Desperate measures

Since I have been having such a tough time finding a gas tank for my golf cart I decided to improvise.

I know I got too much time on my hands. Well I pulled out my little 2 gallon gas can and it fits pretty well. When I need gas I just slip the hose out of the gas can and head on down to the gas station to fill it up. Susan asked if it works and my reply was, “I don’t know. I haven’t got any gas yet.” This is just temporary until I get a real replacement.

Still here

Wow has it been over 10 days? Not much going on here lately. I am still looking for a gas tank for our golf cart, can’t believe it is so difficult to find a used gas tank for this thing. I need to get on the ball since people are coming back soon and I will have to give up the carts I am taking care of for the summer.

The managers went on vacation and I agreed to help out here if anything that the workampers can’t handle needs attention. Well, the security gate crapped out and I had to fix that. Then it crapped out again so I just opened it up and shut it down until the managers get back. The pool guy decided to fire up the pool heater for the winter and it wouldn’t stay lit so I got involved with that. That was a matter of calling the manufacturer since it is still under warranty. They sent a repair guy out and he was an idiot. I had to call him back 2 more times and it still doesn’t work. I wish I could fix it myself but don’t want to void the warranty.

People are starting to trickle in for the winter here at the resort. Soon this place will be busy again. It has been a quiet summer.

OH GROSS!

One of the things I really dislike about working on vehicles is the smell of 90 weight gear oil. This is what I have in my front wheel hubs that keep leaking. Well today I got to know what 90 weight gear oil taste like. I decided to remove some of the oil in my leaking hub thinking it was over filled and may be contributing to the leak. The only way I can do this without jacking up the motorhome and rotating the wheel so that the drain plug is at the bottom is to suck the oil out. So I got a bit of tubing, removed the drain plug, stuck it in and started to suck. Now this is one thing they tell you NOT to do but every mechanic has done it. Well I sucked a little too hard and got a bit of the oil in my mouth.

My senses were shocked with the smell and taste of the oil. I tried spitting it out but 90 weight oil is some thick stuff. I tried water. I even tried a mouth full of Hydrogen Peroxide and sloshed it around. Then I tried Pepsi. I figured if it will remove acid from batteries it might remove oil from my mouth. Ever try gargling with Pepsi? That actually helped a bit. I still have a nasty taste in my mouth but it is going away.

In your face California

I have mentioned a number of times about the heat here in Havasu this summer but today it was actually hotter in Southern California than it was here. We had a nice low 90s day with cloudy skies and a few drizzles throughout the day. Other than the humidity it was a really nice day. California was seeing high 90s along the coast to over 100 inland today.

Is it fixed

Today we ran our home into the shop to get the leaking seal replaced…again…for the 4th time. I also had them take a look at the dash A/C system. The compressor has been making a rattley noise and I was afraid it might seize up and toss a belt, and since I drive across the deserts, this would not be good. First the seal. They found the hub it mounts into was out of round so after installing a new seal they gooped silicone around it to keep it from leaking. Sounds kind of “Mickey Mouse” but I feel it is acceptable. Time will tell. I took it for a 30 mile test drive and all looks dry so far. Well dry on the inside. I pulled the hub cap to check the oil level in the hub and it appears they over filled it and there is oil on the outside now.

Note the Minimum Oil Level circle and where the level actually is.

I will drain some and clean it all up tomorrow. As far as the A/C, everything worked well, except when I was setting up on our lot I left it idling and I heard a sound that sounded like a pressure relief valve going off for a few seconds and there is what looks like compressor oil on the engine. Another reason I took it for the test drive is because I wanted to check my shroud replacement. Everything was great there. Of course, I did that myself.

Where are my followers

Not sure if you noticed but in the right hand column there is a heading called Followers but nothing shows up under it. This doesn’t mean I have no followers. This is a Blogger software glitch. I actually have 12 followers. I can’t even see them when I go into my account. Hopefully they will figure it out soon.

Job done!

What a PITA. The old upper shroud came out fairly easy since it was mostly missing and flexible. The new upper shroud being complete and stiffer was a real pain to get up in there. I tried the driver side. I tried the passenger side. I tried going between the wheel wells and the frame. Finally I had to disconnect the tube from the throttle body and the PCM/TCM assembly and push, yank, and bend. Finally it slid into place without further damage to the radiator. The lower was a bit tricky but a lot easier. After that everything bolted up without too much trouble. It wasn’t too easy to get to the 3 top mount bolts but do able. I hit the key and it started right up, and no warning lights came on so I guess I didn’t break anything or knock anything loose. My arms and hands look like I got into a fight with a wildcat though.

Before I started the job this morning I took the time to straighten the radiator fins that were bent when the shroud got shredded. There wasn’t too many of them fortunately. Then I got out the hose and shot some water through the backside of the radiator. I was surprised at the junk that came out. Looks like it might have been more pieces of the fan shroud. I still need to run it into the shop to have them look at the leaky front wheel seal again so when I do I will take it for a run up some hills here in the Arizona heat and see if it stays cool.

Now on to the next project.

I added more pictures to the photo site..

Shroud replacement

Well they wanted about $200 labor so I decided to attempt the shroud replacement on the motorhome myself. I figured I would start with removing the old one and see how that goes. Not too bad. The shroud is out and I started cleaning everything up until I was soaked in sweat. I decided to give it up for a day since it was 110 outside and I am not going anywhere for a while. Here is a link to the photos
I went to order the shroud this afternoon and they actually had them in stock. They say they have replaced a lot of them. I am a little concerned though. The new shroud is an exact match with numerous improvements. I added some photos of the new shroud to the photo site (link above). My concern is the new shroud is much stiffer than the original, which means it might be more difficult to get it back in since I had to flex the old one to get it out. I was able to get the old one out (upper and lower) from the bottom without removing anything.

They sure want a lot for 2 pieces of molded plastic. I have a price list that lists the upper at $14.04 and lower at $13.53. Apparently these are wholesale prices because I paid $42.78 each, $95.31 total with tax and $2.87 for some hardware.

No more whining

My Saturn had developed a whine. At first it wasn’t too bad so I just ignored it. But of course it got louder. I did some investigating and found that it was coming from the idler pulley. This is a somewhat common thing for these Saturns. In fact there is even a video on how to replace the pulley on Youtube. I figured it would get a lot worse before it downright fails so I mostly ignored it. The last couple of months here in Havasu have been so hot that when in the car we have the AC running with the fan on high so it mostly drowns out the whine. While in California I could really hear it since we didn’t run the air on high. Even my daughter’s husband asked what the noise was. So I figured it’s time to fix it. Yesterday I bought the part but by then it was afternoon and 110 here in Havasu so I really didn’t feel much like fooling around under the hood of the car. This morning while it was still only 90 I brought out the tools. It took me less than an hour and the whine is gone.

Back in Havasu

We arrived back in Havasu today but now without mishaps. We were traveling through the California Desert when my cooling fan decided to suck the fan shroud in, chew it up and spit it out. Suddenly we heard a WAM then a high speed buzz and had no idea what it was. I immediately pulled over, took a quick glance at all the gauges (which were normal) and shut it down. I first thought I threw a belt because my AC compressor has been making an odd sound lately. I thought it froze up and threw the belt. On first inspection I noticed the belt was still there and in good shape. I looked around and was at a loss. Then I started it up again and gave it a few revs of the accelerator. That’s when I noticed the fan sucking in the shroud, which on closer inspection was missing a few chunks.

So I assessed the situation and found if I drill a hole in what’s left of the shroud I could tie wrap it out of the way. Back on the road for a test run proved it wasn’t completely secured so I found a safer place to pull over and shimmied under again with drill and tie wraps in hand. Back on the road and no more shroud eating fan. However not all was well. Since the shroud was munched the fan was sucking air around the shroud instead of through the radiator so it ran a bit hotter than normal. I kept an eye on it for the next 3 hours and managed to get back to the resort in Havasu. Fortunately the pieces of shroud didn’t punch through the radiator or AC condenser so it looks like no major damage was done. I will probably replace the shroud myself but I still need to take it into the shop because the front wheel oil seal is leaking again…for the third time. I will have them check out the air conditioner while it’s there too.

Left Disney

We left Disneyland (Garden Grove) this morning and are now at our Daughters house in Encinitas California parked in their driveway. We dropped off our grandson at his dads this afternoon, sad, and tomorrow morning we head back to Havasu. We are not really looking forward to going back to the 100+ temperatures but Susan wants to get back and help her parents with a few things. It should only be another month of heat before it gets better.

Disneyland

We arrived in Garden Grove California yesterday. We are here to take the Grandson to Disneyland before we drop him off back at his dad’s for school. We spent 14 hours at Disneyland today and are going back tomorrow.

Our daughter is driving up from San Diego tomorrow in the morning to go with us. We bought a 3 day Park Hopper pass that lets go between Disneyland and California Adventure. Our daughter bought the tickets under a Southern California resident discount since we are now Zoners (Arizonians). We are only going 2 days but the 3 day discount passes were cheaper than a regulator 2 day pass.

Strange sighting

Landen and I went to the lake the other day for a day at the beach.

While he was playing in the water with his newfound friend I spotted this strange contraption.

What the heck is it? Looks like a water tractor. It has paddle wheels for propulsion. Turns out it is basically a lawn mower. He was cruising up and down the channel cleaning the grass that grows on the bottom. What a cool job…well not so cool since the temperature is still over 100 everyday. Even though it has been hot the weather has been fairly comfortable since the monsoons have stayed away and the humidity is low. With a breeze, it is tolerable.
We are getting ready to head out on Tuesday. Landen has to get back to California to go back to school. We tried to enroll him in school here but his Father wouldn’t allow it. Since we didn’t go anywhere this summer we are going to head over to Disneyland for a couple of days before dropping him off at his dads.

I knew that would happen

Today since it was about 110 degrees and 30% humidity I decided it was a good day to stay inside and search for the best online quote on Arizona auto insurance. Since they all require an address I know I will be getting tons of junk mail. Also they all required an email address so I was expecting tons of Junk Email. Also some required a phone number. Just after the first online quote I get a phone call from an agent. I politely told him, if I wanted to talk to an agent I would have called for a quote. Then the next call came in and I wasn’t so pleasant with this one. Then the next call, this one I just let go to voice mail. Finally I got smarter and started giving phony phone numbers. Of course my email box filled up real fast but that is OK because I want a record of the quotes anyway. I will either request to unsubscribe later or just block them. I’m not too worried about the junk mail because I got a cure that seems to work well. If they send me a post paid return envelope I write, “Please remove from mail list” on the order form and return it using their postage.

Leaks leaks and more leaks

Found another leak yesterday. I was under the motorhome changing the oil when I looker over at the right front wheel. There was axel oil leaking from the bearing down through the brake disk and onto the tire.

This is the same leak that I have had “fixed” 3 times now. The latest was just before I parked it here on our lot 4 months ago. Right now it is not leaking very bad and we have a 600 mile trip planed in 2 weeks so I will keep an eye on it and get it fixed again when we get back. And of course there was the toilet and gas tank leaks. The toilet seems to be the only one that is fixed.

Didn’t save any money there. I am referring to changing our vehicle registration from California to Arizona. You would think I would save a bundle and that was what I thought, especially when she first told me the cost of the Saturn. For about the same cost as 1 year in California I got 5 years in Arizona. Then she told me the cost of the motorhome. It was double for 1 year. So I saved $50 per year on the Saturn and paid $200 more on the motorhome. Not such a good deal. However I was reading on the California DMV site where they are going to raise the fee on my motorhome to the tune of $520 so I guess it’s all good. At least I don’t have to get a smog test on either anymore.

So why would you pay over $30 for print cartridges when you can get a printer for less than $30? My printer has been acting up lately and I figured it might just be the inexpensive refilled ink cartridges that I bought. They worked for a short while then quit. I don’t use the printer often and they may have plugged with dry ink. I considered buying new cartridges to see if it would work but even though the printer still worked it wasn’t 100% compatible with Windows Vista anymore. So I started looking at new printers. I found a Canon printer for $28, less than the cost of print cartridges. So I think in the future, when I am ready for print cartridges, I will look at new printers. The only problem is what will I do with the stack of old printers.

Failed again

The tank patch failed again. I am getting pretty good at taking the cart apart. As I stated before, in order to remove the gas tank I have to remove the entire rear body. This involves removing 8 bolts to remove the roof, 6 bolts to remove the seat assembly, 2 clamps to remove the motor air intake, 2 bolts to remove the battery, 4 bolts to remove the shifter assembly, and 4 bolts to remove the body. Now I can remove the, 3 bolts securing the gas tank, and now I can finally remove the gas tank. I can actually get all this accomplished in about 20 minutes. I think this tank is hopeless.

Patch #3

I finally got pictures of the gas tank the guy wanted to sell me. It looks worse than mine. Well I guess it doesn’t leak. Today I had another idea. I called all the golf courses in town to see if they had any parts carts that they could pull a tank out of. Nope! I sealed the crack in mine a while back with a soldering iron but it’s just a surface seal so I decided to get some JB Waterweld and attempt to reinforce it. This time I applied it to the inside and outside of the crack.

Since it is only a reinforcement and not necessarily a patch maybe it will hold. At least until I can find a suitable replacement.

Unbelievable search

I just can’t believe that my search for a used gas tank for my golf cart is so difficult. I have checked all the local golf shops, golf cart forums, craigslist, and internet search engines. I found one through a golf cart forums but that seems to have turned into a dead end. I recently found one by searching ebay’s completed auctions that didn’t sell. I emailed the seller and he still had it. I made him an offer and made me a counter offer. I called him today to get more details and after agreeing to purchase he raised the price. So I turned him down.

Laughlin

We took a cruise over to Laughlin Nevada today, just for something to do.

Landen has been bugging us to take him there even though we told him it was a gambling town and there is nothing for him to do there.

Well we were wrong. Every casino has a game room for the kids too.

On the way through Bullhead City AZ I spotted a used golf cart shop and stopped in to see if they might have a gas tank. They did but it had a hole in it. I just can’t believe I can’t find a used gas tank anywhere. The guy in Illinois that said he would sell me one has not gotten back to me in a few days. I’ve just about written him off.

Sprinkler Day

Yesterday was Sprinkler Day in the park. This is the second time they have done this. At 12:00p they turned the sprinklers on for an hour and let everyone play in the water.


Landen had a ball and after that he jumped in the lake for a while. This was refreshing since the temp today was about 106.

We almost didn’t make it to Sprinkler Day though. I was in the bathroom smearing myself with sunscreen when I heard water spraying. I looked down and the bathroom floor was filling with water. The water valve in the toiled decided to crack right then. Good thing I was standing there because otherwise it would have filled the motorhome before someone noticed it. With both roof airs going, you just don’t hear things like that. Well anyway, someone had given me a valve a few years back so I dug it out. Unfortunately that one was about to crack in the same spot so off to the parts store I went.

When I got back it was about ½ hour before sprinkler time so I plugged the water line to the toilet, turned the water back on and told Susan I will put it all back together when we get back. A few months ago I replaced the flush valve so now I got all new parts in the toilet.