Breakdown….

So we knew in our travels things would break and impact our schedule. We finally had one of those events. I will say it could have been worse but we did run into obstacles.

We left Pensacola to make an overnight stay in Lake City, FL. This was part of the plan and the next day we would head down to Orlando. Driving down the highway about 30 miles away from Lake City, I start hearing a noise. It was like a fan was on. Patti checked things out and couldn’t find anything wrong. We rolled into the RV park in Lake City, I got out and immediately heard this loud hissing sound. It was by the driver side front wheel. I knew it wasn’t the tire because our TPMS (Tire Pressure Monitoring System) did not register any alerts and the tire pressure looked fine. I called Freightliner and they said it was probably the air bag. Fortunately, there was a Freightliner shop just down the road! Made an appointment for the next morning.

I was able to drive the rig to the Freightliner shop with the loud hissing sound from the air bag. It must have been a small leak because the rig drove fine and the compressor was keeping up with the air loss. They looked at it and in 10 minutes verified the air bag had a leak. Great so we know it is the airbag! However we need a “special” air bag. The front suspension is made by ZF and not Freightliner. ZF is a German company that makes all kinds of systems for cars and commercial vehicles. They are known for being top of the line! However their parts supply chain has a lot to be desired. The shop couldn’t find any ZF airbags in the nationwide database and Freightliner told them it would be 45 days out. The shop ordered the airbag and there was hope it would come in during the week. Although the compressor was keeping up with the air loss, it wasn’t safe to drive the rig on the highway. So we drove the RV back to the RV park in Lake City and sat for a week, waiting…..

Plan B…..

I decided to plan for the worst, I canceled the RV reservation in Orlando and we would drive the car and stay in a hotel. We were supposed to meet Tori and her boyfriend Chris there and they were going to stay in the RV! Sadly that had to change and we made plans to stay at a Marriott. Fortunately they had points they could use. We have trip interruption insurance thru FMCA so we made reservations at the Marriott as well. The insurance will cover up to $1,500 dollars which should cover the hotel and meals. We left the RV at the shop and headed to Orlando.

Good News!

We arrived in Orlando and I got a phone call from the Freightliner shop. The airbag won’t arrive for another 3 weeks from Germany. AARRRGGGHHH! It was Friday, 4:00 PM and I just wanted to focus on the family in Orlando. I was going to start making phone calls to Freightliner on Monday.

On Monday I called the parts department for the Freightliner Custom Chassis division. The guy I spoke to had 1 airbag in the system, he was going to go back to the warehouse and ensure they had one. Twenty minutes later he called back and has the airbag in his hand. Long story short, he shipped the airbag to the shop in Lake City. They replaced it and the rig is fixed! All is good! Once our stay is done in Orlando, we would drive back to Lake City to pick up the RV.

Orlando!!!

We had a great time with Tori and Chris in Orlando! Didn’t do the typical Disney or Universal stuff since it was December and everything is crowded. Tori and Chris spent some time in Lakeland to visit Chris’ father. Patti and I went to Cocoa Beach and Cape Canaveral to watch a night time rocket launch.

The rocket launch was very cool. We didn’t see the towers in front of us because it was so dark before the launch. This picture was taken from the restaurant where Patti and I had dinner. It was an awesome moment.

Patti, Tori and Chris went to an escape room which they love to do! I wasn’t feeling well and didn’t go. They had a lot of fun and they escaped!!!

The Marriott we stayed in was a resort and it was very nice! We had a suite that was huge and the restaurant there was very good. It was a great Plan B!

It was a great stay in Orlando despite the problems with the RV. We always try to make the best out of a bad situation. We still love this lifestyle and will keep having fun whenever we can!

More Good News!!!

On another note, Tori and Chris are engaged!!! Patti and I are thrilled and of course Patti and Tori are already deep into wedding plans! I am just staying out of the way, it is the only thing I can contribute…

Next stop – Sarasota!