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Merv and Di

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Posts posted by Merv and Di

  1. Hi Bryan

     

    The new OEM trailer hitch (tow bar)was US$284.00 and shipping through myus.com was US$280.00 at a weight of 25.4kgs, which I thought was pretty reasonable.  When I fitted it, all I did was to reinforce inside the chassis rall top and bottom with a length of 10mm mild steel on both the front and rear mounting points.  I also reinforced the bolts where they attach to the bumper reinforcement bar the same.  

     

     

    Cheers

     

    Merv

  2.  

     

    Hi Tony

     

    And they are both genuine factory items...Just makes you wonder doesn't it.  I had a look at a couple of other 'trailer hitches' and they are all so similar in steel size that I decided to stay with the factory one.  Just going to have to check it more often.  I will be putting some decent extra bracing along all the weak points when I fit the new one this week and keep my fingers cross.

    I spoke to a Company in Gympy whilst trying to source parts here and I was informed that we all tow too heavy trailers here and that is why they are letting go.  He also hung up on me when I mentioned that they have a 4.5t tow rating on the ball and if the engineering was better this would not happen.

    We were extremely lucky that it was still hanging on by two and a half bolts and only just because at the next whoopy do I believe that we would have lost the van as there was nothing to hold it.  The brake safe would have gone with the bars, now looking for a new location to attach this separately.

     

    Cheers

     

    Merv

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    • Like 1
  3. These are the parts that let go.  Reinforcement bar which connects the rear bumper by two bolts from the tow bar centre and the second is the pieces torn off from rear most mounts on tow bar where it bolts onto the chassis.

     

    Please check your bar fittings, it is a very common problem and after trying to locate parts here, there are none.

     

    cheers

    Merv

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  4. Hi all

     

    We recently  had the unfortunate mishap of rippng the tow bar off the rear chassis mounts along with snapping the reinforcement bar which holds up the rear bumper and part of the tow bar of our 2012 Silverado whilst up in Hells Gate  (great place to visit).  Yes the van came home to Melbourne on the back of a semi thanks to great assistance from RACV.  Anyway a long story short this is apparently a common fault,  the bars are not strong enough for our conditions as explained to me by Chev USA who simply wiped their hands of the matter.  I now know of four others in Australia with the same fault.

    I managed to find all replacement parts via a Company called World Parts Direct.com who sell OEM part for Chev at very reasonable prices.  They will not ship to Australia but I was informed by  them about a forwarding Company in Florida who does, their name MyUS.com  who have been brilliant.  Parts are delivered to them and even using their economy shipping I had them the following week and I could not fault their rates they were far cheaper than using Shopmate.com (AusPost).

     

    If you need parts in the future please check them out, I could not recommend them more highly

     

    The owners and staff at Hells Gate Roadhouse bent over backwards to help us, so please when up that way drop in to say hi.

     

    Cheers

     

    Merv

    • Like 3
  5. We had a custom program installed into the old solar controller by Wheelhouse Marine in Darwin  and all seems to be working quite well.

    They were recommended by Enerdrive to do the job, apparently the latter solar controller  already has the lithium algorithm in it.

     

    Cheers

    Merv

  6. Hi Rod 

     

    They are a direct drop in replacement for the argms, same physical dimensions.   Max charge is 14.7v and all reports I read none were detrimental.  I have only had ours a week and so far so good,  only time will tell.  Weight of each battery is only 13ks so a total of 26kgs against the 100kgs for the old agms, which I might add lasted nearly 7 years.  Set them up on your  enerdrive  charger by the instructions that came with it.  I now have an extra box up front.  I got $50 back from the recycling depot for the old agms.

     

    Cheers

    Merv

    • Like 2
  7. Hi Pete 

     

    Itech world in Perth currently have 120amp lithium batteries that can be connected in series for $899 free delivery or can be cheaper to pick up.

    Working very well without changing the original system and only 13kgs each.

    Cheers

    Merv 

  8. Hi Paul

     

    We have had our Silverado now for six years towing our 21' Top Ender and I would not tow with anything else.  They are an incredible towing beast with a brilliant fuel economy, and one of the most relaxing feelings you will find towing a big heavy van.  The exhaust brakes work a treat as does the tow haul mode.  They are one of the best towing vehicles around.  Now saying that, we only use ours as a tow vehicle because they can be a pain in the but in a shopping centre because of the size but we always park further away from the doors and take up four spots and I no longer care after all it is a truck.    We are fortunate enough to have a shopping car, general run around when we are home.  Have a look at all the Americans and you could also check out the new Nissan Titan with the new Cummins V8 Diesel that is made for it as a slightly cheaper option, but still with a 4.5t tow.  There has been a few discussions on this forum about similar questions over the past few years so check them out also.

     

    Cheers

     

    Merv

    • Like 1
  9. Why not simply put a set of duallies under the rear and take to an auto engineer to have increased.  There is nothing else done between the 2500 and the 3500 maybe slightly heavier rear springs.  Your 2500 can tow 4.5 t on the ball and 7.5t 5th wheeler.  Don't forget a light truck endorsement will be required for vehicles over 4.5t.  From memory the 2500 comes in at 4536kgs unless you have had it derated

     

    Cheers 

     

    Merv

     

     

     

  10. Hi John

     

    They are both top vans and will follow you anywhere, within reason that your truck can go.  The main difference between those two are weight, the Top Ender is simply a heavier van.  Ours is a 21’ and we have taken it almost every where from the top of the Cape to the desert roads/tracks to the Gibb and touch wood we have never had a flat.  We were looking at the same Companies as you now are and what totally sold us was Kedrons after market service with smile attitude and nothing is a problem for them no matter where you are, if you need a problem sorted, they sort it.  You won’t go wrong with these vans, it is pretty hard to break one.

     

    Cheers

    Merv

     

     

     

     

     

     

    • Thanks 1
  11. Hi John

     

    The simple answer is that is what Kedron vans are made for.  The latter XC5 has a slightly better suspension but it will always come down to tyre pressure and speed.  You won’t go wrong with either of these vans, XC3 or XC5.

     

    cheers

     

    merv

    • Like 2
    • Thanks 1
  12. Hi Bryan

     

    We originally went and bought a 3.7kva generator  to run every thing including the air conditioning when up north if we needed.  How many times have we used it for this purpose?  None!!

    When we have had to use it was only to recharge the batteries which cope extremely well including using the washing machine (4kg front loader) we have never had to use the air conditioner 'up north' as we find with the windows open including the front the flow through ventilation is more than enough and a 12v fan.  Any way we have now  dropped back down to  small 1kva generator to recharge the batteries and with only a third of the weight and better fuel economy and I am not busting my gut trying to lift the thing.  We also carry it in the back of the truck, not the van, less down weight on the tow ball.   Food for thought.

     

     

    Cheers

    Merv

    • Like 2
  13. Welcome Liz and Graham

     

     

    You will be in very good hands with Paul he has a wealth of knowledge and will probably give you some great ideas.  We have looked at down grading from our Top Ender to the single axle Compact and have checked them out at the factory just prior to the Brisbane show.  I am sure that they will certainly impress you and you will not regret your purchase.

     

     

    Cheers

     

    Merv

    • Like 1
    • Thanks 1
  14. Hi Kevin & Judy

     

    There is bush (free) camping both sides of the road as you come into Birdsville between the river and the town itself. Camping between the river and the actual race course is reserved for the trainers/horses.   They have water taps now on one side of the road and during the races they have rubbish bins and portable toilets on the other.  

     

     

    Enjoy 

     

    Merv

  15. Hi all

     

    This is going to throw one hell of a spanner in the works for those considering an upgrade.

     

    New National Rules from the 1st June no more GVM upgrades by second stage manufacturers, the original manufacturers rating is final. 
    Prexisting approved modifications are grandfathered, so no problems there.

    10.6 The towing capacity of a light vehicle expressed as Gross Combination Mass (GCM) rating or Rated Towing Capacity or Maximum Braked Towing Mass rating must not exceed the value set by the first stage manufacturer. Second stage manufacturers are not permitted to increase the towing capacity as part of an SSM IPA that results in a GVM upgrade.  (Courtesy of another interested forum)
     

    Cheers

     

    Merv

  16. For those interested please remove any recommendation by us for Harding Swift as a service Company for our Kedron.

     

    A huge great big thank you to Johnno of Mobile Trailer Services at Kedron  for fixing what should not have be done.

     

    Cheers 

    Merv

  17. Hi Tony

     

    There are two dump points in Birdsville, one either end of town and water is freely available last time I was up there.  They had a water line ran out to the River (Race Course side)

    on the northern side of the road from town.  As far as remember it is also available at the town bore, right turn after the Pub.

     

     

    Enjoy your trip

     

    Merv

    • Like 1
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