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Old 06-20-2020, 02:29 PM   #1
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Brand: Thor Motor Coach
Model: Four Winds
State: Colorado
Posts: 31
THOR #17966
Gaining Experience

We bought a previously owned MH in February. Our first trip was in March to Southern Colorado. The drive was straight down I25 so it was easy except for the 40 MPH winds on the way home. Wind was a concern for my first drive so it turned out to be a good experience. I know what to expect now. I'm pretty sure I could have made diamonds if I would have had coal dust in my butt cheeks for a few of those gusts. We got home the day before the statewide shutdown for COVID-19.

So, on the first trip I learned about wind.

The second trip we went fishing for a couple days on the Arkansas River in late May. The drive through South Park is nice and I do like driving on the 2 lane back roads. We left the Arkansas River and headed toward Gunnison and Crested Butte. The drive over Monarch Pass was interesting. It has 6% and 7% grade. I learned that our MH with the Ford 450 likes 3600-3700 RMP and 40 MPH going up those hills.

Do the newer MHs with the 6 speed transmission climb the passes with lower RPM?

It seems like 3700 RMP for that long would be hard on the engine and transmission. I have read that they are built for that but I would like to hear from others of you who have the same power train and have driven in the mountains for many miles.

I have a neighbor, who says that he has a lot of RV experience; claim that the mileage should be doubled on the powertrain just because it is always working so hard. Is that what I should expect?

Should I be going up and down the mountain passes with empty water and holding tanks? Does 300 pounds make a big difference?

We ended up at a campground above Crested Butte. The dirt road in was narrow and a bit sketchy but once we got in to the campground it was fantastic. We have yet to stay in a campground that had water hookup and only the first trip had electric. The MH is great for camping in these so called primitive areas but we really like them. I was a little worried about the climb out on that narrow dirt road because it was kind of steep with some crossing ruts. It turned out to be no problem.

The second trip I learned about driving over mountain passes. It is slow going up and slow going down.

The following week we decided to check out a couple of campgrounds closer to home. We were within a 2 hour drive. These campgrounds were nice and would be great to just get out for a couple nights. We ended up between a couple of groups that were noisy and wanted to do a different kind of camping than we did. The campground host let us move to a different loop and no charge. There were only 2 other people camping in that loop so it turned out to be awesome.

If you don’t like the campground and there are some open ask the campground host if you can relocate.

The refrigerator suddenly won’t cool when plugged in at the house while we load up. I found out that the electrical heating element failed. The fridge gives a flashing code to identify the issue. I ordered the new heater and it will be here next week. It looks like an easy fix. In the meantime the fridge works fine on propane. We are loading up this afternoon for trip number 4.
We are going up I70 past Vail to the Holy Cross area.

Any tips for that drive would be appreciated.

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2006 Four Winds 31P E450 Ford
Some left over tent camping equipment
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Old 06-20-2020, 03:37 PM   #2
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Brand: DRV
Model: Mobile Suites 36RSB3
State: Florida
Posts: 274
THOR #17449
You are doing it the right way, learning as you go pretty much like everyone did in the beginning. main thing have fun. it won't hurt the engine to run it up to 4000 rpm. as for doe it equate to more engine wear or double the mileage. maybe a little bit on older units talking back in the 80's. But to days drivetrains are pretty tough.
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Old 06-20-2020, 03:56 PM   #3
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Brand: DRV
Model: Mobile Suites 36RSB3
State: Florida
Posts: 274
THOR #17449
One tip. If you go up the hill at let's say 40 mph. Try to gear down and go about the same speed going down the hill. let the engine compression help slow you down. There are way to many overheated brake stories and accidents out there.
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Old 06-20-2020, 04:11 PM   #4
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Brand: Thor Motor Coach
Model: Four Winds
State: Colorado
Posts: 31
THOR #17966
Hot Brakes

Yes - I leave it in Tow Haul and go slow. I've had the hot brakes on a 8% grade. Luckily I was off of the hill when the started to heat up.
Thanks for the tip.
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Some left over tent camping equipment
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Old 06-21-2020, 12:46 PM   #5
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Brand: Still Looking
Model: Tiffin Wayfarer 24 BW
State: New York
Posts: 22,195
THOR #8860
Glad to know that you've got the learning process in gear, and are quickly absorbing all that is being thrown at you!
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