A timelapse of driving our RV, a Tiffin Allegro Bus motorhome, 255 miles from Coburg, Oregon to our home base near Shelton, Washington (again).
Coburg, Oregon to our home base near Shelton, Washington
We drove our truck from home down to Cummins, then drove our coach back home on the same day; 255 miles (each way), about five hours of driving (each way), from Cummins Coach Care in Coburg, Oregon to our home base near Shelton, Washington… again.
Here’s a map showing our route home, heading north:
An interactive map, with potential stops pinned:
Our coach:
Departing Cummins:
I-5 North:
Oops:
We stopped at the first rest area again, to see if the issue recurs… fortunately it did not; looks like the turbo replacement was the real fix:
Triple trailer:
Exit to I-205 North:
The mountain’s out — Mount Hood:
Leaving Portland:
Mount Hood again:
“Oregon Thanks You; Come Back Soon”; not for a few months, thanks:
Just can’t get enough of Mount Hood:
Closed rest area:
Back to Gee Cee’s Truck Stop again:
This time, we got fuel:
And DEF:
Then we went into their restaurant for dinner:
A long day; getting towards sunset:
Exit towards Shelton:
Shelton:
Our coach at home:
Video: Coburg heading north, then back to Coburg, Oregon motorhome travel timelapse
A timelapse of driving our RV, a Tiffin Allegro Bus motorhome, 113 miles from Cummins Coach Care in Coburg, Oregon towards our our home base, but turned around in Salem when the Check Engine and MIL lights came back on with the same error code.
Coburg heading north, then back to Coburg, Oregon
We drove our coach 113 miles, about two hours of driving, from Cummins Coach Care in Coburg, Oregon towards our our home base, but turned around in Salem when the Check Engine and MIL lights came back on with the same error code.
Here’s a map showing our route, heading north then back south:
An interactive map, with the rest area pinned:
Our coach backing into a Coach Care service bay:
We spent the day in the customer lounge:
Second breakfast at Chick-fil-A:
We parked our truck behind the lounge, and turned on our smaller Bluetti battery, so we could use our truck’s Starlink Wi-Fi (the Wi-Fi in the lounge was not very fast):
Our coach emerging:
Parked for the night:
Doing an engine regen:
Heading out again, full of hope:
We stopped at a rest area, to see if that triggers the issue, as it had before:
Alas, it did:
So we turned around at the next exit, and headed back to Cummins:
We stayed the night again, then had Dutch Bros Coffee for breakfast while they looked at the coach again:
And later, went to the cafe at the nearby truck stop to have breakfast for lunch:
That afternoon, we had more news: the engine’s turbocharger was damaged (which I had suspected based on Facebook posts). The tech showed a scope shot of the damaged turbo:
So, this repair just got way more expensive; about $11k to replace that and the actuator, including labor. Sigh. But at least they finally found the root issue!
We left our coach there, and drove our truck home, while they ordered in the part, and did the work.
BLUETTI AC200PL 2400W 2304Wh solar generator with 350W solar panel
I bought a BLUETTI AC200PL 2400W 2304Wh solar generator with 350W solar panel as a backup power source for our Alaska trip, and other boondocking situations.
Unboxing:
The power station and solar panel:
I store the power station in the basement of our coach:
Video: Shelton, Washington to Coburg, Oregon motorhome travel timelapse
A timelapse of driving our RV, a Tiffin Allegro Bus motorhome, 255 miles from our home base near Shelton, Washington back to Cummins Coach Care in Coburg, Oregon.
Shelton, Washington to Cummins Coach Care in Coburg, Oregon
We drove our coach 255 miles, about five hours of driving, from our home base near Shelton, Washington back to Cummins Coach Care in Coburg, Oregon.
Here’s a map showing our route, heading south:
An interactive map, with potential stops pinned:
On the way:
Rail crossing:
WA-101 South:
“Take Turns Merging When Congested”… yep, that’s how it’s supposed to work; zipper merge, people:
To I-5 South:
Engine fire:
Bump:
A pipe thing… I wonder what it is? ChatGPT thinks it’s a conveyer segment, which seems plausible. Looks like a catwalk and handrail on the right inside:
Gee Cee’s Truck Stop, a favorite stop on I-5:
They have a restaurant and deli:
We had lunch at the restaurant:
Back to our coach:
Train:
Interstate drawbridge between Washington and Oregon:
Entering Oregon:
Welcome to Oregon:
Fremont Bridge:
Portland:
Aerial tram:
Coburg exit, again:
Back to Cummins:
Parked at Cummins:
Power Watchdog smart surge protector
I’ve had a Power Watchdog smart surge protector for years, but I recently upgraded it to the new version, after a campsite pedestal issue partially melted the plug on my old one. This new model adds Wi-Fi support, a more compact form factor, protection for the plug, and built-in display dimming.
Unboxing:
The updated Power Watchdog app, which also lets you turn the power on and off without having the flip the breaker:
A nice improvement is the ability to change the dog face brightness; no need for a dimmer shade sticker anymore:
The Power Watchdog connected:
A nice upgrade.
Video: Coburg, Oregon to Shelton, Washington motorhome travel timelapse
A timelapse of driving our RV, a Tiffin Allegro Bus motorhome, 255 miles from Coburg, Oregon to our home base near Shelton, Washington.
Coburg, Oregon to our home base near Shelton, Washington
We drove our coach 255 miles, about five hours of driving, from Cummins Coach Care in Coburg, Oregon to our home base near Shelton, Washington.
Here’s a map showing our route, heading north:
An interactive map, with potential stops pinned:
Our coach parked at Cummins:
Helpful tip:
Preparing to leave:
Heading to I-5 North:
Roadworks:
Exit to I-205:
Entering Washington:
Closed rest area:
Bump:
Fuel stop:
Soon after the fuel stop, about three hours (200 miles) after leaving Cummins, the Check Engine and Malfunction Indicator lights came back on, with the same SPN 102 FMI 18 fault:
At that point, we decided to just continue home. The exit to Shelton:
City limits of Shelton:
Welcome to Shelton:
The SPN 102 FMI 18 fault code on the dash:
Back to Cummins after the weekend!