Locking Fuel Caps. Securing Your Fuel

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Locking fuel caps have gained in popularity recently, driven in part by the rapid rise of the cost of fuel.   Many motor coach owners believe that installing such devices may in fact lead to other issues if their rig is subject to fuel theft.  So, is purchasing and installing these fuel tank security devices the way to go?  Is the jury still out?  According to many, no.  So let’s look at the arguments on both sides.

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Forgotten Maintenance

In my last post, “Don’t Forget About the Trailer“, I talked about a customer of ours whose fifth wheel trailer was in serious need of attention, and ended it by promising to touch on his tow rig in the next post. As it turns out, the tow rig needed almost as much help as the tow rig, but the owner didn’t know it.

An otherwise well-maintained truck, we started asking him about the maintenance schedule and found that the power steering fluid had not been flushed in 100,000 miles. From the outset, that might not seem like a big deal, but the power steering is subjected to a lot of heat and stress. Factory recommendations may vary, but we recommend that the power steering fluid be changed every 3-5 years, or 50,000 miles. Power steering pumps in heavy duty applications like this customer’s F-350 4×4 are under more stress than in passenger cars, because they are moving more weight. And, bigger tires common on 4×4 applications create even more resistance. Read more

Road Testing MS Streets And Trips, Product Review (Part II)

Last week we looked at the workings and features of Microsoft’s Streets and Tips 2008. (A link to last week’s blog if you missed it LINK)  This week we are taking it to the street.   We’ll be testing the GPS navigation guidance in the real world.  I chose the City of Vancouver, Canada, to conduct the trial run.  In as much as I was not familiar with the areas of this city that I would be navigating, it would mean relying fully on the product’s ability to direct me.  I really did not doubt its ability to find and direct me to the target; after all, they will all do that.  It was how it does it, and the speed and timing.

I set three targets, one after the other, all located in the Vancouver area.  I did this in the hotel prior to setting out.  Instead of doing each as a waypoint, I opted to enter each as a separate route, or trip, using my previous destination as the start of the next.  I made four routes that started with the hotel in Richmond, B.C., and finishing with the hotel as the final destination in the fourth route.  I saved each as a leg number, “Leg1, Leg2,” etc.

The unit was fast to set up.  I put the GPS/antenna module, with tether line connected, onto the dashboard near the bottom of the windshield.  I then plugged the tether line into a USB port on my laptop computer and booted it up.  I selected the program icon and opened the program.  I then activated the GPS and selected my first saved route.  The time for the GPS to acquire the needed satellites was nearly instant.  This was comparable to a late model O.E.M. or like quality in-dash GPS system.  The position shown and the actual were basically one and the same, or what you would expect.

The voice guidance was clear and understandable.  The audio volume, however, was limited.  While operating at slow speeds, windows closed and moderate to light traffic, it was more than adequate.  With the road noise associated with high speeds, the audio became more difficult to hear clearly, as with a window down or in heavy traffic.  This appears to be a laptop audio issue, not the fault of the software.  This seems to be a common problem with other laptop applications.  It can be overcome by the use of a headset or other laptop audio enhancing device.  This did not present an immediate problem for me as the large screen was extremely easy to see and navigate directly visually.

Audio turning notice was at 0.3 miles prior to the turn when on secondary roads and 0.4 miles on motorways.  This is about a 25 second warning based on a motor home’s average speed on these types of roads.   Additionally, the audio/visual queue for the next turn is delivered immediately after each turn event.  This feature works well in preparing the driver for what’s ahead.   The screen provides full navigation information at all times.  It shows the vehicles speed (miles per hour or kilometers per hour, depending on the driver’s preference), the distance and direction of the next turn and the current surrounding terrain.   It also has a reverse route option.  This allows a one step way to quickly set up the return trip.

Summing up the test results yielded the following observations..  The Streets and Trips 2008 program performed basically as expected.  This operates in a similar fashion as many other personal in-dash or stand alone GPS navigation devices.   The biggest difference here was the large screen display that the laptop provided.  In the test case, I used a 15.4″ Dell.  This not only delivered much more mapping area, but also displayed  large easy to read vehicle speed, distance to next event and full visual turn information.  The designated navigator in your coach will probably love this product.  It’s easy to plan, operate and understand.  The ability to have it within reach can’t be overlooked either.  Most competitive products are not mounted near the passenger seat and therefore may require driver input during operation.   This is a great two person GPS navigational guidance tool.  These types of computer based solutions appear to be gaining in popularity as more motor coach owners opt to carry a laptop computer with them in their travels anyway.

The overall experience of using this product was very good.  It was relatively simple to use resulting in an end to end zero frustration experience.  And if you can drive in a busy city and operate a potentially complex software package without any frustration, it must be good.

Note: This product is capable of far more than described in this review.  Construction area downloads (free for one year), off air updates on local traffic and current fuel prices, are but a few.   Testing of these advanced features was not conducted.  The review covers the more basic operations and applications only. 

Reporting From The Street   -   Lug_Nut   -   Peter Mercer

MS Streets & Trips 2008 GPS Product Review (Part 1)

It seems the popularity of GPS navigation continues to grow as more and more people turn from paper maps to LCD screens.  Just over two years ago I had four vehicles, only one of which had an on-board GPS navigation system.  Today, while I only have three vehicles, it is interesting to note that all three are equipped with on-board navigation.  All three have between 5″ and 7″ screen, a services data base, trip routing and voice guidance.  They do, however, have some short falls when it comes to trip planning, routing and making changes while on route.  So I jumped at the chance to try out the new 2008 Microsoft Streets and Trips full GPS offering.  Testing this in Canada would also add to the challenge as it is often found that many mapping software programs and related embedded data bases are not always up to date compared to that found throughout the U.S.A.   To properly evaluate the product, we will divide the trial into two sections.   First we will look at the general features and user friendliness including street level detail, route planning, data base, available tools and related functions.  We will follow that next week with a hands-on trial run, when we take it to the streets of the unfamiliar-to-me city, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

 I had used MS Streets and Trips before when I had an earlier version sometime around 2001.  At that time I found the program a great help for trip planning, distance calculating and just plain direction look-ups.  While it was capable of being tethered to a GPS receiver, I can’t say I ever attempted to use it in that manner, but rather just as an electronic map.   

Well, the 2008 version I’m testing comes complete with its own mini GPS plug and play receiver.  When I say mini I mean small, not much more than a inch and a quarter square with a height of about a half inch, complete with a securing mini suction cup.

 I must say, the 2008 version appears extremely feature rich with many new functions.  I was pleasantly surprised to find the program as user friendly as the original.  This is rare.  Generally, I’ve found when  a program is greatly updated with new features and powerful add-ons, it loses a lot of its simple short cuts and quick solution characteristics.  Not so here.

The mapping detail and services data base is very impressive.   Very newly opened roads in Canada were already loaded.  RiverBend Motor Coach Resort in LaBelle Florida was displayed in high quality detail with even the names for each and every street.  I’ve never seen a private park ever displayed in this manner, and with such detail, as was Pelican Lake Motor Coach Resort, Cypress Woods Resort, etc.  The campground data base and probably much of the related detail was in part, I believe, thanks to Woodall’s, one of the many named organizations that were credited. 

Okay, so let’s check out the operational overview and the practical applications.  Running it on a laptop, as I am, it is not handy to use alone in a car, however once set up prior to driving, it can supply voice guided direction to a pre-selected destination.  It works great if operated by a passenger in any vehicle, certainly a bonus in an RV.  One of the big advantages found here is the ability to alter routing or search services while underway.  This is not normally permitted on the built-in types as the majority of them are locked out of such functionality while moving.  This is normally done as a safety requirement.  Additionally, the ability to be able to search, plan and set routes from the comfort of your home, or elsewhere, can’t be overstated.  There is also no question that the functionality and larger screen size delivers tools and features unmatched by both built-ins and most of the popular add-on stand alones.

So, how does MS Streets and Trips stack up against the built-ins and stand alones?

Advantages 

• Far more feature rich and application flexible
• Larger display area for easy viewing and configuring
• Can be re-routed or accept user input at any time
• Has practical applications with or without GPS receiver or receiver enabled
• Can be updated at any time through an internet connection
• Does fuel stop calculations including estimated costs
• Can be removed from vehicle reducing both security and/or environment issues

Disadvantages

• Requires the user to have a computer
• Not as easy to use in navigation mode while traveling alone 

In summary, I feel this product is top quality and certainly appears to be all the manufacturer says it is.  I think it makes a great primary GPS guide and mapping program or a super supplement to your existing in dash or stand alone receiver/display.  This is truly a great mapping and planning software.  One, you probably will not want to give up once you have had the opportunity to use it.  As well as offering in-motion real time street/road navigation, it may be worth having this product as an additional tool even if you currently have a built-in or stand alone GPS unit.  After all, they say planning a trip can be as much fun as taking it.  Believe me, this is certainly one great planning tool.  In my opinion, worth the money even if you never used it in the GPS mode function.    For this purpose, the program is available alone, that is without the GPS receiver/antenna package.  This would allow the purchaser to add the GPS at a later date or perhaps thether it to his or her GPS enabled cellular telephone.  Either way, this product has a thumbs up in my opinion  

Note: This product is capable of far more than described in this review.  Construction area downloads (free for one year), off air updates on local traffic and current fuel prices, are but a few.   Testing of these advanced features was not conducted.  The review covers the more basic operations and applications only.       

Next week we will be taking the Microsoft Streets and Trips 2008 out on the road to see how its performance stacks up against similar products.  Hope you can join us.

 

With Your Co-ordinates     -    Lug_Nut     -     Peter Mercer

 

The Age Old Question, How Many Pounds Of Air Shall I Put In My Tires?

Well sir, I have never been accused of being terribly smart and politicaly astue, so here I go jumping from the frying pan into the fire on a subject that some have said in the forums is a dead horse and beaten to death. But there is more to the tire pressure story than just when will it fail or blow up. Or how much pressure to ad and when.

We all know that a tire that is under inflated will use more power to make it roll than a properly inflated tire. That is because of these factors:

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Gas Vs Diesel

Should I buy gas or diesel? This question has fueled many a heated debate over the years. A universal response you could expect to hear to this question goes something like this; diesels cost more than gas, don’t buy a diesel unless you plan to put a bunch of miles on it and keep it for a long time. That’s the only way you can justify the extra cost of a diesel.

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Crazy RV Swap?

Call Me Crazy!

After our Door County adventure last week and after getting our trailer home, I called our dealer, House of Camping in Bridgeview Illinois about two problems I had and needed them fixed. While on the phone with my dealer, I asked him if he still had another model we had looked at. Perhaps I should rewind a bit on this so you all can be on the same page as me.

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Is There an Electric Toad in Your Future?

By Bob Difley
How close are we to an electric vehicle? A bit far, I suspect, for motorhomes or trucks powerful enough to pull trailers and fivers, but maybe not as far for a toad. GM has pulled out all the stops for the Volt PHEV (plug-in hybrid electric vehicle) due out in the spring of 2009. Read more

Cold Weather Diesel Starting Innovations

Starting a modern diesel engine, in cold weather, is now much the same as starting your automobile. Even more so with the larger diesels like the Cummins ISM and ISX, which do not use any electronic heating aids that require a start wait time. This, however, has not always been the case in both earlier and some other diesel applications.

Caterpillar’s answer to cold start ups on engines mainly used in the construction industry back in the 60’s, employed a “Pup” motor. This single cylinder gasoline engine was mounted near the flywheel and was usually started using a hand operated crank. Once running, a manual clutch was slowly engaged that drove a pinion that turned the main engine. Soon after the big diesel started to be rotated over and over, a plume of white smoke would belch out of the exhaust followed by an accelerated roar. The pup engine clutch was then disengaged and the little motor turned off. The big Cat was running.

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Diesel Engines Are Getting Quieter And Quieter

Whether in a pickup truck, semi tractor or motor coach, we are all used to hearing the sound of a diesel engine, knocking loudly like a herd of knock kneed cattle on a slow gallop.  But have you noticed that newer diesel equipped vehicles are getting quieter and quieter?   European diesel powered automobiles are extremely quiet and can not, in many cases, be differentiated from the sound of a gasoline car.  So much so, that one could actually mistake a diesel as a gas when filling the tank - not once, but twice.  Please don’t ask me how I know.  Suffice to say, there is an auto rental company in Italy that will only rent me a gas powered ride. 

So, to what technology do we owe this reduction?   Read more

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