Tow-Ready

Saturday, 22 January 2011

First off … I see we have some new followers.  Thanks for joining us.  Haven’t been posting for a while as I haven’t had anything to write about on this blog.  That’s not to say I’ve been silent … followers of our non-RV travel blog can attest to that.

Last November, we brought the 2010 RV season to a close with a “roughing-it-not-so-smoothly” adventure at Pohick Bay Regional Park.  (You can read all about it here.)  Shortly thereafter, we took our Phaeton into Restless Wheels for a check-up to determine the source of our problems.

As anticipated, the issue was a fried control board.  So, that was replaced.  While they had the vehicle, we asked them to take care of a few other things, including winterizing it.  Then, Mui had the bright idea of having the towing system installed while the Phaeton was still at Restless Wheels.  We asked for and got a quote, and an order was placed for all the parts and pieces.

Long story short, first our Caribbean cruise and then the holidays intruded into the schedule.  So, it wasn’t until today that we were able return to Restless Wheels to bring the Phaeton home.  Ooops, not so fast.

Mui’s smiling; he wants to bring the phaeton home.

We picked up the keys, and went out to the motor home to test the levelers and the slides.  First, we turned on the generator to let it run since it had been idle for longer than optimum.  Then we turned on both furnaces.  With the outside temp hovering around 19F (-7C), the heat flowing out of the vents was most welcome.  Soon it was cozy inside the Phaeton.

Finally, it was time to test the levelers.  Mui turned on the ignition and hit the button.  Everything looked to be working fine — until the rear driver’s side leveler refused to come down.  Oh no!  The technician came over and started poking around.  Alarms went off and were silenced.  Levelers went up and down, but not without problems.  Nothing to do but take it into the shop for more diagnostics.

So, onward we moved to learn how to set up the tow.  The CR-V was pulled up behind the Phaeton and another technician demonstrated the process of hooking and unhooking the toad.  I had the video camera out to tape it all for posterity, but the batteries didn't survive the excessively cold temperatures.  Oh well!

Mui was a quick learner and was soon flying solo …

For those interested in the nitty-gritty, we chose the ReadyBrute™ Elite with a Demco base plate, and of course, a break-a-way system in the event of an emergency.  The 8,000-pound (3,600 kg) towing capacity is twice what we need, so we should be good to go.

We already have a call from Restless Wheels that the diagnostics are completed and the levelers are operating normally.  I’ll report back when we go to pick up the Phaeton next week.  We’ll be towing for the first time, so keep your fingers crossed for us.