blakeloke

Dennis. I had heard there were issues with the '17 Grand Cherokee. Sorry to hear. Did Jeep change steering control from '16 to '17? Ours is a '16 purchased new in July of '16. Odometer has about 3400 miles on it but tires have ~15,000 miles. Have not experienced the wobble. Blake

I have a fundamental problem with the way Fiat/Chrysler has handled this issue. We have a '16 Grand Cherokee and don't have the death wobble issue so I'm not intimately familiar with the way the manufacturer has handled this. Here's how I understand it. Jeep sold these vehicles to customers stating that they are flat towable and the same is stated in the owner's manual. Many customers who had purchased the Cherokee claimed of the Death Wobble issue. Videos online support the claim. Jeep investigates the issue and agrees with the problem. Jeep's fix is that the customer is to purchase a wiring harness and have it installed at the owner's expense. Some dealers are not aware of the need to retro-fit and other dealers claim the harness is not available at this time. John's post above supports this statement. To me, enough is enough. I'm not a proponent of handling issues like this through the legal system but this certainly smells like a class action to me. Had I spent 10s of thousands of $$s on a vehicle that didn't perform as promised and it was a proven fact that many others had the same issue, I might have a case. Sorry for the rant......my two cents. Blake

Welcome to the Forum. What was the claim for? Blake

Potential West Coast Outlet for Ernie!

Carl, I dunno. Maybe I'm just picky about stuff like that. Like a leaving a light on? Hated our washer/dryer combo. The bad thing is it was an option we paid for. It's at the bottom of a popular lake around here now. Blake

Well Carl.....you nailed the timing exactly right! Since I have the woodworking tools out I have a couple of other things I've been wanting to get to......and get to....and get to.....

Yes Carl....I called it wet bay above. I think it's there so you can wash up using the wand and hot water. I hardly ever use that one because I use nitrile gloves.

Joe......since you mentioned doing this project it has mystified me too why they didn't put a pump switch in the toilet room. We have 5 total switches. Wet bay, toilet room, hallway sink, kitchen sink & one above the passenger seat in the control cabinet. The one in overhead cabinet, but it's comes in handy when you're going down the road and realize you've forgotten to turn the water pump off. Blake

Nice work! Thanks for the pics too!

Joe.....nice welding and great idea on the gusset. Sorry for the late update. I'm having a problem welding the filler neck to the pipe elbow. Both are 304 stainless. The elbow is much heavier gauge that the actual filler neck. I'm exaggerating, but the filler neck is about as thick as a beer can! So, I've burnt through the filler neck and need to order another. Have used fillernecksupply.com for the first part and will see if they have a heavier gauge . The sight glass bungs are installed. Welded both inside and out. I've had to put this project aside for awhile and have been working in the yard prepping for some construction. Plus, have drug out all my woodworking tools for some grand daughter and wife projects. Hopefully I can get back to this in a few weeks! Blake

Looks like it to me also Herman. Odd that they are blowing. tngleim.......have your electrical systems worked perfectly in recent past and now the gremlins have just shown up? I'm wondering what, if any, significant event has caused things to go haywire. In the first set of pictures above what are the two sets of battery cable leads going to? The leads coming off of the one battery that looks to be away from the camera. Assuming those are your chassis batteries? What voltage do you get there? Blake

Herman, Now that sounds like a lot of fun! Not sure where Ernie's new place is but it isn't too far from his old house. Not sure if we can commit because we'll be in the middle of construction throughout the spring and summer. Blake

Joe, the mirror we have next the fridge has successfully separated from the wall. The only thing holding it up now are the mounting screws top and bottom. Looking between the mirror and cherry wood wall I see just double stick tape. No glue (at least I don't see any). Perhaps some carefully applied heat with your heat gun? That may work if you aren't planning on re-using the mirror. Or, if you can get some fine filament like fishing line between the mirror and wall then start working it down to separate the wall and mirror. We had a pretty good water leak from our Nocold a few years ago. So I need to do the same as you and try to get the stain off the base of the wall so it looks as good as the floor that Ernie installed a year ago. Blake

Carl and Rich.....great ideas. I was thinking of adding a valve to the bottom so I can regularly drain sediment out and fully drain if needed. So, that may be a good spot to do a pressure test. What do you think about hydro-test with water and use a hand pump to a max of ~15-20 psi? Joe, for the last 7 or so years of my career (been retired 2+ now) I was more of a road warrior with a lot of international travel and one long stint living away from the family for 4 years in PA. I lived in Moon Township near the Pittsburgh airport. Although I never got used to the cold weather I loved to explore the rich history of that part of the US that we just don't have down here in Texas. One of the most memorable was a trip to Gettysburg. My neighbor from Texas came up and we spent a couple days in Gettysburg (awesome) and also went to the Civil War museum near Harrisburg. One mistake we made was to try a BBQ place in downtown Harrisburg. I should have known better and rather have taken him to a great Polish deli instead! Some of the foods I miss are the great Kielbasas, Pierogis' and Wedding Soup! We just don't get those homemade delights down here. I made a lot of friends up there but haven't been back up since I retired. Most of them come down here to spend time with Deb and I on a regular basis. One was just here last night. He's in a week long well control school. We want to go back up and continue the history lesson. When we do, we'll look you up unless by that time you have become a Texan! Back to the project, I'm still a newbie at welding and practice as much as time will allow on carbon steel. A couple things I need to work on is to slow down and not be so nervous about burning through the thicker material. Not so sure I could work on a ladder like Joe. I think my job would end up as a glob with moon craters! Thanks for the help guys! Blake

Wow Joe....nice! How did you contort your body under the sink?

Rich.....I hadn't thought that far ahead! How to weld the top so it holds 10 - 15 psi. Maybe drop the top to lower than the sides and do a fillet weld all the way around? Bill....the mill supply had the 11ga as a remnant and gave me a pretty good price. But, if I were to add the prices of all the parts and pieces I probably would have come out ahead to just buy a pre-fabricated tank. But wouldn't have had the fun. Blake

Hahaha Bill......eagle eye! Good catch. You're right. It was a stop and start. Got a little breezy and had to rig up a windscreen. Or maybe it was the sip of beer that I needed. I should have shown a view from the outside of the tank. That's welded too. Blake

Okay.....tank walls are welded together. Sight glasses and radiator cap and neck came in last night. Still waiting on filler neck and miscellaneous bungs for level sensor etc. Blake

Mark, Does your Roadtrek have both the propane and electric feature on the hot water tank? I ask because when I want to take a marathon shower I turn both on and usually don't run out of hot water. Granted, can't do that when we're boon-docking because long showers just eats up fresh water and holding tank capacity. But if you're hooked up you might be able to use both functions for a longer shower. Blake

Bill.....yup! Good thought. I'm going to drop the filler neck down and use the tubing to raise the radiator cap to just at the level of the top of the tank. Not so much fun to fill the system with a red solo cup. Carl, the closest place to us we can find Yuengling beer is in Louisiana. Stop on by anytime Jim. I'll save a few for you! And, I agree, I've never liked this plastic container that doubles as a radiator overflow. Especially so close to the engine where it's exposed to the heat. One good leak and your engine goes into limp mode due to the level sensor! Blake

Richard, Every time I see the picture of your coach (I think it's called and Avatar?) I want to see what the interior looks like. I enjoy looking at the vintage coaches and trailers and especially the neat things that imaginative folks do to them to restore. Thanks for sharing and looking forward to updates and more photos! Blake

All, This is a project I've been contemplating doing for the past couple of years just because our original plastic coolant overflow tank is getting brittle, bulging and has a couple of minor seeps. Finally got started on this yesterday. Buddy of mine is teaching me how to weld stainless - I'm a newbie with stainless! Special picture for Joe - Pennsylvania beer! Materials: (some still on order and will post pictures when they come in): 11 ga. 304 stainless (3) - 1"x3/4" NPT 304 stainless bungs (3) - 3/4" NPT round sight glasses. A couple of feet of 304 stainless tubing for radiator hose fittings and radiator cap assembly (1) - 304 stainless radiator cap weld neck. Some miscellaneous fittings for the level sensor etc. Blake

Here's basics of your toad hook-up. Tow bar and base plate(s) are needed to couple your toad to the motorhome. They're separate from the actual braking system that applies braking power to your toad. I would stick with like manufacturer for the tow bar and base plate(s) as the connection to the base plate(s) may be specific to the manufacturer. Just make sure you get a tow bar that is rated to handle the weight of your toad. The actual braking system can be whatever brand you deem best. Some on this Forum prefer M&G which I've heard a lot of positive comments about. We have a Blue Ox Patriot 2 like Five mentions above. The reason why we stick with the Blue Ox is we have two different toads so it's pretty simple to switch the portable "box" from vehicle to vehicle. One downside is once we get to our destination we have to stow the "box" somewhere. Usually in the MH bay. I don't know if Roadmaster offers a remote adjustable gain and panic brake lever. I've never had to use the panic brake lever but I sure like to be able to adjust braking power based on road and driving conditions. I'm sure Roadmaster is good but I wouldn't rule out Blue Ox. Not sure that I'd buy a used unit just to save a few hundred dollars. From a safety perspective, there's a lot riding on the reliability of your braking system. Better to "know" you have something that works. Hope this helps. Blake

Joe, Yes, my mom had a shower in her class B (hers did anyway). It was integral with the toilet and sink. She closed the toilet lid and showered away! Blake

We've used Blue Ox for the past 12 years. We're on our second tow bar and brake system. I like the functionality of setting gain from the coach. Blake