James86004
Expedition Leader
One could argue that buying a 19-year-old Range Rover is silly, buying one 1000 miles away is crazy, and setting off on that long road trip to pick it up in a 43-year-old Land Rover with your wife and kid in the hot summer months is foolhardy. I just think of it as being optimistic. In the end, we drove 1302 miles from Tucson to Ukiah, California, and another 1142 miles back home with two gas-guzzling Rovers. Both vehicles were loaded to their limits with camping gear, spare parts, and 60 bottles of California wine.
We made a beeline to the coast, then drove up Highway 1 to California 128 before cutting over to Ukiah. On the way back, we could not resist visiting Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks.
We had a few issues. The Dormobile got a flat on one of her BFG ATs. A split appeared between the tread blocks. I am not sure why that happened, but it spending 6 years in the Tucson sun might have something to do with it. Discount Tire replaced it for free.
Driving down California 99, a rock hit the glass sunroof on the Range Rover and cracked it. It is now covered in duct tape awaiting replacement. By the way, if anyone has a glass sunroof for a Range Rover Classic needing a home, let me know.
Driving through Needles, CA, the temperature was at least 115 (did I mention the AC is broken in the Range Rover?) and while climbing the hill on the Arizona side the Range Rover died. I guessed it was the infamous ignition module overheating, so I squirted water on it and the engine fired right up again. Relocating the ignition module is
high on the priority list. I had to squirt water on it a few times to get us into Kingman. In Kingman, we stopped for a late lunch in the air-conditioned comfort of Cracker Barrel. We told the waitress our AC was broken, and she brought us two glasses of iced tea each and refilled them all at least 4 times. She got a good tip.
The final incident was at a hotel in Scottsdale. Yes, we stayed in a hotel because it was a Marriott, only $50 because it is June, and the outside temperature was incredibly hot. The broken sunroof is in the vent position, since we are afraid to move it. This morning as we were getting on the freeway, Kelly suddenly pulled over. I thought, "I can't believe we have been driving for 3 minutes and the ignition module already overheated!" In fact, a bird, specifically a Cactus Wren, had flown in through the sunroof gap overnight. It went a little crazy when Kelly tried to get on the freeway. It took a few minutes to shoo it out, and then we noticed there was a fair amount of poop on various things inside the vehicle. After a few minutes with some wipes, we
were on our way.
Now we are back home in Tucson, where it is 109 with single digit humidity. I have a lot of high priorities, but high on the list is to sell our 1995 Volvo 850 T-5R so the Range Rover can use its parking spot.
Grace has really taken a liking to the new Rover. She wants to rename it "The Rangemobile", since it is green with a white roof like our Dormobile. We think the two Rovers will play well together on the road, with Kelly & I, and soon Grace, driving.
We made a beeline to the coast, then drove up Highway 1 to California 128 before cutting over to Ukiah. On the way back, we could not resist visiting Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks.
We had a few issues. The Dormobile got a flat on one of her BFG ATs. A split appeared between the tread blocks. I am not sure why that happened, but it spending 6 years in the Tucson sun might have something to do with it. Discount Tire replaced it for free.
Driving down California 99, a rock hit the glass sunroof on the Range Rover and cracked it. It is now covered in duct tape awaiting replacement. By the way, if anyone has a glass sunroof for a Range Rover Classic needing a home, let me know.
Driving through Needles, CA, the temperature was at least 115 (did I mention the AC is broken in the Range Rover?) and while climbing the hill on the Arizona side the Range Rover died. I guessed it was the infamous ignition module overheating, so I squirted water on it and the engine fired right up again. Relocating the ignition module is
high on the priority list. I had to squirt water on it a few times to get us into Kingman. In Kingman, we stopped for a late lunch in the air-conditioned comfort of Cracker Barrel. We told the waitress our AC was broken, and she brought us two glasses of iced tea each and refilled them all at least 4 times. She got a good tip.
The final incident was at a hotel in Scottsdale. Yes, we stayed in a hotel because it was a Marriott, only $50 because it is June, and the outside temperature was incredibly hot. The broken sunroof is in the vent position, since we are afraid to move it. This morning as we were getting on the freeway, Kelly suddenly pulled over. I thought, "I can't believe we have been driving for 3 minutes and the ignition module already overheated!" In fact, a bird, specifically a Cactus Wren, had flown in through the sunroof gap overnight. It went a little crazy when Kelly tried to get on the freeway. It took a few minutes to shoo it out, and then we noticed there was a fair amount of poop on various things inside the vehicle. After a few minutes with some wipes, we
were on our way.
Now we are back home in Tucson, where it is 109 with single digit humidity. I have a lot of high priorities, but high on the list is to sell our 1995 Volvo 850 T-5R so the Range Rover can use its parking spot.
Grace has really taken a liking to the new Rover. She wants to rename it "The Rangemobile", since it is green with a white roof like our Dormobile. We think the two Rovers will play well together on the road, with Kelly & I, and soon Grace, driving.
