Afternoon folks,
Thought id give a brief* tale about our first trip away! This was in January btw, which is only mildly important as it coincided with the escalation to snow and ice warnings
you can plan a pretty picnic and all that.
We planned 5 days, heading from home to the Slieve Blooms, then south through the midlands to any of the many beaches in Waterford.
Arriving in stop #1 at the trailhead for the barrow eco walk, set up, chilled out, ploughed on with a 1000 piece jigsaw, and snuggled up.
Was I stingy with the diesel heater? Yes. There was frost on the inside windows when we woke
but that's character building.....!
Did a beautiful 5k walk, admiring the falls, and manoeuvring many a fallen tree, we arrived back had brekkie and a coffee and a bit of time later we went to leave.
The van struggled to start. Don't panic. Cold + glow plugs... All normal, turned the key again - and she sprung to life. Navigated the iced over car park and on we went to Jenkins town park Kilkenny. 2km loop walked, availed of the facilities, a bit of lunch, turned the key - not a gig. ABS and traction control lights on, nothing from the starter motor. A kind gent and a set of jump leads later, we're on the road to Halfords for a new battery, figuring that'll do it.
It did not. A new battery fitted and she was dead on key. 2 hours with the over whelmingly kind staff in Halfords Waterford, a call for a rescue truck paused, a push up the car park, and by sheer luck it would appear in the end - a successful start.
Cue a tense 2 hour drive home, where she did in fact near poop herself on the m7 at 110kph when the dash lit like a Christmas tree and I lost power momentarily.
I was indeed tired when we got home safely and under our own steam.
What I found:
- loose connections to the power distribution unit attached at the positive pole (notably sparks jumping the gap when engine running)
- a questionable connection between the house and front... The dash LCD screen appeared to stay lit, even when the starter battery was disconnected. Figured possible faulty split relay sending current forward?
What I've done:
- got it on a mechanic diagnostic, heaps of codes, but a lot that were past ones and in the CAN relay, so we've opted for the delete them all and see what happens option. Low voltage was recurring which is likely due to both the defunct battery and the gap between connections.
- removed split relay, to keep the house separate from the starter. There was just a basic split relay here, I'd like to upgrade that to something better if anyone has any recommendations please
Also - on the phone the insurer said a lift is covered fup to 650 euro. Does anyone take out additional breakdown cover on top of dolmen? Or is there like AA breakdown assistance for campers?
*Brief is subjective, and this is the shortened version
Thought id give a brief* tale about our first trip away! This was in January btw, which is only mildly important as it coincided with the escalation to snow and ice warnings
you can plan a pretty picnic and all that.
We planned 5 days, heading from home to the Slieve Blooms, then south through the midlands to any of the many beaches in Waterford.
Arriving in stop #1 at the trailhead for the barrow eco walk, set up, chilled out, ploughed on with a 1000 piece jigsaw, and snuggled up.
Was I stingy with the diesel heater? Yes. There was frost on the inside windows when we woke
but that's character building.....!
Did a beautiful 5k walk, admiring the falls, and manoeuvring many a fallen tree, we arrived back had brekkie and a coffee and a bit of time later we went to leave.
The van struggled to start. Don't panic. Cold + glow plugs... All normal, turned the key again - and she sprung to life. Navigated the iced over car park and on we went to Jenkins town park Kilkenny. 2km loop walked, availed of the facilities, a bit of lunch, turned the key - not a gig. ABS and traction control lights on, nothing from the starter motor. A kind gent and a set of jump leads later, we're on the road to Halfords for a new battery, figuring that'll do it.
It did not. A new battery fitted and she was dead on key. 2 hours with the over whelmingly kind staff in Halfords Waterford, a call for a rescue truck paused, a push up the car park, and by sheer luck it would appear in the end - a successful start.
Cue a tense 2 hour drive home, where she did in fact near poop herself on the m7 at 110kph when the dash lit like a Christmas tree and I lost power momentarily.
I was indeed tired when we got home safely and under our own steam.
What I found:
- loose connections to the power distribution unit attached at the positive pole (notably sparks jumping the gap when engine running)
- a questionable connection between the house and front... The dash LCD screen appeared to stay lit, even when the starter battery was disconnected. Figured possible faulty split relay sending current forward?
What I've done:
- got it on a mechanic diagnostic, heaps of codes, but a lot that were past ones and in the CAN relay, so we've opted for the delete them all and see what happens option. Low voltage was recurring which is likely due to both the defunct battery and the gap between connections.
- removed split relay, to keep the house separate from the starter. There was just a basic split relay here, I'd like to upgrade that to something better if anyone has any recommendations please
Also - on the phone the insurer said a lift is covered fup to 650 euro. Does anyone take out additional breakdown cover on top of dolmen? Or is there like AA breakdown assistance for campers?
*Brief is subjective, and this is the shortened version
