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Van life seems cool on social media.. but in reality its pretty shit.

It is so shit.

So is living in a caravan.

Indeed

Not sure on what planet living in a van would be something I'd actually want to do.

It is so shit.

So is living in a caravan.

Indeed

Not sure on what planet living in a van would be something I'd actually want to do.

I think its romanticised on social media. Personally being in a camper van drives me nuts after about 3-5 days, less if its hot.

The parking is shit, so you end up parking in shit locations that are convenient for camper vans.




This guy spend nearly 100k USD to convert a bus and did a lot of the work himself. The inside is relatively nice with decent space.... Their bathroom is pretty good.

Parking is a nightmare, and they end up deciding where to go based on where they can access / park.

This post has been edited by EsotericSatire: Mar 20 2021, 13:44

The other problem about "van life" is that roving muggers will find you. Modern America is a lot more dangerous than how it was 30 years ago when there was a lot more "romance" about RV living.

The other problem about "van life" is that roving muggers will find you.

Wat? Has the US gotten even worse over the past 10 years?

The other problem about "van life" is that roving muggers will find you. Modern America is a lot more dangerous than how it was 30 years ago when there was a lot more "romance" about RV living.

Wat? Has the US gotten even worse over the past 10 years?

I think that he has an active imagination.
America's always been shit, but depending on where you are this is sort of boogeyman stuff.

My car's low on antifreeze suddenly. Not sure if I'm leaking, but I think I am. It was a little on the low side last month and today I noticed it was well below the "low" marker and my engine was running quite warm (but not yet overheating).

Got some more; might add some dye or something but I'll research before doing that. I'm pretty sure I've replaced every hose as well as the radiator and AC condenser at this point, so I'm a bit annoyed.

Also I can smell gasoline sometimes when backing up, but only when I have a near-full tank, so that's another exciting mystery to solve. I tried swapping the gas cap to no avail, but I'm not sure if the threading is actually holding it right because I can see it's a bit bent. I hope it's just something stupid easy like that and not a hole in my tank or an inconvenient hose or something. I replaced the fuel lines three years ago I think.

I'm at 293K miles now (and the odo wasn't moving when I got the car due to a broken gear which I replaced as well as cracked solder joints on the driving motor, both of which I fixed, so it might have actually hit 300K by now).

This post has been edited by dragontamer8740: Mar 22 2021, 08:12

My car's low on antifreeze suddenly. Not sure if I'm leaking, but I think I am. It was a little on the low side last month and today I noticed it was well below the "low" marker and my engine was running quite warm (but not yet overheating).

Get a pressure tester, pump it up and leave it for a few hours.

Pray that it's a hose and not the head.

Could also be the radiator.

Also if you haven't replaced every hose they could be leaking when the engine is at temperature because they expand.

Had to diagnose something similar a few years ago.

EDDY:

If there's no visible leak after you pressure test it and lose cooling system pressure, you may want to check your oil to see if it looks like chocolate milk as a result of the coolant mixing with it.

EDDY THE SECOND:

I hope it doesn't look like choccy milk because if it does the head is coming off that motor

This post has been edited by Mags_: Mar 22 2021, 08:59

If it is the head, then I have two extra blocks and heads, thankfully.

Still, I hope it's not. It's dark now, though.

I've met a few guys who live in either a coverted sprinter, or a 5th wheel camper for more than not. They travel to work, and end up basically having 2 mortages (3500 to 5500 pickup with 5th wheel, 5th wheel camper, insuance). I don't get it, but it's more common in tradesmen than you'd think. Tour the country hopping between big job sites; skip town when the overtime dries up.

Wat? Has the US gotten even worse over the past 10 years?

No, some parts of the USA have gotten better. Some got worse or much worse (long term forecasts become more dire). Many are unchanged like my HOA neighborhood if you don't consider our sole "problem house".

And some cities try different things like shifting taxes to provide partial Reparations now that Biden is power and if these local projects work, maybe the federal gov't will sponsor these partial Reparations all over the country as a start. It will require localities to shift taxes into paying Reparations though.
[www.nbcnews.com] https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/chicag...s-vote-n1260296

I think that he has an active imagination.

Of course.

I've met a few guys who live in either a coverted sprinter, or a 5th wheel camper for more than not. They travel to work, and end up basically having 2 mortages (3500 to 5500 pickup with 5th wheel, 5th wheel camper, insuance). I don't get it, but it's more common in tradesmen than you'd think. Tour the country hopping between big job sites; skip town when the overtime dries up.

Dayum. I looked at the prices and those things are at a premium.

The top models use a ton a of wood panels, it makes them look like older grand parent houses.

Wood must be premium. In the 200 -300k models they feel like a small old house.

They feel very 70-80s for some reason.

You probably have to pay ultra bucks to get ones that are modern stylish.


I was looking at the 2020 editions and they look like the 90s.

Maybe that is the rule, you target the fashion 30 years ago as that is the target audience.

This post has been edited by EsotericSatire: Mar 25 2021, 10:34

I lived in a 1970's Jayco caravan for a while and it had wood paneling.

It was just really shitty wood paneling.

I lived in a 1970's Jayco caravan for a while and it had wood paneling.

It was just really shitty wood paneling.

Yeah I stayed in a Jayco that was mdf and wood laminate / wallpaper.

LPG Fridges seem like magic to me, even though they are kinda shit. The old ones used way too much gas. Apparently they are fairly efficient now.

Fridges that run off both DC and LPG are cool.

Update: Changed oil today, was still pretty clean; definitely not cloudy.

All is well.

Scrubbing out mould that was growing inside my instrument cluster with a toothbrush and rubbing alcohol. Since the clear plastic window really doesn't want to pop out i'm awkwardly sliding a toothbrush into the cluster from behind after removing it from the dash and scrubbing with ~90% iso. It's cleaning up but god damn is it annoying.

Thankfully it's just four torx screws to get the cluster out, though. And they're pretty easy to get at.

This post has been edited by dragontamer8740: Apr 7 2021, 18:14

Sorry about the bump, been a while.

Check out 12:20 in this video


Also earlier in the video is a Pinto that caught fire on the racetrack

Thats my attitude at racing events.

Thats my attitude at racing events.

Actually I linked the wrong video. I think it was a clipboard mishap. Still at 12:20.


This post has been edited by dragontamer8740: Jun 19 2021, 01:58

Had to replace the fuel tank, pump and sender on my Volvo.

It sat for so long in storage that moisture caused the entire inside of the tank to oxidize.

The sender unit nearly fell apart when I pulled it out it was so rusty.

At least I found out why the motor was surging/stuttering.

Also fuck pulling the dashes out of old Volvos.

Had to replace the fuel tank, pump and sender on my Volvo.

It sat for so long in storage that moisture caused the entire inside of the tank to oxidize.

The sender unit nearly fell apart when I pulled it out it was so rusty.

At least I found out why the motor was surging/stuttering.

Also fuck pulling the dashes out of old Volvos.

I had to replace the sender in my 240, too. And I smell gasoline whenever I drive it after refuelling until I've used around a gallon. Pretty sure it's not the filler cap since I've replaced it with a spare locking one I had and nothing changed. So I get to look forward to finding out if I need a new hose, a new clamp, or a new tank now myself.

The dash cluster's pretty easy to pull out in my '93 240. I'm guessing it's complicated by mechanical linkages (cable speedometer) in yours? Post-'85 (or maybe '86?) all the gauges became electronic in the 200 series. Or did you break some plastic pulling off the cover panels on the right hand side (assuming you're talking about a 200 series)?

If yours has the square shaped instruments in the cluster, and you need an NOS mph speedometer for any reason, I can hook you up, btw.

If it's a 700 or 900 series I am almost totally clueless about them because I haven't sat inside one in around 16 years.

BTW my car started indicating high coolant temperature the other week. Looks like [www.240turbo.com] Volvo made a "faker" circuit in the late 80's to stop the gauge from fluctuating a lot e.g. when stopped in traffic to reduce the number of complaints they got or something. Anyway, I slapped my dash cluster and lo and behold it's reading properly again.

This post has been edited by dragontamer8740: Jun 19 2021, 16:25