from being elated to even be alive to bi*ching about how rough you have it So, we ran the generator most of the night and topped off both batteries. Anyway, the shop is in the styx so they have a nice low rate ($48 an hour is cheap in my experience), and hopefully they are worth twice that. They do have an ASE mechanic, so should be a good repair. I would have attempted a repair myself, but it is still raining pretty good and just can't subject myself to that much fun. With any luck we can still do lunch at our favorite Asheville restaurant (the Corner Kitchen, yum!) on our way to our friend's lake cabin near Gaitlinburg.

Thanks to all my Fiend friends, your support made it a lot easier to deal with all this.

 

[CampingChristy]

Shan - I am so happy that you and the wife are safe! How scary! I hope all works out!

Continue to take care!

 

[Just Beachy]

Wow, Shan! That's scary!! I'm glad you and Mary and the "kids" are ok. I think I would have drank more than just one beer after that!!!!

 

[datgrt@fw]

Well, we made it safely to an RV repair garage after a very restless night between sleeping atop a stammering generator and listening to the Jake-brakes of arriving trucks and the compressor of the refer truck next to us... boy it's easy to go from being elated to even be alive to bi*ching about how rough you have it So, we ran the generator most of the night and topped off both batteries. Anyway, the shop is in the styx so they have a nice low rate ($48 an hour is cheap in my experience), and hopefully they are worth twice that. They do have an ASE mechanic, so should be a good repair. I would have attempted a repair myself, but it is still raining pretty good and just can't subject myself to that much fun. With any luck we can still do lunch at our favorite Asheville restaurant (the Corner Kitchen, yum!) on our way to our friend's lake cabin near Gaitlinburg.

Thanks to all my Fiend friends, your support made it a lot easier to deal with all this.

Hello Shan-man ....... We are in Florida now and I was just able to logon and read about your situation! I am very glad you and your wife are safe and no one got hurt! I am sorry that you are having problems and I hope that it is an easy fix and not too expensive!

Good Luck, Stay Safe and I hope your trip gets better real soon!!!

Doug / datgrt@fw

 

[kc5grw]

Shan, glad to hear everythings okay and it sounds like you're going to get things fixed.

 

[Shan-man]

Just a quick update. The problem was an easy fix, though a bit tricky to track down... just a faulty connection on the alternator. If you are ever in need of a shop along I-40 near Mocksville, I HIGHLY recommend "At Your Spot" mobile (and in-shop) repair. The RV guy is super capable on the coach side of the equation, as is the chassis guy on his side. They worked on my problems (RV problems, that is) for about 2 hours and were basically not going to charge me... so I left a nice TIP! I have already planned to stop by on our way home to get the genset tuned-up, and the next time we come through I'm going to have them handle my dash AC modernization.

Wow, Shan! That's scary!! I'm glad you and Mary and the "kids" are ok. I think I would have drank more than just one beer after that!!!!

Oh, I did... I think I had 4 before my nerves stopped jumping enough for me to lay down! The "kids" were fine, they slept through the whole thing. Turns out, Mary had no idea that we were hydroplaning until after we were parked on the shoulder and I told her. We were on a 60mph slip'n'slide long enough for me to say "oh s**t, oh s**t, oh s**t, we're going to hit, dear God no" and she never knew, so needless to say I was FAR more stressed out last night than she. Kinda like the folks who complain about the bumpy landing only to find out later that the tail had been destroyed by lightning on approach! Any landing you can walk away from, hunh!?

Thanks again to all of you for your support.

 

[liv luvs disney]

Wonderful, wonderful news!!!!!

 

[elizablake]

So glad you guys are alright. Sounds like a horrible experience. Glad it worked out in the end.

 

[DaveInTN]

Wow Shan...scary story! Glad you are repaired and back on your way. Have a safe journey over the mountains!

 

[Michelle GT]

happy to hear your ok..... hope the rest of your trip is great.

 

[FlaFortCampster]

Not a mechanic or inclined at all, but this reminds me of a time with our first motor home while driving through Alligator Alley that we started losing power all of a sudden. Just made it out of the Glades and to a campground for the night while DH fooled around trying to figure ANYTHING out...turned out to be a fuse.

Alligator Alley, oh good grief, now there's a place you definitely don't want to have vehicle problems. UGH!!! Just a fuse too, geez. Glad it turned out well for you.

 

[FlaFortCampster]

Shan
Here's some special blessings for the rest of the trip as it sounds like you definitely used a bunch early*************
So VERY glad to hear you, the wife and the kids are safe and sound. Sounds like you drew so good folks to get you back on the road quick. Good people tend to draw good people.
Sounds like a 6 pack jack as soon as you arrive safely at your destination.
Take care, be blessed, be safe and have fun.

 

[Donna]

Just found this thread now. Glad to hear it has a happy ending; I was afraid to read further down but I see it turned out good!

 

[Dizney_Luver]

Good to hear the Ole Sleigh is up and running! Hope the rest of your trip is enjoyable.

 

[retired and happy]

Shan, Now that things are in a bit better state, how did you find the repair shop? I've often feared running unto a problem on the road and being at the mercy of some roadside crook.

I've done the slip and slide thing too. Switching interstates around B'Ham I came onto the curved ramp and was faced with a crowd not going anywhere and lots of water on the ramp. I had the "we're gonna hit" thought and jumped on the horn to warn those in our path. Got traction just before seeing the first trunk tooooo closely. I would love to see a video of what our cargo trailer was doing during all this.

Glad to hear all was well in the end.

 

[auntie]

Just read this tonight........
I'm glad to hear you and the wife are okay and it was an easy fix.
Wishing you safe travels for the rest of your trip.

 

[Shan-man]

Just wanted to give a quick update. We made it through the mountains with ease... that's one of my favorite things about this little moho is the power to weight ratio, love passing semis and the big gassers! We had a very enjoyable stay with our friends (6 couples spread over 4 states!) and catching up. I did discover that RV fridges don't work when parked on too steep of an incline (DOH!). But other than that the rest of the trip has been blissfully uneventful. This afternoon we will venture back through the mountains of Maggie's Pass and to our favorite non-FW campground for a couple of days at Mama Gertie's near Asheville. I'll have plenty of reading when we get there, the boards have been ACTIVE while I've been away! Happy Sunday, talk to yall soon.