Getting Our New Baby Home
by John Cesari
Picking a Travco
I try to stay pretty close to my money so purchasing a Travco was in part
an exercise in frugality. I have found that sometimes if you purchase a vehicle
that needs enough little things you can really get the price down. The flip side
is finding a vehicle that has had a great deal of work done to it recently to
the point of exceeding its value.
After going round and round I decided to purchase a low dollar vehicle
(big surprise here seeing how I paid $100 for my current automobile) and plan to
make improvements on my own. A couple Travcos went on Ebay in the $3500 range
but I stayed out of the bidding. I found a fairly decent 1970 with 106 k miles
needing some brakes and right windshield for $2500 obo. I knew he would take
less though. I was close to buying it however I held off and stumbled across the
’72 from Massachusetts. It seemed
very solid and I liked the fact that it had a recent brake job; some interior
work and only had 50 k miles. After some negotiation I got it for $2000. I was
the fourth owner however it had been in the same family for 29 years.
Based on the age of these Travcos I planned to go through the motor and
transmission and replace all the seals and pumps.
My plan is to have a have a very dependable Cross Country Classic.
When looking at any vehicle, do not hesitate
to have another pair of eyes look it over with you. They may see many things you
have missed.
Do not hesitate to ask the owner about minor details or their history
with the vehicle.
Be
prepared to spend time shopping. Four hours of driving may yield a diamond in
the rough it certainly did for me.
Very
few prices are firm. If you can’t reach a price, hang the ad next to your
phone and give them a call in a couple days, weeks or months.
Let
the sellers know what plans you have for the vehicle; I have been given some
great deals because the previous owner wanted it to go to a good home.
Finally,
listen to your gut feelings, do not be afraid to walk away from a deal that
looks good just because something feels wrong.
Getting Home Safely
Life
really is a crapshoot. It doesn’t matter if you are walking to the corner
store for a loaf of bread or getting on the space shuttle, anything can happen.
Pessimist would say, “If it can go wrong it will” while optimist follow the,
“ it will all work out” mentality.
I follow Johns Law,
prepare for the worst but hope for the best. That is the logic I followed when I
set out on my 225-mile maiden voyage.
My Travco had new brakes, shoes, wheel cylinders and
lines in the last couple years and also a rebuilt carburetor.
The tires and steering proved to be strong.
The vehicle had been making annual trips to cape Cod since 1973 so
nothing was frozen up. However on the down side this rig still had the original
exhausted (some of it anyway) and it appears the tranny fluid had never been
changed.
A friend of mine, Jerry Sherman used to race vintage
racecars back in the 60’s and 70’s. I would accompany him on some of these
outings and learned a great deal. Despite being quite wealthy Jerry did not put
much into his cars or ancient Chevy tow truck from year to year, however he made
one thing very clear to me, “Tires, brakes, steering and suspension must be
100%”. I remember for years his 1948 Talbot Grand Prix car had a weak
transmission and a very leaky sump but always came out with excellent tires and
brakes.
Do not skimp on tires, brakes, steering
and suspension. Check these components frequently and replace as necessary. A
blown transmission will not kill you however a dropped tie rod will!
In a perfect world I would have taken a long weekend
and gone completely through the vehicle before setting off for Vermont. I do not
live in a perfect world so here is how I played the odds.
I loaded up 4 very large plastic tubs with several
hundred pounds of tools and spare parts. I hate getting towed so my packing was
geared toward being able to fix most minor system failures. Here is a sample of
what I brought.
Battery, gas tank, gas cans, electric fuel
pump,
Filters, antifreeze, radiator sealer, brake, fuel and
Transmission lines, radiator hose repair kit, grease,
Dry gas, points, spark plug wires, belts
Mechanics wire, duct tape, packing tape, friction tape
A large assortment of nuts, bolts, metal strapping.
A friend took me south and once we loaded up the Cross
Country Classic with my supplies he followed me a couple miles to the nearest
gas station and then took off for Boston, leaving me with no chase vehicle. Once
I got North of Boston he would be able to follow me home.
After gassing up I drove to a parts store and bought a
transmission filter and gasket. I also stocked up on fluid, oil and an oil
filter. I greased my u joints, front end, topped off the rear and added some dry
gas (NOT CARB CLEANER!!!!!). I checked the other fluid levels and started out on
my first 20- mile leg at about 45 mph.
It looked like rain and I
knew my vintage wiper blades would not amount to much so I cleaned the
windshields and did a good job treating them with Rain-X. I strongly recommend
using this product on every piece of glass in all your vehicles.
60 mph = 88 feet per second. 1/3 of
a second = the length of your vehicle.
If Rain-X decreases your reaction
time by even a fraction of a second it may mean the difference between rear
ending someone and stopping short. Plus it greatly reduces eye fatigue.
The first leg went about as expected.
I barely had any exhaust left so it sounded like a racecar. Worn out
shocks and egg shaped tires gave quite a special ride.
I really tried to keep it slow and steady because it is much easier to
notice problems and respond to them at forty then at sixty.
After the first 20 miles I pulled into a large
shopping center with a Target and Home Depot (I had scouted out my route and had
a good idea where I was going to make my planned stops). I parked over on the
edge of the lot and after buying a 42-quart under bed plastic storage container
with a top for $5 at Target I changed my transmission and motor oil.
If I am going to work on
a vehicle in a parking lot I always go in and buy something before I start, then
I leave the shopping cart with my purchases next to my rig, this will help to
keep you from being hassled by Johnny law or the mall cops.
Changing transmission
fluid, filter and pan gasket is not really a big deal. Simply place a big pan
underneath and then remove the bolts leaving a few in place to hold the pan up
and to have it tilted back so most of the fluid drains out the rear of the pan.
The difficult part is to get the other 50 % or so of the oil that is still in
the transmission and oil cooler out. I remove my oil cooler lines and with a
little air pressure, push that oil through. Then drop the pan all the way out,
remove the three screws holding the filter in place. After cleaning the pan,
reverse the procedure for reassembly. Add
approximately 2/3 of the amount you drained and start the vehicle. Top off
according to manufactures recommendations, warm and in neutral.
I found almost no metal or signs of water but the oil
was kind of mucky. While I let things drain down I checked brakes and wheel
bearings for heat and found none. I also checked my alternator; power steering
pump and water pump pulleys for excessive looseness or heat.
I am having a drain plug
installed in the pan so I can easily drain out the fluid. I plan to change out
my engine and transmission oil every 500-1000 miles until stuff looks clean
again. I am also placing a magnet in the transmission pan and outside the engine
oil filter to capture metal.
Tires and brakes will
warm up however they should be fairly even at least on the same axle. Rear ends
will also heat up especially when the ambient air temperature is high. It is
worth checking these items from time to time so you can get some idea what is
normal.
After
greasing everything again I did some visual checks and decided it was time to
get moving. The 42-quart container fit nicely in the side box so I did not have
to mess with the used oil. I did one final walk around and headed north.
Now I was on interstate. I drove at 50 MPH to start
with and every ten miles I would add a little to my cruising speed. Occasionally
when traffic was light behind me I would do a brake test, not slam on the brakes
at 60, but controlled slowing from 60 down to 40. I would then coast a little to
see if I had a dragging brake. When I did lane changes or drove down ramps I
paid special attention to my speed and the vehicles reactions to my commands and
the road.
Scan gauges constantly
because driving a hot motor or on low oil pressure for 30 seconds is one thing,
but for 5 minutes is entirely different.
 Before
long I was at 495, the beltway around Boston. I could go around Boston at the
cost of some 30 plus miles or I could head right up 93 through “The Big
Dig”. The Travco was running cool and smooth; I opted for the straight-ahead
route. It was about 2:00 pm so I hoped I would stay ahead of the worst traffic.
The Big Dig is a mess with detours, ramps moved, lots
of merges and temporary roadbed. I just rode along slow and steady, trying to
stay in the middle lane when traffic was light but taking the right lane when
things got busy. For much of this stretch there was no shoulder so if I had any
trouble I would block a lane of a highly traveled highway. Once in Boston proper
I hit stop and go traffic and notice how smoothly the torque-flit handled it.
The shifts were crisp and at the right moment.
Lady luck continued to smile on me. Before I knew it I
was north of Boston and the traffic was opening up, plus I had a breakdown lane
again and that allowed me to relax some. Then a guy passes me beeping and
yelling that my rear cargo was open. I check my mirror and sure enough the
generator compartment door was flapping in the breeze. I did not have a
generator in there but a spare gas tank and two full five-gallon gas cans so I
was in a hurry to secure the problem.
I
am a professional driver. I have driven every type of truck, doing so I have
racked up over a million miles. I constantly scan the following way:
Windshield, Gauges,
Windshield, Mirrors, Windshield, Gauges, Windshield,
Mirrors………………………….
That is the way I learned
to drive and it is habit now, but after that guy signaled me I could not
remember the last time I had checked my right mirror, perhaps seconds before or
maybe I was DAYDREAMING…Bad John!!!!
As luck would have it, just ahead was an emergency
pull-off area. I pulled off and saw that the locking latch had just slide down
into the unlocked position. I firmly tied my cans in place and relocked the
door.
I am going to make a
safety latch from light cable so this door will only open 6 inches if the lock
fails. When you unlock the door you will just have to reach in and unsnap the
cable.
Pulling back into traffic went easily, I continued on
for another 30 or so miles and I found myself at the New Hampshire Welcome
Center. I pulled off and found a shady spot to park. Despite a rather urgent
need to visit the men’s room I did a careful walk around checking tires,
brakes and looking for leaks of any kind. Once I was satisfied the Travco was
sound I then left it to take care of business. I called home and reported my
estimated ETA. I checked in with my friend in Boston who was going to be
following me the rest of the way. We agreed on two additional spots where I
would stop during the last 125 miles of my trip.
A little planning goes a
long way when traveling in groups. Cell phones and pagers are great tools
however it does not hurt to have a plan in the event you get separated or
someone breaks down.
Once again I saddled up and
headed north. At this rate I should be home in a 3 hours. I had some tollbooths
coming up and the driver’s side window was stuck shut. I fiddled around and
got the window behind the driver open so I could reach back when I had to. I was
getting brave and actually hit 70 mph in a few spots. Traffic was getting light
and after I made it through the tollbooth I was ready for something to eat.
I pulled off at one of
preplanned stops and after my standard walk around and check stuff drill I
headed into a store for a bite. A trucker stopped me to ask about The Classic
after I told him what I knew he asked if I was leaking anything, I responded
that water was dripping here and there.
After a quick snack I
headed north for my last 50 miles. I had tried to break my trip into 50-60 mile
segments seeing how that was what the vehicle was used to. Once I got rolling it
started raining very hard and I was thankful for the Rain-X.
An hour later I was backing
into my driveway with my children jumping around and my wife, CJ, helping guide
me into a tight spot next to the house. I plugged into the house and turned on a
small space heater and some lights so the children could explore the interior.
Later I would learn that my
fuel pump was gone and the lines had cracked open. I really don’t think The
Classic had another 20 miles in it before I would have been doing roadside
tinkering.
All
in the entire first trip had gone very well.
Why
a Travco?
1)
A sister who lives 3000 miles away.
2)
3 young children who want to see the USA.
3)
Too old to sleep on the ground and too cheap to get a motel.
4)
People smile when they see one.
5)
I enjoy tinkering and have more mechanical ability than money.
6)
Why drive aluminum sided box when you can drive a Travco.
7)
Two words, “Dodge 413”.
8)
Fixing up my 1957 Flexible
Starliner was just too big a project.
9)
10 mpg.
10) Classy old vehicles should be driven and
enjoyed, not parked in some hayfield to die.
Back
To Trail Tales
| 
