PhotoAl

OK, here is my camping rig. :-) Sorry has nothing to do with my TC, no room for pet or wife or friend just me and the open road. My wife said she doesn't like to camp and will not ride on the back of the motorcycle. Maybe has something to do with a scooter crash with her on the back. For those who are curious it is Dubois Wyoming, 4,100 miles in 11 days.

Sorry can't help too much. Here severe cold is below 20 F and when it snows I keep it in the garage - people here can't drive in the rain much less snow!

Welcome, lots of good info and friendly folks.

Thought about my Kawasaki ZX6R 636 but decided it would be tight on height. My current BMW F800GT would not fiydue to tall windscreen. I have a small trailer (old Holzclaw) that I put a wood deck on and it is perfect for the motorcycles. I only plan on hauling one and the total weight is only about 800 pounds so is a good tow weight. ive been hauling my Kymco Compagno 110i which is about 200 pounds and is about as easy as the Metropolitan to get in and out. One way to think of the Kymco is a Metropolitian that will do 60mph. ?

Wow that that is a tough merge! Places like that is where I liked my Kawasaki Ninja, it woul do 0-60 in 3 seconds. Had traction control so wouldn’t wheelie or spin the rear tire. It was lightning fast when needed. However not much protection. When I was in Sunnyvale and San Jose I thought the drivers were much better than here.

My son has a 2005 Vibe GT which has been across the country several times. From Alabama to LA to Gainesville FL to Albuquerque to Gainesville FL to Malta NY and currently in San Jose CA. It is one of the most comfortable long distance cars I have been in. My '16 TC LWB Wagon gets as low as 17MPG around the neighborhood which is very hilly, 26 to 27 on the interstate at 75 to 80. Sometime 80 is the slow speed on the interstate around here! I drive pretty slow most of the time. I love the small size and incredible versatility! I can haul 6 people, fold the rear seats down and cary lots of stuff. A couple of weeks ago took the rear seats out, folded the middle seats down and hauled my scooter and gear to the track. On Sunday evening unloaded everything and put the two car seats in for taking to twin grandchildren to preschool. Came back and put one rear seat in and the carseats out and hauled my 90 year old in-laws, my sister-in-law and my wife to the doctors visit. My father-in-law is almost bedridden and it was much easier to help him move from the wheelchair to the TC seat. Just stand up and pivot. I put my wife in the very back - she is almost 5' 1" tall and very agile for her age. stowed the wheelchair beside the rear seat and away we went! After the doctors visit which took almost 4 hours we went thru the drive thru at Chick-fil-A. The van is so quiet I could clearly hear what my mother-in-law wanted me to order. My sister-in-law has the big Ford SUV and it is quite a climb for my mother-in-law who is 90 with very bad arthritis. She really likes the van. My daughter has a Honda van and it is nice with all of the touches like power doors and tailgate and has a little longer cargo area with all of the seats folded, it does not have the headroom or versatility. I like the manual doors and lift gate, more effort but less to break.

Mine is not the quietest vehicle I've had but way from the loudest. I can tell a difference in the noise depending on how I have it configured. If all of the seats are folded it noisier or if the back seats are out it makes a bit more noise but certainly not loud. As for the AC it is fine, haven't noticed any problems here in the hot humid south. The rear AC does get loud if I turn up the fan speed but it's only been a few occasions and not for long that Ive needed to do that. It does ride and handle well and IMO Ford did an excellent job balancing cargo capacity and ride comfort. Compared to the Dodge commercial van I rented As for loud that would go to my Kawasaki Ninja with the shortie exhaust. It sounded fantastic particularly at high RPM but did I say loud!I I always wear earplugs when riding any distance or on the interstate but with that bike earplugs were a necessity. Edit: Did you take your CBX to the Vintage Festival? Ive been there since Thursday.

My Volt had a chip in the windshield for many months. Last year as I was pulling out of my driveway a hickory nut fell on it just above the chip. Crack I then had a circular crack originating with the chip! Went to Safelight and got a replacement. I went to their shop but will get them to come to me next time.

Looked at your trip blog. Looks like lots of fun. I went from Grand Island Nebraska in a big clockwise circle thru some of the same places. Although retired had time constraints, my wife didn’t go as 1 she doesn’t ride on motorcycles with me (may be related to scooter crash in Italy when she was on the back but she was ok) and 2 she doesn’t like to camp. Going out I rode mostly interstates but on the way back did almost all secondary roads. They were very good and it was much more interesting. Also was caught on the western side of a low pressure system for 3 days, one was really bad with rain and wind. It’s apparent there is a side wind when the raindrops are going horizontaly across the helmet visor. Spent three nights in Dubois Wyoming camping, very nice area. My cooking consisted of picking off the menu at a restaurant.

Very nice! Like the way it slides out for use and is easy to put up. My current camper conversion looks like this ?and doesn’t include a stove or ice chest. Seriously nice part about the camping module is it’s something that can be put in and removed easily. Will enjoy hearing how your trip goes.

Haven’t seen it discussed on this board as a problem. Are the boots torn? A torn boot will cause a CV joint to fail.

Surprising and interesting, electric vehicles are certainly coming and offer a different driving experience. The prototype mockups sounds great, the one in the photo looks like a 3D printed mock-up. Hope they are right about the electrics, not an SUV fan and wonder about abandoning cars in the US market. I consider myself a performance oriented consumer. My Volt really opened my eyes to what driving an electric vehicle is like. The plug in charging is great, I could go weeks without buying gas or if I wanted to take a 300 mile drive to visit my mom I could do that. I’m not ready for pure electric or electric motorcycles yet. Regenerative braking really changed how I drive, even how I drive the TC. After my recent motorcycle trip to Yellowstone, there are many places outside of the dense population centers that don’t have many gasoline stations. Eventually a good charging network will evolve and electric vehicles offer enormous benefits to electricity production and consumption. Most cars spend substantial amounts of time stopped, if connected to an intelligent network of charging stations they could smooth the ups and downs of electricity generation from wind and solar.

Fun project, sorry it didn't yield better performance increases. I'm a bit surprised there isn't more space for an intercooler.

Thanks for all the info, I'm still a ways away at only 8,000 miles after 10 months of ownership. I try and not drive it too much as it is intended for trips and hauling stuff like scooters, grandkids, appliances, etc. I like the idea of a 25,000 mile interval. Have to wonder if the it had a better transmission cooler that kept the fluid temps down if the fluid would not last longer.

I probably should have put this in a new thread. In the Tetons ran into a couple of Harley Davidson riders who ran into fresh tar! One of them had a can of gas and was cleaning it off his front wheel with a rag - tossing the big pieces it it to the side. It pretty much wrapped his front. On the way out went thru Memphis to Jonesboro Arkansas and then to Springfield MO. Spent the night there, KOA was nice. Day 2 took 13 and 7 to I49 to Kansas City then I29 to just south of Omaha and picked up 2 over to I80 over the Grand Island. KOA there was nice. Day 3 took I80 the Cheyenne. Day 4 I 80 to Rawlings, 287 Lander and then at a gas station in the middle of nowhere picked up 26 to Dubois. In Dubois stayed at the Longhorn RV Park and camped in a tent. It was very nice. Day 5 and 6 were spent going to the Tetons and around Dubois. Day 7 rode 26 to Morain Junction and picked up191 to Yellowstone where I picked up 14 and rode to Cody. Day 8 rode 14 to 16 to I90 to16 to Custer. A local at the Firefighter airplane museum told me of a bypass around Worley which was very pretty and saved a bit of time. Woke up in cuter to a rainy forecast so changed my route. Took 385 to 2 to Grand Island. Got lost there and had to turn GPS on. Lots or bad wind and rain that day!!! From Grand Island Took I80 to 81 to I135 to 54 then 400 over to Springfield. Not sure about the bit from the state line to Springfield, was using Waze at that point. Hope to do again next year but stay longer out west. Wyoming, Kansas and Nebraska have excellent secondary roads and they were much more fun than the interstates. My bike only has a 4 gallon tank and the range was anywhere from 160 to 220 miles depending on speed and gas (no ethanol gives better mileage). Only place I came close to running out was Kansas - they don't have gas stations around. Photos: First is KOA in Springfield MO, 2nd is tent in Dubois WY, 3rd is a store in western Nebraska and last is the inside of one of the KOA cabins. I have a SPOT device which uses GPS and satellite communications and can send I'm OK messages back with a location. It can also send an SOS signal which they relay to emergency responders as well as a Help signal in case of a breakdown or flat tire. They relay to responders. Cost is about $150 per year for service but it is vey nice hen traveling alone on a motorcycle.

It a 2016 Titanium wagon. 6 passenger leather seats, would have gotten an XLT but got this one because of the deal I got. I just did a 4,100 mile road trip to Yellowstone on my motorcycle and had a blast. Was going to camp but wound up staying in KOA cabins except for three nights in Dubois Wyoming where I slept in my tent. KOA cabins had AC and after riding all day in the heat and getting to the destination totally soaked from sweating, AC is very nice. This trip has given me a renewed interest in taking the TC on a road trip. Sleeping on a mattress in the back or a tent. Photo of van with scooter in it. Rear seats are out and scooter is on a 3x3 piece of MDF with the front wheel in the space between the middle seats. For camping will have similar configuration but will take a foam mattress with something to level the rear with the top of the folded seats. I routinely cary my twin grandchildren so don't want to remove middle seats. Foam mattress will be the 3 section 6" one from Amazon.

It’s new, quiet, big on inside, small outside easy to get in and out of - 90 yo mother-in-law with arthritis can get in and out easily hauls my scooter to the track can haul lots of stuff and still get people inside can put mattress in back and go camping can haul a small trailer easy to drive (my wife complains about it being so big but she drives a Smart car) navigation and hands free phone mirrors fold back when I lock it - I look cool ? seriously not why I got it but does help when parking in my garage with too much stuff

+1 on keeping the alcohol in the glass not in the tank. I’m in the middle of a camping trip from Alabama thru Yellowstone and back. In Wyoming most of the gas stations have no ethanol in premium! I’ve been getting much better gas mileage with that fuel. At home the gaslight goes on at 140 miles. Yesterday it didn’t go on till 220 Miles. I did have a good bit of slower riding in the Tetons so that helped as well. Oh, must say I’m on my BMW F800GT motorcycle. I’m thinking the gas blend plus the lack of ethanol is what’s making a difference. I also found out what chip tar is.

For many years I’ve bought tires online usually because they were not available locally. I’ve used a couple of local shops which do good work who mount the tires for me. Before they were a big name I ran Yohahama ultra performance tires on my BMW. Never had a problem. I’m picky about tires and brakes as they help avoid accidents. The whole car parts marketplace has gotten much more competitive and difficult in recent years and it is sometimes hard to know which cheap part is good quality. As for tires I’ve been running Michelin and Continental on my cars. Wife’s Smart car runs an unusual size which is also expensive. Motorcycles have run Michelin Pilot Road 2, 3 and 4s except on the Ninja ran Bridgestone S20 and S21s. Around here it usually doesn’t get that cold and if it snows the cars stay in the garage. Doesn’t matter what tire I’ve got, folks can’t drive in warm dry weather much less inclement weather. Snow and ice plus one of them makes for a great YouTube video. Of of couse some pu and SUV drivers are good.

To me the looks are not so much retro. It’s a nice performance car, with the turbo and handling package it does well as a budget sports car (not a Miata). The Boss 302 in recent years was a very nice car for track days and entertaining to watch. I’m always amazed at how expensive the GT’s during my rare Ford dealership visits. I’d but a used C6 Corvette before I’d buy a new Mustang GT.

Welcome! Funny you have an Astro van, we had the GMC version (Safari) which my wife drove the wheels off of! Literally! The right front ball joint failed twice in the 210,000 Miles we had it. All our kids have many stories of being driven around it. Took it camping to Disney a couple of times. Wife went from Safari to Smart car and hasn’t looked back. The Safari was running up one of the tires went flat and it didn’t get driven and then the fuel pump failed. It went away a few months before I got the TC. Now my wife doesn’t drive the TC as “it’s so big”. The engine bay on the TC is fantastic compared to the Safari - I remember changing an alternator when my wife went to visit our older son at college. It was a couple of hours away and a thunderstorm came up. Nice thing was the alternator was reached by removing the engine cover and most of the work was inside the van. Not an easy job though. From what I see the TC’s are reliable vehicles, not so many wagon version around. I have my rear seats out and will probably not put them back in until I need to haul more than 4 people. Tomorrow I’m taking my daughter and son to IKEA to look for furniture for his new appartment. With the seats out there is a lot of space and can even slide a box between the two middle seats - I have the captains seats in the middle row. I like the captains seats as can leave them in an still get my scooter in. Mike: since you teach repair, the right front ball joint made a clunking noise from almost the day we got it. The dealer looked at it several times, had a couple of other mechanics look at it and nobody could find anything. Sometime around 75,000 miles it catastrophically failed - in her parents driveway!! Had it fixed and the same thing happened about 75,000 miles later! That time she was doing about 10 mph!

Hopefully you will have better results with the TC now that problem is fixed and you have a reasonable proficient dealer. the TC is a great people hauler, my 90 year old mother-in-law like it. She has difficulty walking due to arthritis, the TC is not low or highland she gets in easily. Today I had my 4 1/2 year old twins, the girl said my roof was very high and demonstrated how she couldn’t jump up and touch it. My daughter has a Honda Odessey. Other day day at Home Depot I saw a fella with a Chevy pickup. He rolled his wheelchair up and the drivers door slid outwards, he rolled into position and it picked him up and slid closed. First one of those I’ve seen. Really cool.

I’ve driven diesel cars in Europe and had no problem. Not particularly fast but got great mileage. Interestingly they seemed to be somewhat easier to stall and the stall was more abrupt. Low speed torque was abundant and with front wheel drive it was also easy to get some wheel spin when starting. According to my son a gallon of diesel fuel has more energy than gasoline and coupled with the increased efficiency of a diesel design they have better fuel mileage. as for efficiency I often wonder what kind of mileage the big 4 wheel drive pickups are getting at 90 mph which seems to be a popular speed around here. Mike, I’m off on my bicycle ride with helmet T-shirt and mountain bike shorts. Most “real” cyclists don’t greet me as they are too cool in their spandex.

Returning to the original topic, I vote for another TC. I’m still happy with mine. Changed the oil ta month ago and it was easy, yes had to get the ramps out, undo the undertray but it was straightforward with room to work. It’s not a perfect vehicle but I’m still very happy with it. Wish I could figure out how to put about 300 hp in it. Took my first long trip in it last month, 1,200 miles round trip. Seats weren’t perfect but were not bad either, it kept up with traffic on I75 in Florida and Georgia. With the new hands free law in Georgia it was nice having the Sync. Navigation was nice, Waze is sometimes better but don’t have to worry about cell reception with Navigation. There are somewhat similar vehicles out there but the TC does what I want better than anything else out there. And I’m somewhat unique, don’t see myself driving around. My daughter has a brown Odessey, see her everywhere I go. About to to take a trip out west to Colorado or Wyoming but will take the BMW - motorcycle.

Welcome! have you tried removing the replaced fuse and then starting?