Maintenance

On Tuesday, I had my mechanic change the fuel filter, which had not been changed since August 2007. He also put on four new hose clamps, and replaced about one foot of fuel line.

Caravan odometer = 173,043 miles

CD Receiver

Last week, I installed an Alpine CDE-102 CD receiver in my caravan. Goodbye, factory stereo with cassette player. I don't think it's as nice as my old Alpine (CDM-9803), but I'll be damned if I have to listen to AM/FM radio one more minute. The CDE-102 offers front-panel USB and auxiliary inputs, which I probably won't be using.

RMS Power Output is 18 watts, with a Peak Output of 45 watts.
RMS Power Bandwith is 20-20kHz.
FM Sensitivity is 9.3 dBf, with 12 FM Presets and 6 AM Presets.
CD Frequency Response is 5-20kHz, and CD Signal-to-Noise is 105 dB.


Caravan odometer = 172,999 miles

Delivery

One of my friends bought 2 recliners at a furniture liquidation sale. He needed help hauling the chairs back to his house since he drove his car (cargo room fail) into town. Guess who had the space for 2 reasonable-sized recliners? Nope, not KITT, the talking car, you idiot! Beulah, my caravan. I don't have the middle and back seats in my van in case something should go awry, so this was a simple load into the back of the van.

The delivery trip (140 miles one-way) was nice. It made me think about buying a CD receiver. Nobody likes a 16-year old cassette player.

Caravan odometer = 172,599 miles

Octane and Ethanol

Well, I didn't noticed much, if any, improvement with the 87 octane, 0% ethanol gasoline, compared to the 89 octane, 10% ethanol. I won't be posting the MPG numbers since it was so minuscule. I will be going back to the ethanol blend in the winter time.

Gas Fill Up

I made the switch today (6/1/09). I finally switched to 87 Octane, 0% Ethanol. Let's hope this improves Beulah's gas mileage.

244.0 miles / 11.152 gallons = 21.9 MPG. This mileage was with 89 Octane, 10% Ethanol.

Caravan odometer = 170,947 miles.

Gas Fill Up

I filled up today with 89 Octane, 10% Ethanol.
276.6 miles / 12.155 gallons = 22.8 MPG

Caravan odometer = 170,700 miles

Maintenance - PCV

I finally replaced the positive crankcase ventilation (PCV) valve and hose today. I think this is the first time it's been replaced on my caravan.

Also, the snow tires were removed (no more winter!), and the sport wagon wheels are back on. All it needs now is a good wash.

Caravan odometer = 170,443 miles.

Maintenance

Nice weather today, so I decided to change the oil. I bought a box of Valvoline Max Life (5W-30) a few weeks ago, I assumed I was getting the non-synthetic oil. When I opened the box, I was very little happy with what was inside. 12 quarts of Max Life synthetic blend! Damn you, Valvoline!

In addition to changing the oil and oil filter (pain in the butt to reach), I replaced the front wipers and added a can of Seafoam to the gas tank.

Caravan odometer = 170,257 miles.

Stress Relief

Driving through the countryside always puts me at ease.

Caravan odometer = 170,177 miles

Mileage

Caravan odometer = 170,158 miles.