Lloyd

I live in Tallahassee and the wife and I go to Topsail at least once a year and I always take 20. 41' 5er and a Dodge dually. I much prefer it to I-10. If you want to avoid the interstates as much as possible, pick up hwy 90 west of Tallahassee, it's easy going too.

If your "mechanic" is relying on you for tech tips find another mechanic. If he is not competent enough to check fuel supply, or do other simple diagnostic steps tow your car away from him. 

Sincerely,

 A professional mechanic

Speaking as a professional mechanic with 25 years experience, it is highly recommended to replace pads at the same time on each axle, along with machining or replacing the rotors. Every set of pads is going to have a slightly different compound and every rotor is going to have a different metallurgy and surface finish. These will effect the friction coefficient at each corner as well as the brake's ability to shed heat, both of which will determine braking performance.

On 3/25/2023 at 6:50 PM, Deezl Smoke said:

 I received the notice for my 2009 Kia Sportage. I do not have a trailer hitch, but the recall mentioned the fuse box. I think it is similar as the mention of moisture intrusion may cause a short and start fire.

Yeah, there's basically 3 categories to this recall; no factory hitch/trailer harness, inspection only close recall line; port installed hitch; and dealer installed hitch. Near as I can tell the last 2 are getting the same "fix". Hope this helps.

The fix for most of these is to downgrade the "trailer" fuse from a 30 to a 15 amp fuse. That is on the ones where a fix is listed, some platforms have a "no fix yet, inspection only" notice. I only know this because I'm a tech at a Kia dealer. No idea why the fix isn't the same across all the vehicle lines. 

It's your house, you set the rules. However you should pay attention to all the information available to you. Recently Rachel Walenski AND a Pfizer representative to the EU said that the covid vax never stopped transmission of covid. If you think it will protect you, get the vax, but don't run your life on the assumption that it is a magick elixir. 

I have an actual serious question on EVs. I know there is going to be a range reduction if you're towing with one, but how much? Is there anyone who has hitched up a travel trailer and quantitatively measured a range difference vs. unloaded?

A quick Google search looks like the smarts have a beam style axle. If so, camber and toe adjustments will only happen through the use of alignment shims.

I didn't see a dedicated intro forum, so I guess this is as good a place as any! I'm Lloyd and my wife and I have been camping for several years now. We both grew up camping with our folks and have settled into camping quite easily. We're both still working and will be for 5-10 more years before we can hit the road on a more permanent basis. So for right now we're weekend warrioring every time we can get a reservation and enjoying the occasional weekend with the grown kids or grandkids. We started out with a travel trailer and recently upgraded to a new KZ Durango 5er. Really liking the extra space and build quality of the fiver.

Thanks for reading,

   Lloyd 

I don't know if you've figured out your weights yet, but I just had to comment.  In a previous life I set up race cars. What your hitched numbers look like is a ride height/ weight jacker issue. With your bags inflated, my theory is, your right rear bag is over inflating or your left rear is under inflated or deflating causing your RR to carry too much weight. This will in turn transfer extra weight to your left front.

Hope I helped,

   Lloyd