We used Salt Lake to refit and resupply. On the way from Moab, heading up US 6 around Soldier Summit, we heard an earsplitting “THWACK”. We looked around and didn’t see any rock chips, so I assumed it must have hit the front side of a mirror or it poked a hole thru the front fiberglass. Those thoughts were incorrect as about 10 minutes later Kathy said she saw a crack. When I looked over to my left, I could just see a little crack. Stone hit the windshield. Bummer.
Coming down the other side of Soldier Summit toward Provo, I started calling windshield shop, found one that said they could drill the crack to stop it from getting longer. In a bit we found the shop and circled it a couple of times to figure how to get into there. On the second circuit, I saw a way to pull all 65′ into that small space.
The shop owner had a look and that 1″ crack was now 6″ long and growing. He tried to drill it, but the crack immediately bypassed where he was starting to drill and he gave up, told me I needed to replace it. Oh, well, we reattached the car and headed toward the campground.
I was not aware how smoggy Salt Lake City (SLC) is. It rivals the old days of LA.
The KOA in SLC was very nice, much better than expected. Lots of shade, which is important where its painfully hot.
On Friday I took the coach over to a chain truck lube shop outside of SLC, had them replace the 8 gallons of oil & filter, and I also had them replace both the fuel filters. I figured the old diesel fuel must be completely gone now that I have run about 700 gallons of new fuel thru the tank. I wanted the filters replaced prior to them fully clogging and leaving me for dead somewhere in the middle of nowhere. I also wanted them to replace the air filter, but they didn’t have one to fit. The manager mentioned it was an odd size and I would probably need to buy one online. Getting online purchases delivered are not easy when your house moves often.
He mentioned there was a Cummin’s dealer and a Freightliner shop across the street from it on the way back toward Salt Lake. As our coach is built on a Freightliner XCR chassis, I stopped there and asked service about getting one installed. They said it would be about an 8-hour wait. I walked over to the parts department. $110 later I had a very heavy box with an air filter in it, which felt more like it was filled with rocks, weighed orders of magnitude more than any air filter I have ever purchased.
I opened it to see what the heck was inside that box. Turns out it’s the whole thing, metal housing with the air filter mounted inside. No wonder it was so heavy! That’s when I realized it would be a bear for me to install it back at the campground. I scoured the coach for the campground pamphlet as it had lots of ads on it. I started calling the mobile RV mechanics listed. Turns out, none of them work on the chassis, just the house stuff: appliances, plumbing, electrical, etc. One of them gave me the name of the diesel truck shop, where I called and talked to the foreman Ricky. By then it was around noon and he didn’t want to get involved on some lengthy issue on a Friday afternoon. I assured him it would be a simple job. So he said his minimum was a half hour labor, $45. I said I would be right over. I was currently in the queue at Blue Beacon for a wash of the coach.
Once that waste of money was done, I headed over and they had me pull it inside immediately. Ricky had one of his mechanics crawl under it, and I pointed out it was easier to see what was needed from above thru back engine doors. He looked and agreed. Within about 20 minutes, he had the old one off and the new one installed. I went back to the office to pay the bill. Ricky said, “No charge. The mechanic wasn’t doing anything anyway.” Then he said to have a safe trip to Yellowstone. I was shocked. Can’t say that has happened to me before, unless they just looked at something and said they couldn’t do the work or it was a two-second thing.
After that I drove over and filled the tank, squeezing another 100 gallons in the tank for the trip to Yellowstone. I asked Ricky if he knew anyone who would fix my windshield. He gave me the name of the guy they sent glass work to. Called him around 2 pm and he said he would meet me at the RV park when he finished his other jobs. Around 6 pm I called to see if I should still expect him. He said yes, that he was stuck at Guardsman Summit for a bit longer. At 9:45 pm he called and said what about 8:30 the next morning. I agreed. At 8:45 he texted to say he couldn’t make it as he was taking his dad to the emergency room. What can I say to that? So we battened down the hatches and left SLC.
We are in West Yellowstone now, and I am glad to see the crack hasn’t gotten any longer. The insurance company is looking for someone capable of replacing that huge piece of glass.
Footnote: Blue Beacon Truck washes… a true waste of money. The coach was still filthy after I got it back to the campground. They just walk around the coach with spray wands like you see in those coin-operated wash bays. No sponge or brush ever touches the vehicle.
I guess if you offroad in your RV, then it would probably get that mud off.