From NY to the Grand Canyon!

Enjoy your new rig and take a few local test camping trips before the big adventure. This will help you adjust your on board supplies. I tend to over pack.

The hardest part for me when planing such a journey was looking at everything I was going to be passing by.

I did Chicago to Death Valley last year and the Grand Canyon was one of my stops. We did stay in Camper Village and it was close to everything and rather nice.

I wanted a fresh start in the morning to cross the mountains beyond Denver. I am a flatlander and intimidated by driving in mountainous terrain. We chose Clear Creek RV park in Golden Colorado to overnight in. Sweet little campground right in town and on a creek.

https://rec.cityofgolden.net/wbwsc/webtrac.wsc/wbsplash.html?wbp=3

The next night we stayed in Devils Garden Campground at Arches National Park. INCREDIBLE!

https://www.recreation.gov/camping/devils-garden-campground/r/campgroundDetails.do?contractCode=NRSO&parkId=74066

Buy your National Park Pass online before you leave to avoid waits getting into the parks.

Great pics and information Mr. SeilerBird!

NewmanRacing said:

Great pics and information Mr. SeilerBird!

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Thanks NewmanRacing. I have a lot more to share so keep checking back here. I just need to find some time to type but the baseball playoffs take up too much of my time. 

ditsjets7 said:

Hi All!!!

We finally got our dream machine! It's. 2003 Coachman Leprechaun 31 footer. It only has 27,000 miles on it so I am optimistic that we will have it for a long time.

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You mentioned on one of your replies that you are a "rookie", if that term applies to knowledge of RV's, here is a few very important tips:
--  Check the date code on all of your tires.  If the tires are 5 years old today, replace them before you leave.  If they are 4 years old consider replacing them before you leave.  At 5 years old tires are ageing out, no matter what they look like.  You don't want to be running at 65mph through the southwest at 95-110 degree temps on old tires.  Do a internet search for "tire date codes" to find out how to find the year/week of mfg.
-- Invest in a TPMS (Tire Pressure Monitor System).  Again you are going to be bombing along some SW US interstates at 65mph with 95+ temps.  Loosing 10-20 PSI in a tire because if you picked up a nail or screw, it puts you and your family in danger of a blow out.
--  Take your RV to a Cat scale: https://catscale.com/cat-scale-locator/ and weigh your RV.  At the scale put the front axle on the farthest platform and your rear axle on the next rearward platform.  Before you go fill up your gas tank, and fresh water tank.  After you get your weight, compare them to your GAWR (Gross Axle Weight Record) and your GVWR ( Gross Vehicle Weight Record).  The difference is how much stuff you can put in the RV.  That is the weight of the passengers and all your gear.  Plan on 800 to 1000 pounds of gear, food clothes, tools, pots & pans,etc.  This weight does not include passengers you need to consider their weight.  Try not to overload your RV.  It is very easy to do. 
--  If you can, put all your gear on board and all the family and go weigh the rig.  I'm sure you are going to be going on some camping trips before leaving for Grand Canyon.  That would be a good time to weigh the rig.
--  Once you have your weights, you can use the tire manufacturer tire pressure charts to determine the proper air pressure to have in the tires.  It is best to add 10 pounds to the recommended tire pressure, for a buffer in case of a slow leak, but don't exceed the max pressure for the tire. 

RV tires are usually carrying the max weight the tire is designed to carry, unlike car tires.  Having a blow out on an 14,000-15,000 pound RV is harder to control than a car.   

I also noticed you said you wouldn't have to stop for potty breaks. I assume you mean the family would use the potty while you're motoring down the road. I wouldn't recommend doing that. Just try it yourself first while your spouse drives. A class C doesn't ride like a Greyhound bus.

Thank you very much. The last thing I want is a blow out. That would be horrible. I don't have a spare either, not that I could change one of those tires

Be prepared for temperatures of 100 to 113 degrees. You need your 14 year old coach to have new hoses, belts, tires, etc

Are you pulling a car? 

Train ride costs are a bit steep....

https://www.thetrain.com/the-train/train-rates/

I purchased from a dealer so I am pretty sure everything is up to snuff.

We are not pulling a car. We have a "Good Sam" membership which I believe has Motor home roadside assistance.

ditsjets7 said:

I purchased from a dealer so I am pretty sure everything is up to snuff.

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Don't bet on it!

ditsjets7 said:

We are not pulling a car. We have a "Good Sam" membership which I believe has Motor home roadside assistance.

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The regular membership doesn't include roadside assistance.

The place where I bought the rig told me they did a thorough inspection and everything was up to code. I am not a mechanic, I was told the tires were "new" the breaks were "new" it certainly rides nice for a large rig. With 27,000 Miles on it I thought it would be in good shape for a trip. I requested and made sure that they serviced the transmission. This information all of you are sharing with me is certainly eye opening.

Question, how do I go about determining whether or not the hoses and belts need changing?

Your best bet would be to take it to an independent mechanic and pay him to inspect everything before you haul it across the country. Dealers will lie to their own mother to make a sale. Salesmen have no morals. They don't care if you break down on the road, they just want to get you on the road. RV mechanics charge $100 per hour and they can be hard to find in some areas of the country.

SeilerBird said:

Have you ever been to the Grand Canyon? If not would you like some suggestions on things to do while you are there. I used to work as a photographer there and I know the park really well.

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SeilerBird, I don't think I ever thanked you after our trip.... a long long time ago, I remember you posting about boondocking near the park....specifically Long Jim Loop Rd.  We ended up there one of our nights at the canyon.  Nice option!

blw2 said:

SeilerBird, I don't think I ever thanked you after our trip.... a long long time ago, I remember you posting about boondocking near the park....specifically Long Jim Loop Rd.  We ended up there one of our nights at the canyon.  Nice option!

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I thought you did thank me, anyway it is not necessary. You have answered many of my questions. I have so many fond memories of Long Jim Loop Road. I spent many nights there and saw a lot of wildlife there. Really cool spot.

Look at them and have a mechanic look too. 

It's a lot easier and cheaper to replace them all now instead of out in the middle of nowhere where they will inevitable break. Somehow these things know when you are 40 miles from nowhere and that's when they give way. 

ditsjets7 said:

The place where I bought the rig told me they did a thorough inspection and everything was up to code. I am not a mechanic, I was told the tires were "new" the breaks were "new" it certainly rides nice for a large rig. With 27,000 Miles on it I thought it would be in good shape for a trip. I requested and made sure that they serviced the transmission. This information all of you are sharing with me is certainly eye opening.

Question, how do I go about determining whether or not the hoses and belts need changing?

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ditsjets7 said:

The place where I bought the rig told me they did a thorough inspection and everything was up to code. I am not a mechanic, I was told the tires were "new" the breaks were "new" it certainly rides nice for a large rig. With 27,000 Miles on it I thought it would be in good shape for a trip. I requested and made sure that they serviced the transmission. This information all of you are sharing with me is certainly eye opening.

Question, how do I go about determining whether or not the hoses and belts need changing?

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Look online for "tire date codes", then find out how to find the date of mfg of the tires and go look at the date codes on all 6 tires.  If they were made later than week 45 of 2016 then I would think the dealer is being forthright with you about new tires.  If the date codes are any week in 2015 or earlier, the dealer is lying about "new" tires.

What does "service the transmission" mean, and how do you determine it was "serviced"?

"Service the transmission" to me, means, dropping the transmission pan, cleaning the gunk out of it, installing a new filter and filling with new fluid.  It is highly unlikely the dealer did this, in my opinion.  Labor and parts, probably $200-$300.  I did this service on my transmission myself.  The parts are not expensive, other than the Ford transmission fluid is about $8 a quart.  Labor to do the job is probably 1.5-2 hours. 

Not trying to scare you.  A 2003 Ford transmission with 27,000 miles should not be an area of concern.  It would be good to replace the fluid and filter though.  Nor should the engine be a concern.  With proper maintenance the engine will go 200,000 miles. 

As others said, it would be good to replace hoses and belts that are most likely 14-15 years old. Ask the independent shop you get to do the work to give you an estimate on how new the brakes are. 

By the way.  Brakes these days, with only 27,000 miles (forgive me if have the exact mile wrong, going from memory) are almost new.  The brakes should last 80,000-100,000 miles before you need new brake pads. 

If the brakes were indeed replaced within 27,000 miles, something went wrong and it would be good to know what caused the brakes to need to be replaced.  Keep this in mind in relying on the dealer being forthright with you. 

Make sure you take your "new to you" RV on several trips when you can before you leave.  Try to make at least one of the trips a week and 500-800 miles if you can.  These trips will give you a good shake down and experience with the RV before you take off on a long trip.