Pre birth of a camper - No laughing!

[ianc]

On the remapping thing - I've found a guys who'll do the remap. I just have to get the van down to him. I'm hoping to do it before I make the trip to Overland Adventure at the end of the month. I've also addressed most of the leaking albeit temporarily by plastering a load of sikaflex on the roof.

This weekend was bathroom weekend. I got the PVC cladding during the week and started on Friday evening. It's 2.7mm and in sheets of 8x4 (aka 2.4m x 1.22m). I made a bit of a boo boo by making the bathroom 950mm by 1240mm which meant a single sheet would not do the "long" walls - Plonker!.

I also have a small section taken out of one corner at 45 degrees to allow for plumbing ofrh the shower. This meant trying to put two 45 degree bends in a perfectly good sheet of PVC. I used the plunge saw to score the back of the sheet by about 1.5mm and then applied heat with a blow torch. I also constructed an addition to my bench to help with the shaping.



First time it went well until the sheet shattered as I tried to flex it in through the bathroom door :-(



The second time I just took it a bit easier and got it in without breaking it.



The other sheets went in fine as they were more straightforward



My daughters had fun pulling the blue protective plastic off...



I fitted the sink bowl and tap (a Lidl special). This is still just temporary. I need to build a cabinet underneath the sink but I'm just not sure how to do it in a way that it'll survive the wet room environment.



On our trip to the west of Ireland few weeks ago, we called in on friends in Longford and they offered us some Turf as they no longer had a way to burn it themselves. So we loaded about a half tonne into the back storage area and then promptly forgot about it. I "found" it when I started working on the bathroom this weekend.



BTW - Is it just me or does the editor on this forum insist on removing all whitespace?

 

[canals1164]

I do think you should have a 2nd heating source as I am not sure you will be able to restock with Turf in many places around the world! The bathroom will look great we used an alloy sheet with a white face but I still haven't found a tidy way of sealing the corners, I left them with a sealer joint but a year later it has gone of white. What are you going to use?

 

[ianc]

Canals,
I used these at the corners glued in with some Wurth Bond and Seal
http://goldstarplastics.ie/Small-PVC-Hygienic-Wall-Cladding-Internal-Corner.html

They make a very neat and waterproof join.

 

[NigelEvans]

Ian
I generally cruise at around 55 mph (reading around 50 mph on the speedo due to larger tyres) this at around 2100 rpm. This returns around 20 mpg (which I think is 14l/100km). My truck is fitted with the OM364LA engine in Euro II configuration. Even fully loaded (6000kg) it handles hills reasonably well although fuel consumption rockets. On muddy, rough roads with the diffs locked I think I was getting around 8 mpg!

 

[ianc]

Nigel - Remind me - yours is a 4x4?

20mpg sounds amazing - particularly since yours is the older OM364LA motor. What HP is that?

The van has gone down to a specialist who is going to do a remap on it. He claims he is not going to use a standard map but rather custom map it via multiple road runs while connected up to the laptop. He has a good reputation. Fingers crossed.

 

[NigelEvans]

I think the OM364LA is around 110HP. Mine is permanent 4x4. I've calculated the MPG a couple of times with similar results. However I did have to use the GPS for the mileage so there is considerable room for error. I'm no expert but I do wonder if manufacturers, when trying to get older designs of engine to meet emission standards, tweak the setup to the detriment of performance and fuel efficiency. If this is the case your remap should work.
If I'm travelling on a level road in normal conditions mine will red line before it runs out of puff in 5th (with the speed at around 63MPH).
Good luck.

 

[ianc]

Pulling the threads back together as handling much improved with the tyre pressures adjusted. However I uncovered a list of additional fun opportunities to work on the van.....

1) It's pulling to the right when I initially brake. I checked the front left calliper and it seems to be sliding free, no seizing of the pads and the pistons are moving fine. I applied a little copper grease in the right places on reassembly but the problem persists.
2) Heat build-up in the back hubs and particularly the left (passenger side) one. I took it for another drive today and then checked the two rear wheels for resistance in turning. Not enough to be a problem. But then I noticed....
3) Oil leaking from the RHS hub. Its coming from the seal just behind the flange where the wheel bolts on. No idea why or how long its been leaking. I need to determine if it's a big enough problem to stop us travelling to OA this weekend and if I can do anything about it in time.


.


I also think I need to get my wheel alignment done - Could this be causing the pulling to the right problem?

 

[ianc]

After looking a little closer and "ringing a friend" (Actually a mechanic who works on these all the time) - it has been deemed safe to make the trip to OA this weekend. I will have to get the seal done but it can wait until I get back.
The rear hubs are still getting a little warmer than I expect but I have confirmed that there's no brake binding.
I also had the tracking done and everything was and is correctly aligned. Good to know.
I also had them do a brake test and it was ok - less than 10% differential side to side, but it's still pulling when driven on the road. The garage manager's suggestion is that I have a partially sticking calliper which does not show up on the brake test but just delays the LHS calliper from activating just long enough to be noticeable. Options are a refurb of the calliper(s) or try cleaning again.

 

[andylod]

Ian
Can you feel the wheel binding when you jack the front up ? Try swapping the front wheels left to right, could be tyres !..... Both my rear hubs have been leaking for a couple of months, and diff oil level hasn't dropped hardly at all, been quoted £300 each for the hubs from Merc but gunna have to wait till January when it's a little less hectic ... done 19000k this year so far.
See you at OA
Andy

 

[ianc]

Arrived back from OA late last night and we had a fatal accident on the return leg. Van 1, Pigeon Nil. It flew straight at the windscreen and climbed at the last second but smashed straight into the box above the cab with a huge bang. No obvious damage to the van other than needing a good clean.

The OA show was well worth the ferry and 500 mile round trip for the great people we met. Thanks you to all for the warm welcome.

The show itself was ok and very LandRover focused.


This is the Silk Route club area - I'm now a fully paid up member!
.

And here's the van alongside Neil & Pat Hay's Ormocar vehicle.

Plus a couple of other interesting vehicles

.


Van handling is still not good on the poorer roads and I'm looking for some help from an expert before I spend real money on trying to sort it. Suggestions welcomed.

 

[sherwood]

I was at the show and saw your van;





Excellent work.

 

[ianc]

Thanks Sherwood. I probably should not have hung the dirty towel out given it was being photographed

 

[Neil]

AO13

Hello Ian

It was great meeting you and seeing your van in the flesh.

Adventure Overland was a good event, that I am sure will get even better.

We stayed until the Monday, so it made a long weekend out of it.

Neil is working hard on the heating, its such a tip in the truck now.

Pat and Neil

 

[ianc]

I've been looking for a "guru" to help with my handling problems and ended up driving half way across Ireland (It isn't really that far) on Saturday to talk with a guy who has a reputation for doing unnatural things with trucks. He showed me his Mercedes Sprinter with the Lamborghini V12 engine mid mounted and the T2 with a very large truck engine also mid mounted. He also happens to be one of the largest Mercedes truck dealers in Ireland - Greg Kinahan - an absolute gentleman.
He took a drive in the camper and declared it not to be as bad as he thought it might be. Hmm!. He also pointed out that:
- The original 814DA is jacked up by about 25cm compared to the standard Vario and it didn't handle very well
- I've added a body which is 3.3m high which further raised the CoG making the problem even more fun
- The rear singles are probably giving a larger slip angle than the front thus causing the feeling of over steer
- The big driving axle tyres on the front are probably causing the steering action to be delayed and thus leading to overcompensation.
- The bouncing around would be helped by better shocks

But.... It's not as bad as he thought it might be.

I also noticed that the bushes on the front anti-roll bar were a little worn. I'd already replaced the them on the back for about €25 and here I was in a big Mercedes dealer. I might as well get them. They are unique to the 814DA and apparently there aren't pattern parts available. €80 for them!!!!. To be fair to the stores manager, he asked me did I really want them before he rang them up. Given his boss had just spent the best part of an hour diagnosing my handling problems for free - It was still cheap at the price.

So here are the new bushes. They made no difference to the handling. Not really a surprise, but I live in hope.



And here are some shiny red heavy duty Konis. I could only get the fronts this week - but with just the fronts, it made a significant difference to the pitching and the ride is much better too



So, Making progress.
This weekend I hope to pull the ECU out and have the new map put onto it. In Belfast!

 

[java]

Beautiful work! and quick too