After leaving the Camping World we stopped at the truck repair facility, but had to wait for the owner to return to the shop. When he arrived we spoke with him and he told us that the earliest he could look at the RV would be Monday, the day after Easter. He suggested that we stay at one of the RV Parks around the block for the weekend. With that said, we checked into Midway RV Park and while we were there we started to consider some other options for the repair work, because we didn't get good vibes from that place. We called a number of Ford dealers in the general vicinity to see if their service department could handle our RV. Our Fleetwood Tioga Montara Class C Mini-motorhome is built on a Ford E-350 extended chassis with a Ford engine so we figured we would give it a shot. We got a call back from Napa Ford and had an appointment for Monday morning.
Since we were stuck in Napa for Easter weekend, Rene called her Uncle Charles who lives in Vallejo and we made plans to visit him on Easter Sunday. Rene had once lived in the Bay Area and discovered that at one time she lived within a few blocks of Charles and his wife Marcia, but as luck would have it they did not meet and discover this until Rene had moved from Vallejo into San Francisco. After relocating back to the Midwest Rene, and her daughter Kelsey, have made a point to visit with Charles during their vacations back to the SF Bay Area. So since we happen to be in the area we figured we would spend some time visiting with Charles and sharing our Easter Day with him. Thanks again for lunch Uncle Charles!
We got up early Monday morning and drove to Napa Ford where we arrived about 7:45 am. Our service advisor, Tim Clawson, took down all the information and we were in the shop by early afternoon. I had Googled our "loss of power" issue on the internet and there were a number of potential causes, including a bad catalytic converter, a bad fuel pump and some bad sensors. Tim kept us informed with the results as they came to him from our great technician, Rick. Over the course of a day and a half he tested the fuel pump, catalytic converter (which were OK) and a number of other things. What it came down to was the exhaust manifold leak had affected the plug wires. Hot exhaust gasses softened the insulation on the wires and caused a misfire. So after a complete tune-up and a new exhaust manifold we were good to go late Wednesday afternoon. We can't say enough good things about our experience with Napa Ford. They even allowed us stay in the RV overnight on the premises so we didn't have to pay for a Hotel/Motel. If you are ever in the Napa area and need service on your Ford or Lincoln you will be well taken care of at Napa Ford.
Since we had some time to kill while the RV was in the shop we decided to take a drive over to Muir Woods National Monument for the day on Tuesday and hike around. The Kent family bought the land in 1905 to protect one of the last stands of uncut redwoods and they donated the 295 acres to the federal government. In 1908 President Theodore Roosevelt proclaimed the area a national monument. At Mr. Kent's request, it was named for the conservationist John Muir. It was a good thing that we got an early start and arrived when we did, because the parking lot is small and it filled up not long after we got there. We stopped at the visitor center and purchased our guide before starting the Main Trail at Entrance Arch. We followed the numbered guide over Bridge 1 and hiked past the Bicentennial Tree and into the Bohemian Grove. We then took the Hillside Trail all the way to Bridge 4 at the North Monument Boundary. As we returned along a paved path we crossed the Fern Creek Bridge and walked through the area where it had been proposed to build a Dam/Reservoir before coming to the Cathedral Grove. We backtracked a bit since the trail had split and stopped to see the FDR Memorial Plaque. Continuing on we stopped at the Pinchot and Emerson Trees and then made our way back to the Cafe & Gift shop for some hot chocolate and tea to warm us up. It is suggested that you wear a jacket, because the sun doesn't shine too well through the Giant Coast Redwood groves here in Muir Woods.
On Wednesday afternoon when we got the RV back we stopped at the local Walmart, shopped for supplies and then stayed overnight in their parking lot. The next morning, after breakfast, we were on our way to Redwood National Park and the RV was running like a dream!
FP & RG
PS: To view all of our photos click on the link below to Frank's facebook page.
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