Vacation trip is ending up terrible

[biggcrisp]

Something doesn't jive with the story.

The rig is in/at a shop. Why in the world is the shop unable to get the rig repaired and back on the road. One or two days should have been plenty of time. Three days to a week and the entire driveline could have been replaced.

The OP is being played. Barring the vehicle being totaled in an accident, I'm calling bs on any repair taking this long.

[biggcrisp]

And another thing...leaving my rv 2,700 miles from the house -- only to have to go back and get it. Come on!

The "shop" can run the snot out of that thing and figure it out. The situation makes no sense at all to me.

[aether_one]

Originally Posted by biggcrisp

Something doesn't jive with the story.

The rig is in/at a shop. Why in the world is the shop unable to get the rig repaired and back on the road. One or two days should have been plenty of time. Three days to a week and the entire driveline could have been replaced.

The OP is being played. Barring the vehicle being totaled in an accident, I'm calling bs on any repair taking this long.

Intermittent problems and logical approach to troubleshooting aren't as easy as you want to make them out to be.

[hoosierrun]

Originally Posted by tfryman

Intermittent problems and logical approach to troubleshooting aren't as easy as you want to make them out to be.

Part of the problem is being in a small town in Montana. I heard that they are down to 1 Mercedes specialist, and like I said before, there are Fed Ex Sprinters waiting to get repaired. That is peoples income. I'm pretty sure there were a number of days when my vehicle never even got looked at.

.... and I agree with the intermittent issue being very tough to diagnose. After the first repair, we drove probably 150 miles before it started acting up again.
My problem with Mercedes is that they built a complex machine that may run beautifully 90%+ of the time, but with minimal capability of onboard diagnostics to identify an intermittent failure. Had this been a Mercedes car, I would have had a new replacement vehicle by now.

[biggcrisp]

You mentioned a fuel analysis. This is a good idea, however, it doesn't take the exon mobile corporation to drain and refill 15 gallons of diesel. You, as a consumer, are being abused imo.

You are under warranty yes?

It starts, runs drives, and dies. I would limp it out of that dealers service area and find a better shop. If it runs and dies. It is traceable -- it just needs to be ran and diagnosed. A good shop wouldn't have you sitting all summer long.

[hoosierrun]

Originally Posted by biggcrisp

You mentioned a fuel analysis. This is a good idea, however, it doesn't take the exon mobile corporation to drain and refill 15 gallons of diesel. You, as a consumer, are being abused imo.

You are under warranty yes?

It starts, runs drives, and dies. I would limp it out of that dealers service area and find a better shop. If it runs and dies. It is traceable -- it just needs to be ran and diagnosed. A good shop wouldn't have you sitting all summer long.

One thing I didn't mention...
A couple of times when this thing stalled off to the side of the road, I was in a place when there was no cell phone service. When you are in Montana and some other areas in the great NW, you travel at your own risk.

At my age, I won't cross the State in a non dependable vehicle. Heck, you even have to pay attention to your fuel gauge because stations can be far away.

Also, yes... it is under warranty; less than 1 year old. They are going to pay my expenses, either voluntarily, or at the order of a court. I'm keeping logs and receipts.

[avid_dk]

Any diesel owner needs to keep every fuel receipt as well. It should be annotated with the mileage. I know for a fact that VW claimed owners misfueled which led to problems. I had every fuel receipt for both my Sprinter motorhome and VW Jetta. My fleet is gasoline only now.

[TMan59]

Originally Posted by biggcrisp

You mentioned a fuel analysis. This is a good idea, however, it doesn't take the exon mobile corporation to drain and refill 15 gallons of diesel. You, as a consumer, are being abused imo.

You are under warranty yes?

It starts, runs drives, and dies. I would limp it out of that dealers service area and find a better shop. If it runs and dies. It is traceable -- it just needs to be ran and diagnosed. A good shop wouldn't have you sitting all summer long.

I just have to say I cannot believe the negativity you brought into this thread.
These folks have, and continue to have a great attitude in a very challenging situation. Good on them.
They are in Montana.
The freaking rig dies unexpectedly.
They have had enough being stuck on the side of the road.
It is an intermittent (meaning it doesn't do it very often) problem.

Saying they are "being played" is so far over the line I don't think you can look back far enough to even see it.

[MTSam]

I'm maybe gonna get flamed to a crisp for this -- so against (possible) better judgement here it goes...

While Montana is certainly no third world country, it's far from any other state.

You do all things at your own risk.


There is more area off cell phone towers than on - heads up, this includes Yellowstone and Glacier.

Most of us actually like it this way.

Many homesteads don't run with electricity coming in *gasp*

Internet?? Hold on folks, most don't have this 'luxury' and business's do not rely on it... seriously very little fiber optic and sat isn't worth it to most. Furthermore, cattle ranchers still do their books in the bars with paper and pencils after a sale. Truth! AG is the way of life here...

Happily we live this way. We must be self reliant . It's not a lot different than the 'bush' of AK. But because we are in the contiguous 48 you expect us to be like every where else?! We aren't. Don't wanna be. Life is different here. Things take longer. ...

It's also incredibly expensive to visit, let alone live here. Don't assume, don't judge. We are happily different this way. Don't like not having instant gratification? Don't come here, there's not much of it by any aspect.

Not looking to start a war, flame throwing, or send this thread a different direction... assumptions always have the ability to show you know...

[hoosierrun]

Originally Posted by MTSam

I'm maybe gonna get flamed to a crisp for this -- so against (possible) better judgement here it goes...

While Montana is certainly no third world country, it's far from any other state.

You do all things at your own risk.


There is more area off cell phone towers than on - heads up, this includes Yellowstone and Glacier.

Most of us actually like it this way.

Many homesteads don't run with electricity coming in *gasp*

Internet?? Hold on folks, most don't have this 'luxury' and business's do not rely on it... seriously very little fiber optic and sat isn't worth it to most. Furthermore, cattle ranchers still do their books in the bars with paper and pencils after a sale. Truth! AG is the way of life here...

Happily we live this way. We must be self reliant . It's not a lot different than the 'bush' of AK. But because we are in the contiguous 48 you expect us to be like every where else?! We aren't. Don't wanna be. Life is different here. Things take longer. ...

It's also incredibly expensive to visit, let alone live here. Don't assume, don't judge. We are happily different this way. Don't like not having instant gratification? Don't come here, there's not much of it by any aspect.

Not looking to start a war, flame throwing, or send this thread a different direction... assumptions always have the ability to show you know...

I think it is great that there are still places like this in the lower 48! As I mentioned before, I like the friendly patient people here. Not too much stress here. People go about their business. Not too much talk about political BS. We were actually surprised when my wife's smartphone had no 4G in Helena (State capital) or most of Missoula. No Gas Buddy app, no AAA app, no smartphone screen tops apps of any kind. Motel charges for local calls, Internet and cable TV comes and goes. It is like a step back 20 to 50 years.
We did the drive up Cold Creek Rd before the fires started. There are lots of homes off the grid. My wife saw a golden eagle (first ever for us), a large and beautiful bird indeed. That same ride we saw two moose. Lots of fisherman and beautiful rivers. I know it's Summertime, but it is really beautiful here, especially off the beaten path. I suspect it gets bleak in the wintertime though.
Sam, we also went to Garnet Ghost town, a well restored old silver mining village. Montana does a great job in preservation of history. Best of all, it is not full of typical tourist trap shops. 99% is a true replication or preservation of what it was in the early 1900's.

I have also met some interesting characters here. There are preppers and survivalists, along with a few who had a tarnished early life who are trying to start over. Last Saturday I was hiking up in the Rattlesnake NRA and struck up a conversation with a middle age guy. He knew exactly where I lived in Florida and said he moved here from Clearwater, FL. I asked what brought him to MT and it pretty much came out that he had left the Scientologists in Clearwater to start a new life on his own with his family. I am amazed by some of the stories I have heard here.

One thing I must admit. There are times that I feel like about the oldest person in town . There are many college students here with the University. It is good to get out and see how others live and cope.

Of course my time in Missoula and other parts of MT will never be forgotten. I can't say everything was a negative experience with the broke down RV, I just wish my stay here was under different circumstances.

[memtb]

MTSam, Most folks on this (or any other forum) cannot grasp the concept of the closest Wal-Mart being almost 90 miles away. We're over 500,000 people here in Wyoming and getting waaay too crowded. I only wish we had a few more trees, then I couldn't see my neighbors. Though it would be a looong rifle shot!

[kyfarmboy]

Sure the Service would like to see it on the road ASAP and are doing the best they can
Too many engineers building a better mouse trap. It's great when it all works. But Lord help us when it doesn't
Getting an attitude, never helped nobody.
Life is good (with a few bad moments) [emoji12]

[MTSam]

Morning, came in to see how chared I was lol. Thanks hoosier, I was irritated that it was said things weren't jiving in your thread.
Memtb, isn't that the dang truth!! I've been here 20 yrs and the growth is tough to stomach. Trees are one of the things I treasure most. Walmart's being 90 miles away, and having EMPTY SHELVES after the drive is common place. I often go in and it's like we are facing what others would be familiar with if a natural disaster would be pending- hurricane to snowstorms (east coast style). It's just part of life here, an acceptance others can't fathom. Nice to hear you know 'the life' and know I'm genuine in my comments.

We've got great folks here for the most part, just like any where else.

Another thought as I listen to the radio this am, we've lost 400,000 + acres in one fire. Fences continue to be cut to free horses and cattle. There's also a couple fires near you, Hoosier, in Lolo national forest. Many of our folks are volunteer fire fighters, could also be they're in the mountains fighting.

Btw, yea cell phones at the capital have gotten better. Lol We just don't live tied to such things as much as others. It's a great thing to not be tethered. Takes some folks getting use to when you end up stuck as you all experienced. But like I said, we have more patience when cars to cattle block the road.

You're doing a great job keeping your chin up!

Unless they've changed something I've had friends load cars in Shelby onto Amtrak. Stations are small, and trains are never ever on time. But once your on your good to go.

Finally -- one of the coolest things with Amtrak out here, if you can walk thru a field in waist high wheat to the tracks, even though you won't see a house, barn, etc anywhere near by or even far off - you can hail the train like a taxi. Life here is differently grand!

[TheOldMan76]

I sat here and read through this whole thing, and I'm intrigued! Please finish up and give us the outcome.