scottydl
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There's nothin' like an American V-8...
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Post by scottydl on Jun 15, 2007 22:08:13 GMT -6
Well tomorrow the wife and I are taking the Aurora on its longest road trip ever... in fact she (the car  ) has never been outside of Illinois since we bought and drove her in from Missouri. We're headed to Grand Island, NY to visit Niagra Falls and (with any luck) make a fairly major purchase. More on that, and a complete trip update later. I may have some WiFi access while traveling, but for the most part I probably won't be around until Wednesday or so. See you all later! Beginning mileage: 90,191 |
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Post by Aurora40 on Jun 16, 2007 9:13:54 GMT -6
Cool, have fun!
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Post by aldrichd on Jun 16, 2007 10:14:45 GMT -6
Drive careful.
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Post by algonquin on Jun 16, 2007 19:30:47 GMT -6
We're headed to Grand Island, NY to visit Niagra Falls and (with any luck) make a fairly major purchase. More on that, and a complete trip update later. Come on Scotty, Niagra Falls isn't for sale. ;D Have a great time. Anxiously waiting for your After Actions Report (oops, I was in the military to long) . I mean your trip deatils. Stay safe. |
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Post by erw38 on Jun 17, 2007 17:00:24 GMT -6
We're headed to Grand Island, NY to visit Niagra Falls and (with any luck) make a fairly major purchase. By "major purchase" I assume that he means he is buying an RV. |
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scottydl
Super Moderator
There's nothin' like an American V-8...
Posts: 7,373
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Post by scottydl on Jun 22, 2007 8:18:50 GMT -6
We're back! A day late and many dollars short. We left in the Aurora (me driving and the wife riding), and returned with the wife driving the Aurora and me driving THIS: . . . . . . . . . . . . . building suspense... even though erw38 was right... . . . . . . . .  It's a 1994 Thor Residency, 35 feet in length. It has a Ford 460 V-8, with just over 78k miles after the trip home. My wife and I have been researching and saving for an RV for over a year now, so I knew when a good deal came along. I found the Thor on eBay, and called the seller to negotiate a deal over the phone. Once we agreed on terms and I paid a deposit, he pulled the eBay auction. Going to NY to pick it up and bring the motorhome back was QUITE an experience. Lots of highs and a couple lows, but the trip ended high so that's a good thing. The Aurora performed beautifully on the 10-hour drive from IL to NY, although its driver (me) had a slight lapse in attention our second day and I had a minor fender bender with a Toyota Camry.  Really no damage other than a couple smudges by the front passenger wheelwell (that will hopefully buff out) on our Aurora, and a little trim damage and green paint transfer on the other guy's gray Camry. He was nice about it at least, police responded but no report or tickets were issued. It's doubtful I will have any body repair done, unless I'm forced to pay the deductible for his repair... then I might as well get my fender repainted too. While on this trip, I saw the skylines of Indianpolis, IN ... Columbus, OH ... Buffalo, NY ... and Cleveland, OH. Saw two amazing natural wonders up close, Niagara Falls and Lake Erie. The day we visited the Falls, we walked to the Ontario side for sightseeing and lunch and then came back to the NY side for the "Cave of the Winds" tour (you walk a series of wooden decks RIGHT along the bottom of the American Falls... see video). Absolutely stunning! After leaving Niagara and surviving a motorhome breakdown (the "house" batteries needed replacing, and just like cars all kinds of things went batty when the batteries started acting up), we spent the next two nights near Erie, PA at a lakefront campsite. Once again, amazing! A few trip stats... Ending mileage: 91,689 (round trip 1498 miles) Average fuel mileage: 26.4 mpg Oil life use: 15% (DIC started at 71%, now at 56%) Average speed: 43 mph And a few trip pics...       |
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Post by macadamiaman on Jun 22, 2007 10:32:48 GMT -6
Your Aurora has the exact mileage as mine, nearly. What about stats for that boxy beast? I know I get about 10-12mpg with my car with the Ford 460 V8  |
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scottydl
Super Moderator
There's nothin' like an American V-8...
Posts: 7,373
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Post by scottydl on Jun 22, 2007 11:40:09 GMT -6
What about stats for that boxy beast? I know I get about 10-12mpg with my car with the Ford 460 V8 Double digits?! I wish. This sucker probably weighs about 12,000 pounds empty, although I haven't taken it to the truck scales yet to verify that. I calculated the mileage on a 416-mile stretch of highway driving yesterday, which netted 7.4mpg. Filled up in Ohio (about 5/8 tank) for $195, and then again when we got home to Illinois (about 1/2 tank) for $160. Oh yeah.  |
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Post by Aurora40 on Jun 22, 2007 12:23:32 GMT -6
Holy cow, that thing is a behemoth! Glad you had a great trip and got to see some great sites. I didn't know Columbus had a skyline, though... |
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scottydl
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There's nothin' like an American V-8...
Posts: 7,373
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Post by scottydl on Jun 22, 2007 14:16:36 GMT -6
Yeah it's big. I would like to polish it up, and you (being a detailing guy with a fiberglass-bodied car) may be able to help. What's a good product to use? Any standard wax or polish? I've heard RV folks talk about using some kind of gelcoat, but don't know the specifics. And Columbus really does have a skyline, or at least a downtown with tall buildings. That's what I meant. |
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Post by Aurora40 on Jun 22, 2007 16:54:41 GMT -6
What's a good product to use? Anything you can get by the gallon?  Actually, Protect-All makes products more or less geared to RV's. Their Protect-All wax product might be worth looking at. It is easy to use and reasonably durable. I doubt you'd want anything that's high-effort on something that huge unless you have a lot of time to spend. www.protectall.com/pawaxlg.htm |
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Post by crashmedic on Jun 22, 2007 19:00:36 GMT -6
Wow, that thing is huge !!! I am a little surprised that something that large is gas powered and not a diesel. Sure is nice though, wish I had one. |
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Post by Mr. Javi on Jun 22, 2007 19:30:10 GMT -6
Nice RV there Scotty, shure looks like tons of fun, one day I want to do that as well.
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Post by erw38 on Jun 22, 2007 20:07:22 GMT -6
Looks great, now how about some pics of the inside or if your speaking Bob speak it would be picts ;D |
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Post by algonquin on Jun 22, 2007 20:30:27 GMT -6
Welcome back. Pretty nice pics. Even got a little mud on your Aurora. That RV is wicked nice.
("wicked" is Mainer talk for absolutely fantastic). When are you going to come by and pick us up ?
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scottydl
Super Moderator
There's nothin' like an American V-8...
Posts: 7,373
Staff Member
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Post by scottydl on Jun 22, 2007 22:12:23 GMT -6
Hehe, next Aurora gathering and I'll bring the RV. Everyone just pitch in a few hundred dollars for gas! crashmedic, it's 35 feet and that's about as big as they get before becoming diesel pushers (DPs) as you mentioned. Diesels are generally more powerful, but are more difficult & expensive to maintain. RV-wise, they say you've got to drive a LOT of miles every year to justify the expense of a DP.
We're currently working on a little interior remodeling... the previous owner was good about keeping up the mechanical things, but lacked a bit in the attention-to-detail category. The rear bedroom had some extra wall and closet added. So we are bring it up to our standards, and I'll post some interior pics (or picts) as soon as we're done. Kinda strange, I never imagined myself tearing walls and framing out of a motorhome...
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Post by BuccaneersFan on Jun 23, 2007 15:03:43 GMT -6
If you ever take a trip to Tennessee my Dad just opened an RV park called Mountain Glen, it's in Pikeville which is about 1 hour north of Chattanooga. The web site is www.MountainGlenOnline.com. |
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scottydl
Super Moderator
There's nothin' like an American V-8...
Posts: 7,373
Staff Member
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Post by scottydl on Jun 24, 2007 11:31:56 GMT -6
Hey, that looks like a really great location. Do you know details on the rates? I'm curious about the $2/night discount for "all major discount cards". I've noticed that just about all campgrounds differ in the way they assess additional charges/discounts, and I'm still trying to learn the ropes so to speak.
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Post by BuccaneersFan on Jun 24, 2007 12:48:07 GMT -6
Hey, that looks like a really great location. Do you know details on the rates? I'm curious about the $2/night discount for "all major discount cards". I've noticed that just about all campgrounds differ in the way they assess additional charges/discounts, and I'm still trying to learn the ropes so to speak. Basically they give a $2 a night discount for about any discount card there is, such as AAA, AARP, ARVC, Good Sam Club, TNARVC, Wheelers, Woodalls etc. plus Active Military, Police, and Firemen. If you think of any other questions let me know. |
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Post by erw38 on Jun 24, 2007 14:48:57 GMT -6
What's the ACNA discount?
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Post by BuccaneersFan on Jun 26, 2007 18:45:27 GMT -6
What's the ACNA discount? Sorry, no discount for ACNA members, unless some members convert there Auroras into sleeper units. ;D |
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Post by Letitroll98 on Jun 27, 2007 21:34:31 GMT -6
Welcome back. Now you can utter those famous words......."I live in a VAN down by the RIVER"
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Post by Aurora40 on Jun 28, 2007 6:54:56 GMT -6
What's the ACNA discount? LOL! |
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Post by Poindexter on Jun 29, 2007 19:56:12 GMT -6
Man that looks like it was fun. I was just by Niagra but didn't have time to go see it, I'm a bit jealous.
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Post by luvmybravada on Jul 1, 2007 12:47:27 GMT -6
Wow, what a beautiful sunset! Thanks for posting pics!
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) has never been outside of Illinois since we bought and drove her in from Missouri. We're headed to Grand Island, NY to visit Niagra Falls and (with any luck) make a fairly major purchase. More on that, and a complete trip update later. 
Really no damage other than a couple smudges by the front passenger wheelwell (that will hopefully buff out) on our Aurora, and a little trim damage and green paint transfer on the other guy's gray Camry. He was nice about it at least, police responded but no report or tickets were issued. It's doubtful I will have any body repair done, unless I'm forced to pay the deductible for his repair... then I might as well get my fender repainted too. 
