I discovered that Dextron ATF fluid makes an excellent bug solvent to remove road grime from the front of my Towed Ford Edge on the weekend. Wasn't planning this experiment but noticed a burst of blue smoke coming from the back of the coach while climbing out of Rogers Pass on HWY no 1 in British Columbia so felt it prudent to pull off the Highway at the first available pull out.
I thought I may have had a tire failure but once stopped I determined the pool of oil dripping from the Beaver Mud flap, coating the rear of the coach, and pretty much bathing my beloved blood red Ford Edge Sport toad indicated a different situation. Hmmmm red Trans fluid which needless to say was very disconcerting $$$$$$$ and nearly caused childlike hysterics on the side of the road, until I remembered I had just replaced the trans fluid with Transynd which isn't the same red color.
This is one of those events that justifies the expense incurred to belong to an auto club; in this case the Alberta Motor Association (AMA) RV Premium Road Side Assistance program. A heavy transport tow truck was dispatched from the nearest center, Golden BC, to tow the Patriot to Calgary, about 200 miles across the Rockies.
All was fine until the tow truck blew a hydraulic line while lifting the coach which the operator was not able to repair so now we have a 40 foot patriot Thunder with it's front wheels about 4" off the ground attached to an immoveable Peterbilt Hwy Tractor.
Both spent the night on the side of the TransCanada Hwy while Cindy and I drove our slimy Ford to Golden to spend a night in a hotel. While looking out the window at about 3 dozen highway tractors idling across the road I realized there must be a decent Diesel shop in town so found Columbia Diesel and made arrangements to have the coach towed there rather than all the way to Calgary. I really didn’t want to incur any additional road damage from the tow.
They replaced both in/out lines to the fan and had us back on the road within a few hours of the delayed "delivery". AMA covered the cost of the tow, overnight hotel bill and a nice breakfast.
Long story short, please get under your coach and check the in and out lines running to/from the hydraulic fan as they are very likely rubbing on each other with a rather unpleasant eventual outcome. Oh, and if you ever need to be towed and can't get a low bed make sure the guy that disconnects the driveshaft is careful to keep the Ujoint intact. The shop needed to replace the Ujoint as one of the needle bearings went astray and they couldn't find one that would fit ($0.20 item) when they prepared to re-install he drive shaft. That cost another $90.00. Total bill was about $800.00 which is significant but in my opinion is like a "Get Out of Jail Free" card with any repairs required on the back end of these critters. A simple inspection could save a pile of expense and inconvenience though.
BTW, the same fluid is used for your power steering pump so you could easily lose steering assist as well as take-out the fan and possibly overcook the engine. Do not continue driving if this happens, Oh, and please look seriously at purchasing a national roadside assistance program.
Drive safe and have fun,
Dwight Wilson
