Michael Maskalans <mike-lists@tepidcola.com> wrote:
[...]
: Thoughts?
: Jon? Tom? (whom I have yet to hear from and will call tomorrow) Anyone
: Else?
Some thoughts that come to mind:
Although I can certainly appreicate the desire to get the truck
running again, I think it may be a bit risky to do the transmission
service and assume all is well after some local testing - Tom would
have to fly back out, and drive home. 800 miles is a long way, and
if anything does happen (not out of the question given that the truck
was completely submerged in water) Tom will be stuck out in unfamiliar
territory and will need to figure out how to get his truck home with
no place to store it and only professional towing companies and/or
renting a U-haul truck & trailer to turn to. A very expensive
scenario, in either case. Of course, Tom could fly out and everything
*might* work fine and get him home, but a plane ticket and a transmission
flush/service are going to cost more than renting a U-haul trailer.
I would rather see Tom put on a few thousand miles locally than
have him head out into strange territory in an unknown entity.
I guess the way I would look at it is for a known, relatively
minor fee (u-haul trailer rental), we know for sure we can get
Tom's truck back to him where he can work on it as his time and
finances allow. Although there is a chance we could service the
transmission ourselves and get the truck running, it would end
up being more expensive than trailering and introduces the potential
for considerable expenses should the truck happen to break while
driving home.
Regarding the tow bar, I would much rather tow a truck on
a trailer than use a towbar. Drivetrain issues for the towed
truck notwithstanding, when you are using a tow bar, you'd be
towing around 4,000lbs of dead weight. You'll accelerate better,
but when it comes time to stop, you've essentially doubled the weight
of your truck while having the same brake power as always. With
a trailer, you might be towing 6,000lbs, but a trailer will have
some sort of braking system (electric or hydraulic) so the
additional braking requirements of the tow vehicle are greatly
reduced, even though it is pulling more weight - the trailer
is doing a great deal of the braking for you.
If cost to Tom is a prohibiting factor, I think that him driving
it home would actually end up being more expensive. I think that
renting a U-haul trailer and towing it out would be the safest,
fastest, and least expensive method. Oh, speaking of expenses, I for
one would be willing to kick in some money to help offset some of
the cost of the trailer rental and Mike's gas.
---Jon-
.---- Jon Steiger ------ jon@dakota-truck.net or jon@jonsteiger.com ------. | I'm the: AOPA, DoD, EAA, NMA, NRA, SPA, USUA. Rec & UL Pilot - SEL | | 70 Cuda, 90 Dak 'vert, 92 Ram 4x4, 96 Dak, 96 Intruder 1400, 96 FireFly | `------------------------------------------ http://www.jonsteiger.com ----'
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