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wood6406

Travel on I-15 from Las Vegas to St. George Utah

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We are heading from Vegas north on I-15.  The pass before you get to St. George looks pretty rough.  Anyone know if there are pullouts in case of needing to un-toad?  Anyone have overheating issues?

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3 hours ago, wood6406 said:

Anyone know if there are pullouts in case of needing to on-road? 

What is a on-road? 

I think it was 3 years ago I  drove I-15 from Shelby, Montana to Victorville, California. Yes there are some grades that could be a problem if you don't know how to drive them but I didn't have a problem. I didn't think it was all that bad. 

Bill

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There are very few pull outs on that stretch of highway and a couple of fuel stops between Vegas and St. George. I have pulled that stretch many many many times. I prefer to drive in the early morning or late afternoon thru there. We usually start/stop at the Cracker Barrel in St. George

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I have a 2001 American Eagle 40 with a Cummings 350/Allison.  I run the passes and hills in Colorado really well using the Allison Mode to manage heat and grade.  But, the coach is 33,000lbs and I tow 8,000 to 12,000 in toys and as I understand it, I am under powered.  I have told I need 10 horses for every 1,000 pounds of weight so my 350hp is short by about 100hp.  This combined with the high heats of the desert, heat me up pretty quickly.  I do drop the toad off when I think the incline and heat may bee to excessive.   I am rigging a misting system for the radiator fins this trip to help cool.  The 350hp seems to have the strength to pull the load if the heat issue is contained.  I am installed the misters here in LV and planning to pull the passes on 15 to Powell in a few days.  Hopefully this will solve my heating issue but any info on pull-outs would be helpful in the event that I need to drop the toad off.

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With your Cummins diesel engine (assume ISC), use the DOWN ARROW to select a gear where you can keep RPM in the 2100-2300 range and use a little less than full throttle.  The higher RPM turns the water pump faster and on most, also turn the fan for CAC and radiator faster. 

Use of Power or Economy mode still leaves the transmission in "automatic mode".  The down/up arrows allow YOU, the driver to select the proper gear.

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I wouldn't mess with the misters. Just learn to drive it using the manual shift arrows. The biggest thing is "if you can't accelerate in the gear you are in drop down till you can." Your governed RPM should be 2600 RPM. When you find the gear you can accelerate in keep your RPM around 2400 RPM. This will help to keep your engine cool. 

The econ button is good for slight hills and keeps the transmission in a higher gear longer thus improving mileage. This also drives up EGt and water temperature.

I have driven that road with my little 5.9 ISB with nearly as much weight and didn't have a problem. 

Bill

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I am curious to know where you saw "The pass before you get to St. George looks pretty rough". As there is no "Pass", just a curvy section of interstate 15 through the Virgin river gorge. Been through there many times and went through there a week ago. No steep grades, about an 800ft elevation gain in 30 miles. Just an scenic 55mph drive.

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Thanks D. Wanted to comment, but I have not been through there in a while. Your description is what I remember.

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On 5/5/2019 at 11:17 AM, wood6406 said:

I have a 2001 American Eagle 40 with a Cummings 350/Allison.  I run the passes and hills in Colorado really well using the Allison Mode to manage heat and grade.  But, the coach is 33,000lbs and I tow 8,000 to 12,000 in toys and as I understand it, I am under powered.  I have told I need 10 horses for every 1,000 pounds of weight so my 350hp is short by about 100hp.  This combined with the high heats of the desert, heat me up pretty quickly.  I do drop the toad off when I think the incline and heat may bee to excessive.   I am rigging a misting system for the radiator fins this trip to help cool.  The 350hp seems to have the strength to pull the load if the heat issue is contained.  I am installed the misters here in LV and planning to pull the passes on 15 to Powell in a few days.  Hopefully this will solve my heating issue but any info on pull-outs would be helpful in the event that I need to drop the toad off.

Be sure to use purified water in the mister, if you don't the radiator will clog with minerals.  I had that experience back in the 70s with water injection in the carburetor and on the radiator on the Dodge M series chassis and 440-3 engine.

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FYI, Got this Wednesday:

UPDATE: Wide-load restrictions and lane closures scheduled to begin May 29 on Interstate 15 in Arizona through Virgin River Gorge

Expect delays between Mesquite, Nevada, and St. George, Utah and a 224-mile detour for loads wider than 10 feet.

The Arizona Department of Transportation advises wide-load haulers and other drivers to plan for around-the-clock restrictions on I-15 through the Virgin River Gorge beginning Wednesday, May 29 and continuing through spring 2020. All loads wider than 10 feet must use a 224-mile detour route as crews repair three bridge decks along the narrow highway in northwestern Arizona. Other drivers should plan for delays and allow extra travel time while a section of I-15 is narrowed to one lane in each direction.

  • Wide-load detour: Signs will direct wide-load traffic to the detour route of US 93, Nevada State Route 319, and Utah State Route 56 between Las Vegas and Cedar City, Utah.
  • North- and southbound I-15 will be narrowed to one lane between mileposts 13 and 16.

Because of the terrain within the Virgin River Gorge and the narrow width of I-15, crews must reduce the width of travel lanes to 10 feet during construction. This will make I-15 impassible in the 3-mile work zone for vehicles wider than 10 feet. Crews will also move traffic over to one side of the highway while working on the other, providing one travel lane in each direction.

The $6.4 million project will rehabilitate three bridge decks on I-15. Work is scheduled to last at least one year.

Drivers should proceed through the work zone with caution, slow down and watch for construction personnel and equipment.

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Ask most bus conversion owners about over heating and/or under powered engines, and the most common solution is to slow down, especially when driving up and down grades. With a rig that weighs 33,000 lbs, it may not be possible to always keep up with the cars on the road.

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