2,900 Mile Maiden Voyage?

Go to the GMCMI site and print a copy of the GMC Assist aka Black's list. If you need it, it will be invaluable.
Notice that the links on GMCMI.com are OUT OF DATE. Only one takes you to the correct page. It's very frustrating and Kim is too busy to update her links.
So
To send folks to the latest update of the Black List, direct them to
gmcblacklist.com
or
bdub.net/Black_List/
 
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I would drive it home the same way I drove mine from Elpaso TX to Buffalo NY. New battery, 6 new tires, greased the rear wheel bearings, changed the engine oil. I wish I had bypassed the fuel tanks and simply driven it home using fresh gas plumbed from a few 5 gallon cans in the coach. We fought with rusty gas tanks more than anything.

Get it on flat ground and set the ride height manually.

Think about it this way. If you drive it 10 miles without problem, it will easily go 100. If it goes 100, it'll go 1000 no problem .

As long as the brakes are decent I would drive it home.
 
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...
Get it on flat ground and set the ride height manually.
...
Yeah, I forgot that. Buy some Schrader valves with 1/4" pipe threads, or 1/8" pipe threads with a 1/8 to 1/4 bushing. If the system won't hold ride height in travel and doesn't have cut-off valves at the air bags, block the coach up on a 6" timber under the bogie frame, remove the air hose from the bag and tape it back to the supply hose to keep it out of the way, and install the Schrader valve in the end of the air bag. Use teflon thread sealant. Pump it up with a 12-volt or battery-powered compressor to the correct ride height and head home.

I would certainly include an inflator of some sort in the road kit, even if you have to buy it in Salem. A cheapie will work find to get you out of a jam.

On my first trip home in the coach, the issues we dealt with included having to leave the windows open because of an exhaust leak (it was 22 degrees that morning) and dealing with rust in the tanks and fuel lines. That had been an ongoing problem for the PO as well.

At the time, the Power Level system had largely been bypassed and the rear end height was set by the pressure switch on the (leaky) Dana compressor. So, the back end height kind of varied as we drove home. I had already installed an alternator in it for the PO a few weeks earlier. The way the batteries were wired, it's a wonder anything worked. But we made it home.

Rick "has also had to replace belts on the road, plus other adventures" Denney
 
GMCWiz,
If you have to disable the ride height control on a light coach (like Ricks and mine) be sure to set the height with the fuel at about half or it will get squirrelly at the other end of the load.
More than a few people have traveled great distances with a pair of outboard tanks. They give you a little less than an hour each and that is just about right.
Coming across Michigan and Ohio, cut north to I-94 as I-80 (the OH turnpike is an expensive toll road patrolled by mounties that target out-of-state plates. If you do come this way, at the intersection of I-94 and I-275 you will be mere miles from a friendly stop. If you look us up in the List, you will find us.
Matt_C
 
I'm on I90/I80 about 3 hours east of Chicago if you run into any issues or need a place to park overnight with electricity.. I'm only about 4 miles off the toll-road.
 
My maiden voyage with RagTag was from North West Montana to southeastern Alabama.
Id also recommend new tires and stop at least every 4hours if not sooner.
A hand held laser thermometer is worth the price. Shoot it at your hubs every so often to make sure one is not way hotter than the rest.
 
You crack me up, Paul. A "modicum" of GMC experience?
Well to be fair, despite having 4 GMCs, I've only been at this for 4 years and there's always a lot more to learn. I dove in head first for sure, and all of my GMCs have been basket-cases, but there's still plenty I haven't done quite yet. I haven't rebuilt an engine or a trans (for a GMC specifically). I also haven't dropped a GMC fuel tank (fortunately), though I'm sure it's a rite of passage I can't avoid forever! Come to think of it, I do plan on doing in-tank pumps soon.

Most of my experience has been for other vehicles, though I like to keep things varied. This week, I'm learning more about air-cooled engines with 2-speed Powerglides. :D Last week it was BMW V8s.
 
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Hey you all,
I am new to the RV/Motorhome world and I recently purchased a 1978 Birchaven with an Oldsmobile 403 (about 2 weeks ago) and am getting ready to drive it from Portland to the New York area.
It’s a little more than a 2900 mile drive.

The vehicle itself looks good, and has had some new replacements but for the most part, still original.
61k original miles.

- Currently we’re getting the brakes completely changed out since that was the main concern.

My main question for you guys and gals is if you think it could make the coast to coast drive of the bat or if you have any suggestions on what I should do, things to look out for, etc.

Thanks!
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I know someone has mentioned new belts. Having just done this, I can possibly shorten your search. O'Reilly sells Gates 7/16" belts as well as Amazon. A lot of stores and online stores do not. O'Reilly wants around $30 a belt. Here are the numbers and prices at Amazon:

Gates 7612 XL High Capacity V-Belt (A/C) $14.33​

Gates 7440 XL High Capacity V-Belt (PS) $12​

Gates 7570 XL High Capacity V-Belt (Alt) $14.53​

BTW: I have read different ways of attacking this job. I slipped the alternator belt over the fan first, then the power steering belt. Fit & adjust the PS belt first, then the alternator, lastly the A/C.
 
We bought our GMC in May 2000, sitting about 8 miles north of the Golden Gate bridge. We bought in on eBay (which I do NOT recommend). We live in NE Indiana, so we did some planning for the long trip (2,317 miles, and 346 gallons of gas), and we planned to fly out to CA. We got campground reservations in San Francisco, and I made arrangements to have a box of stuff shipped to them. We packed blankets, pillows, some dishes, and a few tools. I found room to pack my guitar too. Just basic necessities.

The previous owner only used the coach to dry camp in the desert in the summer, so the tires were badly cracked. We replaced the 4 on the rear, and had the carb worked on, then we headed for home. You can read more about our return trip, and some of the adventures we had. Here:

Looking back at all the things we have fixed in the years since we were quite fortunate in getting it home with no major breakdowns.
 
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We bought our GMC in May 2000, sitting about 8 miles north of the Golden Gate bridge. We bought in on eBay (which I do NOT recommend). We live in NE Indiana, so we did some planning for the long trip (2,317 miles, and 346 gallons of gas), and we planned to fly out to CA. We got campground reservations in San Francisco, and I made arrangements to have a box of stuff shipped to them. We packed blankets, pillows, some dishes, and a few tools. I found room to pack my guitar too. Just basic necessities.

The previous owner only used the coach to dry camp in the desert in the summer, so the tires were badly cracked. We replaced the 4 on the rear, and had the carb worked on, then we headed for home. You can read more about our return trip, and some of the adventures we had. Here:

Looking back at all the things we have fixed in the years since we were quite fortunate in getting it home with no major breakdowns.
Over the years I have moved a bunch of coaches for people east to west, West to east, Northwest to Southeast and Midwest to southern California. I have never figured out why people go to the opposite side of the country to buy a coach, but I enjoy the ride moving them.

Since it is always a one way trip for me and I return by air or I enjoy Amtrak, I do not bring much. One bag of tools and a few minor parts. Anything else I might need I can just buy along the way. I have fixed only small things and have made all of the trips just fine. So check out the coach before you leave and go on your way. The idea of carrying all kind of major parts only insures that those parts will not fail along the way. I have not bought much en-route for multiple coaches on multipe trips. Let's see, A heater shut off valve, a one foot piece of 3/8" gas line, A master cylinder that I never installed, windshield wipers, cabin heater fan motor, and multiple gas filters. The only time I have ever broken down was in my own coach. I called a GMC friend and he came out with his suburban and gave me, my wife, and dog a very long ride home from the opposite side of the state. I called my daughter and she came out with my PU truck. We went back with my PU truck and towed the GMC home. Towing was done late at night so there was no traffic and she set the cruise at 55 most of the way back.

My point with all of this is you never know what to expect and really can not plan for much. Check everything out you can ahead of time and go for it and enjoy the trip. .
 
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We went back with my PU truck and towed the GMC home. Towing was done late at night so there was no traffic and she set the cruise at 55 all the way back.
Did you use a trailer, or did you flat tow? If you flat towed, I'm curious what your tow bar setup looked like. I've been tempted to set mine up for tow bar usage "just in case".
 
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Good Morning,

I can't tell if you have launched yet, however I have taken three GMC coaches cross-country and live in Olympia, Washington, two hours North of Portland.

You have received lots of advice, most of which is good. My contribution would be, after a careful inspection, that you drive it around the Portland area for a day on a shake down cruise before heading East. From the photo's it looks like it may need a little love.

Please feel free to call me if you need some help: (360) 522-0202

Best regards,
Tom Fender
 

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Did you use a trailer, or did you flat tow? If you flat towed, I'm curious what your tow bar setup looked like. I've been tempted to set mine up for tow bar usage "just in case".

We did a flat tow using a tow strap. The poblem with this is stopping not towing. When you are towing something 3 times your weight and have no control of the brakes on the loaded item behind you, you could easily have a problem. That was my job in the GMC. If I keep the tow strap taught then I am applying the correct amount of brake. Also she would signal when she had a slow down coming up by flashing the brake light once. If they came on solid then I know to apply more brake. Keep in mind we have done this once or twice a year towing smaller vehicles since she was old enough to drive. She now is in her 40's. Some time she drives the tow vehicle and other times she is in the towed vehcle. So towing a much larger vehicle is no big deal to us. Also both vehicles are ham radio equipped so we could talk to each other if necessary. I do own a 11, 500 GVW trailer that I could have put it on but it is a few feet too short and I did not have a winch heavy enough to pull it on.

You could do the same thing with a tow bar but you need control of the GMC brakes and tail light and brake lights. You also need visibility to the rear behind the GMC.
 
There's no substitute for a good partner when strap towing, is there? Sometimes I lack access to one. I've had one drive onto the strap in a corner, and THEN hammer the brakes. The wheel locked up on top of the strap and ground it clear through as I pulled through the corner (from one highway to another, in traffic). Once the strap was toast, he was free to do as he pleased I suppose...
 
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There's no substitute for a good partner when strap towing, is there? Sometimes I lack access to one. I've had one drive onto the strap in a corner, and THEN hammer the brakes. The wheel locked up on top of the strap and ground it clear through as I pulled through the corner (from one highway to another, in traffic). Once the strap was toast, he was free to do as he pleased I suppose...
Yes, you are correct and there are not many people that I trust to understand what we are doing and do it correctly. She has worked with me ever since she got a drivers license at 15 and is now 44. She enjoys working on cars occasionally and I can trust her with just about any job. She knows when to ask questions before she screws something up which these days is rarely needed. She and her boyfriend, who is intimidated by her abilities, pulled my GMC trans. later after I, Blaine, and Diane Merrell fixed it, they reinstalled my GMC trans with next to no direction from me.

We use to have a bunch of Blazers in the extended family and the in-tank fuel pumps last about 90 to 100 miles on them. The last one, my wife's second fuel pump, quit at around 200K. That one took Heather One hour and 15 minutes. Book rate on that job is 3.5 hours.

I love to tell this story that happened many years ago. Keep in mind she has a master's degree from Purdue and is a pretty Blonde around 120 to 125 pounds. She put 2 new lower ball joints in her Blazer. When she was done she called me and asked if she should get an alignment done. I told her to try a place in Valparaiso that I have never used before. She did and the service advisor came out after putting it on the alignment rack and said "we can not align this vehicle. Your ball joints are too worn". She asked "which ones?" 4 or 5 minutes later the advisor came and said "all 4". She said "that is strange because I just replaced the lowers 2 weeks ago". The advisor said "well, they are worn and need replacement. Who did the work because they did not replace them?" Her response was "I did. Take my car off of your alignment rack and pull it outside. I will go find an honest place to check and adjust the alignment."

Am I bragging on her? You Bet ya. You can see why I had her tow me. The cheapest I could find for someone to tow me was $875.

My other daughter, a couple of years younger, is not that way. She gets daughter #1 to fix her cars.
 
What was the purpose of the pipe? Was this a kind of tow bar arrangement? Was there still a need for a person in the Suburban to apply the brakes when necessary? I am always lookiing for new ideas.
Ken B.
 
I know someone has mentioned new belts. Having just done this, I can possibly shorten your search. O'Reilly sells Gates 7/16" belts as well as Amazon. A lot of stores and online stores do not. O'Reilly wants around $30 a belt. Here are the numbers and prices at Amazon:

Gates 7612 XL High Capacity V-Belt (A/C) $14.33​

Gates 7440 XL High Capacity V-Belt (PS) $12​

Gates 7570 XL High Capacity V-Belt (Alt) $14.53​

BTW: I have read different ways of attacking this job. I slipped the alternator belt over the fan first, then the power steering belt. Fit & adjust the PS belt first, then the alternator, lastly the A/C.
Unless something has changed in the the last 15 years, Gates stopped making 7/16" belts of any kind. The ones you see labeled 7/16 are really 3/8". Read their package or or better yet meausre their width with a 10mm open en wrench. If a 10mm goes across the belt it is NOT a true 7/16" belt. The package says 7/16" and in small letters says 9.5-10 mm. 7/16" is equal to 11.1 mm.
 
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What was the purpose of the pipe? Was this a kind of tow bar arrangement? Was there still a need for a person in the Suburban to apply the brakes when necessary? I am always lookiing for new ideas.
Ken B.
Keeps the Toad from bumping into the lead vehicle. Removes most of the slack. Poor man's tow bar.