I bought a 2001 Rialta QD recently. It slept 2-3 which is all I needed. I wanted an RV that handled well and was easy on gas. Because of the age, I expected to have to do a few upgrades. Because of the interest shown in this forum, I installed a transmission coolerMy first trip was into Michigan which went well. I found a few problems, but nothing serious.My second trip was a little more adventurous. I was going to visit Utah's National Parks from Arches to Zion. Through what I call the flatlands everything went well. The problems started West of Denver. There are two stretches of 6% grade. The RV shifted from D to 3rd as expected, but was still not making progress. I shifted to 2nd and was able to stabilize at 40 mph. Meanwhile, semis and larger RVs were passing me easily. During this stretch and for the rest of the trip, it was white knuckle driving waiting for something to blow up. Once I got back to the flatlands, everything was fine.I'm sure that many of the members have driven this route. My conclusion is that either the Rialta is under powered or that I have a problem with the transmission or engine. I am assuming that the interest in transmission cooling has to do with mountain driving.So, my question is under powered or something else?

Your Rialta is twenty years old! It’s a Volkswagen chassis. Last tune up?

I know nothing of that particular rig, but I would point out that unless the engine is turbocharged, you lose a lot of power at altitude. I know that stretch of road goes from 5,000 feet to 11,000 feet, and non-turbo vehicles suffer greatly at those altitudes. That is one reason there are so many diesel recommendations here; diesels are almost always turbocharged and suffer no loss of power at altitude.

naturist wrote:I know nothing of that particular rig, but I would point out that unless the engine is turbocharged, you lose a lot of power at altitude. I know that stretch of road goes from 5,000 feet to 11,000 feet, and non-turbo vehicles suffer greatly at those altitudes. That is one reason there are so many diesel recommendations here; diesels are almost always turbocharged and suffer no loss of power at altitude.That loss is roughly 3 percent for every 1,000' of elevation. Do the math... at 8,000' you have lost 24 percent of your flatland HP. As noted turbocharged engines are immune but for most of us its can be a significant challenge out here in the west.There are lots of gremlins that could be hurting the rigs performance from clogged fuel and/or air filters to simply needing a tuneup. You should expect better performance than that. Good luck.:C

40 up that hill is just fine. Toward the end I am in low gear at about 28 mph. Beautiful and wonderful drive.Last time I went over was eastbound and traffic was so bad westbound it was all bumper to bumper 5 to 15 mph. Road was closed 2 hours for me due to a car cut off a big rig that had one front tire hanging off the edge as we finally creeped by. Just drive steady with your speed and traffic and you get over just fine in the slow lane. Patience is all you need.

That's the nature of a small VW engine with 19 yr old technology and no turbo. You could possibly do a few things to slightly improve it. But it is what it is.Shift down and stay in the right lane. Plan your route if possible to avoid grades like that, but they are not unusual.

White Knuckle Trip | Good Sam Community

BarabooBob
Explorer III
Nov 10, 2020
Gear down and spin the engine to around 80% of red line. Your engine and tranny will thank you. Small engines like higher rpm's not low grunt rpm/s.
ppine
Explorer II
Nov 10, 2020
Some people are lazy with their transmissions. Use them to stay in the powerband going up hill, and use them and an engine brake for going downhill.

IN steep country it is always a good idea to pull over and run your engine at idle for awhile to cool off after a pull. Same with pulling over on downhills to cool the brake rotors. Learn to stab brakes instead of riding them.
time2roll
Nomad
Nov 10, 2020
myerind wrote:
It wasn't the semis, but the stress I thought I was putting on the transmission and engine.
If you have an RPM gauge aim for a place between peak torque and peak horsepower rpm. Or just balance the noise vs the feeling of a sweet spot in the power band. Check the oil level before and watch the temperature while you climb and it is all good.

The transmission is fine unless it is shifting excessively. If you find the transmission is hunting for the right gear is time to pull the lever to hold what seems best. Generally once you downshift don't upshift until you are over the top. If the RPM seems high... keep holding the gear and slow down a few mph. Then hold the rpm to the top while you enjoy the ride and relax.
ppine
Explorer II
Nov 10, 2020
The MOUNTAINS change everything. Six percent grade is nothing. Some rigs are fine until they hit the Rockies.

Anything with VW stamped on it is probably going to be slow.

I like diesel trucks for tow vehicles, and trailers under around 5,000 pounds. Then I can haul ass and handle roads with 12% grade or more.

Sonora Pass in CA has grades near 25% but RVs are not usually seen there.
myerind
Explorer
Nov 10, 2020
Mitch

It wasn't the semis, but the stress I thought I was putting on the transmission and engine.

Thanks for all your inputs. Sounds like if my trans and engine are OK I just need to be patient.

I haven't had a tune up since I bought it in Jan, so I plan to do that.

Ron Myer
pasusan
Explorer
Nov 10, 2020
I don't know anything about Rialtas so I did a search and came up with this very informative page: Rialta. It talks about engine size as well as everything else. Looks like yours is one year too early for the better (bigger) engine.
valhalla360
Navigator
Nov 10, 2020
MitchF150 wrote:
Sounds pretty normal to me? Given that it's a large vehicle with a low powered engine, going up a grade in higher altitude is gonna be hard and it's gonna have to work.. (ie higher rpms)

Try pushing a wheelbarrow up an incline with a load in it compared to on the flat land..

Anyway, not sure why semis passing you is "white knuckle", but I was not there and probably missing some points along the way too..

4000 rpms is loud for sure, but that's probably the peak power range of your engine, so it's just doing what it needs to do..

Good luck! Mitch

I was going to write pretty much the same thing. Nothing about the story is "white knuckle", so unless there is more to the story...
MitchF150
Explorer III
Nov 10, 2020
Sounds pretty normal to me? Given that it's a large vehicle with a low powered engine, going up a grade in higher altitude is gonna be hard and it's gonna have to work.. (ie higher rpms)

Try pushing a wheelbarrow up an incline with a load in it compared to on the flat land..

Anyway, not sure why semis passing you is "white knuckle", but I was not there and probably missing some points along the way too..

4000 rpms is loud for sure, but that's probably the peak power range of your engine, so it's just doing what it needs to do..

Good luck! Mitch
coolmom42
Explorer II
Nov 10, 2020
That's the nature of a small VW engine with 19 yr old technology and no turbo. You could possibly do a few things to slightly improve it. But it is what it is.

Shift down and stay in the right lane. Plan your route if possible to avoid grades like that, but they are not unusual.
time2roll
Nomad
Nov 10, 2020
40 up that hill is just fine. Toward the end I am in low gear at about 28 mph. Beautiful and wonderful drive.
Last time I went over was eastbound and traffic was so bad westbound it was all bumper to bumper 5 to 15 mph. Road was closed 2 hours for me due to a car cut off a big rig that had one front tire hanging off the edge as we finally creeped by. Just drive steady with your speed and traffic and you get over just fine in the slow lane. Patience is all you need.