102,000 miles - towing begins

i've had a curt trailer hitch installed on the continual car.  it's there to tow a very small harbor freight trailer with a tongue extension.  and the reason all this stuff is there is so i can start towing a kayak (and the reason i'm getting that is my intention is to boat the length of the MS river in the medium future).

i chose this hitch because it was:

• in stock
• bearing good online reviews
• more highly recommended by the seller (then again, he had it in stock and didn't have to order a new one)
• didn't require drilling of the car frame

including installation (which also involved bringing the electrics to the back of the car), the hitch was around $400.  i'll be adding that number to my TVC since the apparatus essentially a part of the car now.

to me, the hitch feels a bit pricey, but it's evened out by the amazing deal i got on my trailer.  the sophisticated version of an erector set package was on sale for $180 and i was able to score an additional 20% discount (using a coupon from my entertainment book, of all places), for a total that's a touch more than $140.

compare that to what i paid for a tongue extension (essentially a single piece of a stop sign pole): $100.

when i asked my brother why the tongue was so expensive, he said it's about the price you'd expect -- it was the trailer that was incredibly cheap.  he also said that the trailer is surprisingly high quality ... big words from someone with several automotive patents to his name.

i will not be adding the trailer price to the TVC since it's not really part of the price of the car ... and could conceivably be towed by someone else (although i don't have plans along those lines).

starting to tow with the continual car presents some problems (and is the reason i just keep going on and on here).  the owner's manual (OM) makes a few passing references to maintenance adjustments needed due to towing as well as some different driving behaviors.

it's worth noting that i've never had a dealer even hint that they might not honor the service contract (in fact, i've had the opposite happen), but as the car gets older -- especially since it's now over 100,000 miles -- it's not inconceivable that there could be some pressure to not honor the contract (never forgetting, of course, that transmission failures would be covered under the lifetime powertrain warranty, not the service contract wrap) ... and i can't let that happen.  it runs counter to the very idea of the continual car.

according to the service contract, i have to maintain the car according to the OM.  in that vein and spirit i'm making notes here so i know how to behave in the future (and i have immediate reference material if i'm ever challenged in the future).

[do note the ironic catch: this trailer isn't really towing -- or more precisely, it's not the kind of towing they mean when they're making reference to it in the manual.  if you load a trailer correctly, between 60 and 65% of the weight should be in front of the center line on the rear wheel (OM, page 348).  loading in this manner gives a tongue weight on the vehicle is 10 to 15%.  assuming the trailer is 100 pounds, and the kayak is 100 pounds, this is an additional 20 pounds of tongue weight applied directly to the car.  considering that the maximum gross trailer weight is 1000 pounds (347), this is laughably small.]

i wasn't towing at all before, but i am (no matter how lightly) now.  my responsibilities as an owner change and i wanted to record them here for future reference.  unfortunately, the arrangement of towing information in the OM is fairly haphazard ... i'll lay it out here, then re-organize it for my practical use.

the following is the raw data as it's published in the OM.

* (page 409) under schedule A, automatic transmission fluid doesn't need to be changed with a turbo.  under maintenance schedule B, tranny fluid should be changed every 60,000 miles only under the condition of,  "... trailer towing where the vehicle is driven regularly for more than 45 minutes of continuous operation."  on page 354 we have, "the automatic transmission fluid and filter should be changed if you REGULARLY tow a trailer for more than 45 minutes of continuous operation."  (their emphasis -- both cases)

*   (355) "check the automatic transmission fluid level before towing."  (abbreviated from 408) before checking the fluid, wipe the area around the dipstick clean to eliminate the possibility of dirt entering the transaxle.  wipe the dipstick and measure according to "hot" or "cold."

* (293-4) the turbocharger has to be allowed to cool down at idle:

• 0 minutes under "normal" driving conditions
• 3 minutes with "aggressive/heavy load"
• 5 minutes for "trailer tow"

* (355) in city driving while towing: "when stopped for short periods of time, put transmission in NEUTRAL."

* (abbreviated 299) "when frequent transaxle shifting occurs using the DRIVE/OVERDRIVE range, such as when operating the vehicle under heavy loading conditions (...towing trailers...), use the [3] range."  no big deal here ... i already do this when driving when i don't tow (usually when i cross the rockies).

* (347) maximum gross trailer weight is 1000 pounds.  my trailer is well under this weight.  even if loaded to the 870 pound capacity, the trailer might just barely be in that range.

consolidating all this and putting it into a collection of reasonable behavior means i'll be:

• checking the transmission fluid and all tire pressures (35psi for the car, 60 for the trailer) every time before i tow.
• changing the transmission fluid at 160K miles.
  you could argue that i'm chancing it a bit by doing this, but i have strong reasons and ways to show that i maybe/probably don't even have to do it then.  at my current mileage rate (which may go up), i'll have to do this flush in about three years (which would also be well ahead of my next powertrain inspection).  i'll have to make a decision further out about what my next change schedule would be, but i might make it 100K miles from there.
• idling in neutral when stopped while towing.
• cooling down for three minutes before every shut down.
  this is two minutes short of their OM five, BUT the trailer is very light AND the trailer tires are rated at 55mph anyway (not forgetting that CA law is 55mph for cars towing trailers).  it's not like chrysler would ever be able to know whether i was doing the cool down procedure or not anyway (not to mention that even if i did fry my turbo by not cooling, it would still be covered by the powertrain warranty).  the funny thing is that doing this will probably end up making the towing of a kayak trailer with my car actually be better than normal driving ... because i'll be driving slower on the highway AND cooling down afterward.

i'm also going to keep track of the number of miles i tow in the side bar ... more out of curiosity than anything else.

official powertrain inspection notification

you know, it's funny...the 'net is full of people (especially jeep owners) who think chrysler will go to great lengths to rip them off, including invalidating warranties.  (of course, many of these same people will also modify their vehicles, or not do regular service.)

but the truth is that chrysler would like to keep you in the fold.  even though I've already had my inspection, I received this card in the mail...postmarked MI, it makes reference to prestige (my favorite dealer here in NV).

I amidt I'm a little surprised to see this notice...but pleasantly so...even though i was well aware when my 60 day window was, it would have been difficult for me to miss it thanks to this notice and the aggressive suggestion of getting it done from normandin in CA.

How Minor Repairs Can Boost Your Car Insurance Rates | Insurance.com

interesting article from the insurance companies themselves on part of the way your rates get jacked from a relaxation of bumper standards.

http://www.insurance.com/auto-insurance/saving-money/car-insurance-and-repair-costs.html

Fw: Your invitation for Free Oil for Life from Boardwalk

got this email from my favorite chrysler dealer  (they lost their accreditation ffrom chrysler).   if i was still living in the bay area i'd look into it,  but i'll bet that the filter and service costs would  end up being more than the mopar coupon rates. my apologies for their formatting from my email  account ... i don't feel like mucking with it to make  it right relative to my template ... all the salient  information is readable, this just looks bad ...  (i took out the formatting and corny animation). *** As a valued Boardwalk Auto Center  customer, you are invited to participate  in our Oil For Life* program. Here's how it works: Never pay for  conventional oil, just labor and filter.  Your vehicle, if qualified*, will receive Oil  For Life*, so long as you continue to own it. Come in for a FREE* inspection to see if your  vehicle qualifies*.

updated chrysler website

like the rest of the fricken company, the chrysler website has undergone a major overhaul.  like any 10 passenger panel van, the front page is cumbersome and overly full of flair and flash that you'd never use.

BUT, the underlying web pages, and especially the "my chrysler" page, is shockingly good.  after i input my VIN, i'm able to get a list of recalls (there are none yet), a (soft or hard) owner's manual and a copy of my warranty.

and, very most important of all, a complete listing of my service history.  which means i can check the official records and be certain they're tracking the same work i am.

and the record they show is spotless, clean and perfect.

at first i thought they'd done away with the "3 great services, 1 low price" coupon page -since i couldn't hit it from the old "for owners" spot- but all they really did was move it.

which means i'm good to go (and it also means the new chrysler has its act together better than the old chrysler).

{as an aside, my poking and prodding was brought on by a prestige chrysler coupon that i got early this morning for a $10 oil change.  a great deal, to be sure, but i needed to be certain i have back-up for the future.

i might drive back to CO in my car over xmas (i can't put chains on it, so it's not a certainty) -- but even if i don't, i'll definitely use that coupon before its expiration at the end of the month.}