Electric over hydraulic - anyone using them ?
What is good and what is bad about them ?
Forum Discussion
This entire discussion points to the need for travelers to not depend on a parts store or anyone else to look up or come up with part numbers.
You should have a "manual" composed of all the install and repair manuals for everything on an RV and the tow vehicle, and for things like caliper kits, pads, (for parts that are GM based, determine the part numbers ahead of time for sure). Get cross reference lists and include them. Determine what hoses you would need, find part numbers from various auto parts stores. Part numbers for wheel bearings and races, seals, etc are also handy. With Timken, there are SET numbers for many of the bearing and race combinations, so you don't have to purchase separate parts (which is the norm at industrial suppliers). Also know good overnight sources of parts. I find the best deals on many wheel bearings and seals are from Summit Racing. They carry the SET numbers, and a couple of different seals (yes, you need the National seal number, not that propriety Dexter seal number, again, figure this out ahead of time)
On your tow vehicle do the same thing, find part numbers (correct numbers) for things like serpentine belts (yours may have different belts depending on options, or a cutoff production date where changes were made) and things that destroy belts like idler pulleys and tensioners. Get numbers for several major brands
One way to gather some of this information is the Gates web site, via their VIN decoder. Enter your VIN number, get the list, PRINT IT OUT file it in your "manual" (if going digital, print it to a PDF file for your thumbdrive)....
Gates VIN decoder for belts, hoses, and other items.
Saw a Youtube video the other day where a female truck camper adventurer/hiker had a serpentine belt fail. She got towed to a very nearby town and they ordered in the belt and the tensioner that had caused the belt failure, and sure enough the belt was the wrong one, thankfully they were able to get the correct belt in an hour or so.
Same goes for RV appliances and components that could ruin a trip if failed.
Do all of this AT HOME while you have the luxury of TIME.
Does this sound over the top? to me its cheap insurance that will minimize the time you are stranded and help to get things fixed right away. Look at it as an INVESTMENT in your future travels.
I did all of this when I had a 2006 Sprinter chassis motorhome (a 2007 Winnebago View) and I had complete digital PDF files of the Dodge shop and parts manuals, all of the Winnebago wiring diagrams and installation drawings, plumbing drawings, etc. I had everything digitized and stored on a thumb drive. That thumb drive stayed on the MH all the time in the pouch with the WBO manuals. I had downloaded repair manuals for many of the appliances also.
Know your vehicle. The Sprinter used a transmission fluid that is difficult to source, brake fluid that is quite difficult to source, and filters that not everyone carries. I carried a spare fuel filter and engine oil filter. In addition, I carried the original serpentine belt which I had removed. The Gates version of the belt was way too long, the Dayco belt was not much better (both put the tensioner near the end of its travel) and I had ordered a Continental/ContiTech belt that was an exact replacement for the original.
Also, carry tools that are unusual, that you may need, and make sure they fit. I carried a dipstick for the transmission on the Sprinter, it is a shop tool and CANNOT be left in the transmission, so I kept it stored in the motorhome.
About two weeks ago, on the way home from Wal-Mart, I came across a young couple with a travel trailer and a blown tire. The trailer was used, but fairly new, and they had cleared the main road and turned off at an intersection onto a side road. They were only a couple of miles from home, but had NO SPARE. They were returning from their first trip, a short shakedown cruise to a nearby lake. I offered to go home and get a spare tire and wheel I knew would fit, I was about 15 minutes from home, but they had called a friend who was pulling the spare from a boat trailer and bringing it. The fellow had no idea about jacking it but I suggested the truck jack which had a saddle that fit the axle perfectly and a lug wrench that fit the lug nuts (much to his surprise), I bid them farewell and went on my way, but this goes to show you, BE PREPARED ahead of time, its gonna happen.
This happened out in the country, rural area, and the thing that surprised me the most was the number of people that pulled over to check and see if they needed help, probably 6 or 7 in the ten minutes or so I was there.
Charles
You should have a "manual" composed of all the install and repair manuals for everything on an RV and the tow vehicle, and for things like caliper kits, pads, (for parts that are GM based, determine the part numbers ahead of time for sure). Get cross reference lists and include them. Determine what hoses you would need, find part numbers from various auto parts stores. Part numbers for wheel bearings and races, seals, etc are also handy. With Timken, there are SET numbers for many of the bearing and race combinations, so you don't have to purchase separate parts (which is the norm at industrial suppliers). Also know good overnight sources of parts. I find the best deals on many wheel bearings and seals are from Summit Racing. They carry the SET numbers, and a couple of different seals (yes, you need the National seal number, not that propriety Dexter seal number, again, figure this out ahead of time)
On your tow vehicle do the same thing, find part numbers (correct numbers) for things like serpentine belts (yours may have different belts depending on options, or a cutoff production date where changes were made) and things that destroy belts like idler pulleys and tensioners. Get numbers for several major brands
One way to gather some of this information is the Gates web site, via their VIN decoder. Enter your VIN number, get the list, PRINT IT OUT file it in your "manual" (if going digital, print it to a PDF file for your thumbdrive)....
Gates VIN decoder for belts, hoses, and other items.
Saw a Youtube video the other day where a female truck camper adventurer/hiker had a serpentine belt fail. She got towed to a very nearby town and they ordered in the belt and the tensioner that had caused the belt failure, and sure enough the belt was the wrong one, thankfully they were able to get the correct belt in an hour or so.
Same goes for RV appliances and components that could ruin a trip if failed.
Do all of this AT HOME while you have the luxury of TIME.
Does this sound over the top? to me its cheap insurance that will minimize the time you are stranded and help to get things fixed right away. Look at it as an INVESTMENT in your future travels.
I did all of this when I had a 2006 Sprinter chassis motorhome (a 2007 Winnebago View) and I had complete digital PDF files of the Dodge shop and parts manuals, all of the Winnebago wiring diagrams and installation drawings, plumbing drawings, etc. I had everything digitized and stored on a thumb drive. That thumb drive stayed on the MH all the time in the pouch with the WBO manuals. I had downloaded repair manuals for many of the appliances also.
Know your vehicle. The Sprinter used a transmission fluid that is difficult to source, brake fluid that is quite difficult to source, and filters that not everyone carries. I carried a spare fuel filter and engine oil filter. In addition, I carried the original serpentine belt which I had removed. The Gates version of the belt was way too long, the Dayco belt was not much better (both put the tensioner near the end of its travel) and I had ordered a Continental/ContiTech belt that was an exact replacement for the original.
Also, carry tools that are unusual, that you may need, and make sure they fit. I carried a dipstick for the transmission on the Sprinter, it is a shop tool and CANNOT be left in the transmission, so I kept it stored in the motorhome.
About two weeks ago, on the way home from Wal-Mart, I came across a young couple with a travel trailer and a blown tire. The trailer was used, but fairly new, and they had cleared the main road and turned off at an intersection onto a side road. They were only a couple of miles from home, but had NO SPARE. They were returning from their first trip, a short shakedown cruise to a nearby lake. I offered to go home and get a spare tire and wheel I knew would fit, I was about 15 minutes from home, but they had called a friend who was pulling the spare from a boat trailer and bringing it. The fellow had no idea about jacking it but I suggested the truck jack which had a saddle that fit the axle perfectly and a lug wrench that fit the lug nuts (much to his surprise), I bid them farewell and went on my way, but this goes to show you, BE PREPARED ahead of time, its gonna happen.
This happened out in the country, rural area, and the thing that surprised me the most was the number of people that pulled over to check and see if they needed help, probably 6 or 7 in the ten minutes or so I was there.
Charles
