have you guys seen this?

[Railvan]

Hey, that's me! I don't drive the Sportsmobile to work any more than I have to but if you see me stop and say hi. Or drop into Hardware Sales and ask for me. We've started selling truck accessories at work so it'll be OK to talk about vans! ;^)

Brian
http://www.pbase.com/railbat

A sign of the times. I haven't met Brian, but he parks his Sportsmobile infront of my shop (we work right next door to each other and his rig is a total distraction!) and I've seen him linked on Badgertrek.com, his posts here, as well as his own work on his Railbat site. Good stuff.

Will soon introduce myself to him as a possible 2nd vehicle for easier local drives etc. Was thinking I may try to get ahold of him for advice on where to go next weekend just for an easy "getting to know you" ride in the new van while the Fiancee is away on business. Vancouver Island, the Olympics, Hood River, I can't decide.

And again, great site you have here.

 

[T.Low]

Taking a midweek break

Got 'er locked and loaded for a Thursday Hookey Run. Headin' up the mountain just beneath the snow line for a downhill run in the morning, then a class III-IV piddle in the afternoon. The Astro seems happy with it's new role.

 

[ujoint]

Sounds good, have fun while the rest of us are @ work!!!!!!!

 

[preacherman]

Man your killing me, I have not been on my downhill bike in over a year. I miss it so much. Have fun for me.

 

[T.Low]

Man your killing me, I have not been on my downhill bike in over a year. I miss it so much. Have fun for me.

Its my duty to skip work and have fun for everyone. Somehow, I feel personally responsible.

(I have a new avatar)

 

[preacherman]

TLow,

Did you ever get a chance to see what kind of MPG you are getting?

 

[T.Low]

The LOOOOONG ANSWER to your question

TLow,

Did you ever get a chance to see what kind of MPG you are getting?

Funny you should ask. I just brought the van home tonite from Randy's Ring & Pinion with the new 4:10's and Eaton posi.


They tell me the van gets 16-18 with the stock 215/70's on it. I only drove it about 500 miles before putting the lift on it and switching to the 255/70. Then the van labored at 70mph, undecided about which gear it should be in; D or 3.

It dropped to around 13-14, I wasn't too concerned because I knew all along that I was putting in 4:10's. They say I should see 17 again, now. I may be taking it out this weekend for a tank and a half to Wenatchee and back, so maybe I'll be able to answer that Q for certain.

The Eaton posi is the best bet for my type of use. The options are very limited; no air lockers or E Lockers for the Astro, only the Detroit which is not conducive to the town driving I will do most often.

Next on my list, as far as the driveline is concerned, is a 2spd transfer case.

http://astrosafarivans.org/bb2/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=955

I want to do that this month so I can go on The Owyhee River trip with these guys. Then my worry is do I have enuff tire for the trip. The Kelly Pathfinder AT's aren't LT's they are P's. and I didn't buy them with this type of trip in mind.


I've booked a pop top install. The earliest GTRV can get me in is July. With solar panels. I like the Safari Condo top a little better, but they are in Quebec, and I'm 30 minutes away from GTRV on the west coast.
http://www.parnado.com/serie_s/sx/indexeng.html

I'm waiting for Fiamma Awnings and Safari Condo to reply to my emails regarding the Fiamma 45 with Florida Room. The top won't be done in time for The Owyhee trip or my Northern California trip, but I at least sure would like to have the awning.
http://www.fiamma.com/catalog/florida_room.htm


Randy's Ring & Pinion said the break in period includes driving the first 20 miles and then stopping to let the diffs cool down for 15-20 minutes, then another 20 miles and a cool down, then change the fluid after the first 500 miles, as you would expect. well, at the 40 mile mark, there happen to be a RV parts place. I damn near bought my exterior shower kit, but I still don't know what I am going to do for a heat exchanger. I have more research to do there. Its hard to do the research now that the trails are drying up and the rivers are flowing.

If I can get the T-case done in time I want to go with these guys on this litle trip. Then my only real worry is do I have enuff tire ofr the trip. The Kelly Pathfinder AT aren't LT's they are P's. and I didn't buy them with this type of trip in mind.


Owyhee River, Southeast Oregon

 

[preacherman]

How long did they say the pop top would take? That seems like a really good mod for camping.

I think the eaton will be a great balance between street and trail. My experience is that once you learn how to best utilize a limited slip you will be surprised at just how well it will do. And the eatons have a great reputation.

I have really been considering starting a astro build. We have two boys (who are getting bigger by the moment) and by the time we have my wife and I, the boys, our dog, and ANY gear, we are full up. A "mini sportsmobile" would be perfect for the back country camping we do, and would be WAY more cost effective. 17-19 mpg would be perfect for so much cargo caring ability.

 

[T.Low]

link to couple pics

Hey Preach,

Later when I have time, I will try to address some Astro off roading and camping issues with you, to sort of see what your expectations are. Kinda let you know what the limitations may be and how much you are going to have to modify to get what you are looking for.

Till then, here's a couple pics from last weekend with Brian and his Sporty.

http://astrosafarivans.org/bb2/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=2087

 

[T.Low]

Mpg

Okay.


I started my trip with a fuel fill up, and a trip meter reset to zero.

At the end of my trip, the odometer read 580 miles. But I knew that was high and would need to be adjusted.

This trip was actually the break in 500 miles for the new gears. (Just changed the diff fluid today.)

With my fresh 4:10 gears (from stock 3:42) and 30" tires (huge for an Astro van), my speedometer said 70mph, while Brian's Sportsmobile speedo and scan gauge both said 62.

Feel free to double check my math.

62/70=88.57%

88.57%x580=513.71 miles

513.71 miles/34gallons=15.1mpg



That includes driving up and over the 4500ft North Cascades pass following Brian roughly at posted speed limits, then a lot of off pavement driving including some small climbs and creek crossings and miles of two trackers, then driving home (not following Brian) at speeds that are not necessarily legal.

I don't really think 15.1 is anything to brag about, even if I was basically driving around with a fully made bed.

 

[spencyg]

...its a hell of a lot better than then 11MPG I get in my van! And I'm paying $4.50/gal for diesel! Great looking ride

Spence

 

[alaskantinbender]

...its a hell of a lot better than then 11MPG I get in my van! And I'm paying $4.50/gal for diesel! Great looking ride

Spence

Thats what I get with my E350 Quiggley V10. What happened to all the claims from people about the great diesel MPG?
My average Mpg is 11 and as high as 13 on the highway.
With only a few MPG dif I think I would rather stick with the larger E350 4X4.


Regards,

Jim

 

[ujoint]

If he had a gasser he'd be @ 6-7MPG!!!!!

 

[spencyg]

If he had a gasser he'd be @ 6-7MPG!!!!!

Exactly. My poor camper has the frontal area of a 747. I'm hoping to bump it up to 13-14 MPG with the turbo I'm adding (N/A diesels are far worse on gas), but even then, it will stay parked for far more of the time than I'd like because it just costs too much to take everywhere...

Spence

 

[T.Low]

Thanks

...its a hell of a lot better than then 11MPG I get in my van! And I'm paying $4.50/gal for diesel! Great looking ride

Spence

Muchas Gracias, Senor.