| Trip Report [message #262883] |
Fri, 26 September 2014 22:59  |
mrgmc3
Messages: 210
Registered: September 2013
Location: W Washington
Karma:
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Senior Member |
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Trip report
We purchased our '78 Kingsley in Southern California September '13. We looked at several coaches and settled on this 1-family owned, 43k mile California original. Spent the following 6 months getting it roadworthy as it had been sitting for 3 years. Tires, hoses, brakes, cooler hoses, tune-up were the main focus. There were some things that I could not accomplish easily so we drove it in May from OC to Fremont and Applied. Jim and the crew replaced all the fuel lines, replaced the front wheel bearings, ball joints and aligned it. They also converted it to R143a.
We set off in June to head east and ran into pretty bad vapor lock on a 95F day in Sacramento, so we headed back to Applied and had them install a low pressure fuel pump (it's a carbureted 403). We returned a couple weeks later, headed out and found the cooling system to be inadequate climbing I-80 to Donner Summit. It still had the 35 year old OE radiator, and was generally ok except the coolant temp would not stabilize on those 6% grades. So we parked it in Reno and ordered an aluminum radiator. I also thought it best to install a HD fan clutch and high flow Al water pump while I was at it. Problem solved.... Oh and found an outer CV boot ripped while I was under the coach installing the rad. In know it didn't leave JimK like that and was thankful that I caught it within a couple hundred miles. The joint looked good, so I replaced the boot and the drive axle bolts.
So finally we left Reno on Sept 3rd and headed east. Stopped at Bonneville, Salt Lake City, headed up through Wyoming and stayed in Spearfish, SD. Visited Sturgis and of course Wall Drug. After departing Reno it was an uneventful 1800 mile trip. Ran the cruise control and dash air as needed. Our speeds ranged from 60-70 with an average somewhere in the middle. Our fuel economy was;
Reno to Elko - 8.3
Elko to Salt Lake - 10.1
Salt Lake to Rawlins - 8.8
Rawlins to Spearfish - 8.9
Spearfish to Sioux Falls -10.6
For an average to that point of 9.3 mpg. I have not filled back up since arrival.
Chris Geils - Twin Cities / W Wa
1978 26' Kingsley w/ very few mods; PD9040, aux trans cooler, one repaint in stock colors, R134a, Al rad, Alcoas, 54k mi
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