[dmc]

Originally Posted by robmir

Dave: I am worried because of the severe conditions you will face since is raining hard and you will find many mudslides washing the roads. Things are not looking good down there.

Keep us updated !!!!!

yeah and unfortunately skipping bolivia is NOT an option for me. i have a friend flying into la paz in just over a week. after his stay there, paraguay, argentina he flies out of la paz and another flies in. but then we're off to chile. it could be an interesting few weeks.
dmc

[dmc]

so a word on gears and power. within the last 2 weeks I've driven my truck over 15k feet 4 times. i have not had any issues with pinging or lugging. about 15,5 I've needed to shift to low range to have the power to go. honestly i have been very happy with the amount of power I've been able to generate at such high elevation. i am running 285s with 4.88s so I'm about 12% under driven. i debated quite a bit 4.56s vs 4.88s before the install. i can say with my heavy truck and the roads I'm driving that i made the right decision without a doubt. in the last few months I've driven I-5 down at sea level and 80mph, 4low and crawling at 16k feet, climbed insanely steep grades and battles hours of continuous hairpins and everything in between and not ONCE have i thought, 'i am geared too low.' I'm pretty sure had I gone 4.56s i would have wanted more power.

something I never thought about until it was staring me in the face for turn after turn is the lack of brake assistance you get above 12k feet. it makes sense now that I'm faced with it and recognize it but habitually I'm still startled when i put my foot on the brake and the pedal drops to the floor. feels like my pads are gone then i get down below about 9 k feet and all feels fine again.

one more thing i thought about adding to this thread, but it will require pics, is bumpstops. i don't see many people going the route i went, or if they do, like me, they don't think it that grand of a mod. i see a lot of people lowering their bumpstops or making custom stops. i used fj80 bumpstops and pulled my later style bumpstops off. it will make more sense and i'll explain the reasoning why later tonight or maybe tomorrow.

[dmc]

So some of you may have noticed that I revived two very old threads earlier today. Last night after taking a leak I hopped back in my truck only to find a blown fuse. i figured no big deal and instead of digging out my parts i pulled the one from my a/c and drove to my hotel.

i woke up today, wandered the markets of Huaraz and picked up my laundry. came back to the hotel hopped in my truck and blew another fuse. thought it was odd and went to get gas. it happened again after getting gas. so i came back to the hotel, poached wireless and did my search. after realizing i could be anywhere from 5 mins to many hours trying to figure out the problem i checked back into the hotel. parked the truck so i could work on it and set out to track down some fuses. there is a toyota dealer in the town and i bought ALL of their 10 amp fuses. 6 total. yep 6. with my stash in my car that gave me about 15 to trouble shoot.

back at the hotel i broke out my fsm (thanks trunk monkey) and stared at the wiring diagram only to realize i was WAY over my head. a call to a friend who works for toyota resulted in a conversation and email of a list of circuits/parts connected to the gauge fuse and i set about going through each one. I got lucky. a/c didn't trip it. auto climate control, nope. fan/recirc/temp nothing. those were the items i was using the when it happened. cdl, abs, high/low, 2nd start, pwr button. still good. i tried all while starting the vehicle because that is when i noticed the fuses blowing. or so i thought. next up i tried putting it in gear. bingo blown fuse. after a series of tests and different configurations i discerned that putting it into reverse was killing the fuse. so options were back up lights, including one on my bumper, the harness from the switch back and the tranny switch itself.

I started with the easy one. For once in my life I made a proper decision in regards to fabrication. when i made my swing out i used t-taps for my license plate and back up lights so if i needed to remove the carrier the wiring would be a simple disconnect. i pull the t-tap for the back up light, put in a new fuse and ran through reverse about 20 times. no blown fuse. i'm 99.9% sure i found and isolated the problem. near the light itself the wire had come out of the flex loom and had been rubbing on the bumper, enough to expose the wire and short the circuit.

I can't tell you how relieved I am to have found the issue so quickly. electrical bugs are NOT my strength and sometimes trouble shooting them requires two people to isolate them. IE trying locking your rear diff by yourself and checking the motor for a signal on the rear diff. yep tried that once in my taco. anyway, the prospect of a MAJOR electrical gremlin or trying to source the parts for my a/c clutch were not something i was looking forward to. here is a partial list of items affected by a blown gauge cluster fuse. biggest one in my mind is speed sensor. pretty much can't drive without a speed sensor. the tranny has no idea where it should be.

A/C pressure switch- under the hood on the a/c high pressure line ABS Actuator ABS Relay ABS ECU A/C ECU (amplifier) Air inlet motor Air vent mode control motor Brake fluid level switch Blower relay Seat belt buckle switch CDL motor CDL light CDL relay Combination meter Cruise control ECU Check engine light Seat belt light Radio cooling fan DLC Connector (OBD II port) Diff lock ECU Door lock control relay Engine ECU Transmission pattern select switch (power/2nd start) Front diff lock switch Fuel level sender Heater control switch A/C switch Oil level switch Oil pressure sender O/D switch Park/Neutral switch Parking brake switch Rear heater switch Rear window defogger switch Reverse lights Rear diff lock position switch Seat belt warning relay Transfer L4 position switch Transfer neutral position switch Trailer wiring converter harness Vehicle speed sensor Coolant temp sensor Defog relay Heater relay Power relay

so back in my hotel. off to Lima in the morning.
dmc

[latinoguy]

Good trouble shooting....will you be visiting Cuzco (search valle sagrado "sacred valley") and Machu Pichu while you are in Peru?

[94SRUNNER]

What a great adventure...thanks for all the updates and pics.

The best of luck to you.

[dmc]

Originally Posted by latinoguy

Good trouble shooting....will you be visiting Cuzco (search valle sagrado "sacred valley") and Machu Pichu while you are in Peru?

I'll be there on Thursday. The Parque has been closing on and off due to employee strikes so i may have to kick it for a few days in Cuzco. we'll see.
dmc

[robmir]

Originally Posted by dmc

I'll be there on Thursday. The Parque has been closing on and off due to employee strikes so i may have to kick it for a few days in Cuzco. we'll see.
dmc

Any update regarding Bolivia´s severe flooding and how you will cross the country , now that some of it has been designated Disaster Zone by the goverment ?

[DarkCloud]

dmc,

Is your SA trek taking you through Venezuela? Just wanted to know if you'll be in my neck of the woods at some point

[theferg]

Enjoy the slowest train ride ever if you go to Machu Piccu (you "can't" drive to Aguas Caliente).. I think its even slower than "the people mover" at disneyland... And dude, on your way back to the city, get off at the stop before it starts to descend back through the switch-backs and just take a taxi down. You'll know which stop it is by the hundred or so cab drivers holding signs saying "15 min ride to city" and yelling for you to get off...

You're lucky you're driving around on your own. The "tourist bus" schedules suck. And tourists can't take the "locals" buses. (Though we had a local with us who would convince the drivers of the local buses to let us all on...we just had to stay low). Oh and if you do go to Machu Piccu, go straight to Huayna Picchu or you'll miss out on it (we didn't and we did miss out) cause they only allow 400 people per day to go up. Hopefully you've scheduled yourself atleast 3 days (not including driving in or out of there) around Cuzco.

-Ferg-

Originally Posted by dmc

I'll be there on Thursday. The Parque has been closing on and off due to employee strikes so i may have to kick it for a few days in Cuzco. we'll see.
dmc

[boliviancruiser]

I am in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. If you are coming through I can park my mostly stock 80 next to yours and see if it learns anything. Dinner is on me.

[lawdawg]

You are going to love Machu Pichu, at least I did. I hiked into it after a few days of exploring the snow caps on horseback, and on the day we got there, in the morning the soup was so thick you could hardly see 10-20 feet in front of you. As we came around the corner and stopped to take a break, having no idea where we were, the fog blew through and the beauty of it all was in below us.......... really just breathtaking. The part I thought was craziest is that there is a solid piece of sacred stone, that if I remember is oriented as a sundial of sorts. When the Spanish came through they went throughout the country destroying these sacred stones b/c the natives thought they held special powers. They kept their power as long as they weren't damaged. They never found the one at Machu Pichu and so it survived. That was of course until the equivalent of Budweiser was filming a commercial on site and the boom crane of the camera chipped the corner off a few years ago. I heard they were going to put a gondola type system in. When I was there we were caught in a tear gas riot on the way down. I think one of the things i remember most about the trip is that the town right below, where you catch the train, just piles up all the trash next to the river. Once a day they crank up the bulldozer next to the river and push it all in. Same thing in Lima, we arrived during low tide and everyone was walking their bags of trash out to the beach, piled up over ten feet all down the beach, then high tide would come in and take it all away. Beautiful place, wonderful people, but you couldn't help but wonder if the tourist and the society they were bringing weren't ruining what brought you there in the first place. As a side note, I can't tell you how much I have enjoyed and been inspired by your trip, truly epic!

[latinoguy]

Not to hijack...but then again this is an adventure post now....If there is water running thru the main river on the valle sagrado...book a rafting trip...a great way to see ancient Inca ruins and enjoy some water time. Breath taking views of 19K ft. snow peaks. (Eric adventures was the outfitter we went with..good people.) Or better yet...follow them with your rig and discover some trails which I am sure you will find.....
Also, Lima blows, the best neighborhood is Miraflores, you will feel safer hanging out in that area, can't recommend many other places there...The petty theft in Lima is as bad as Mexico City be VERY careful...not worth staying over 2 days. Better off driving south and visiting the beach towns...especially if is summer there right now. Great vibes, enjoy the local ceviche.

[toylndcrusr]

DMC, I haven't been on these boards for a while, and so I was very pleasantly surprised to pop over last night and discover your adventure! I have been dreaming of doing just what you are doing since I was in high school. I graduated in 1985.
You are now one of my personal hero's. What an epic adventure you have embarked upon! Heroic in terms of scope and scale. In the world there are dreamers and the do-ers. Thanks for allowing this dreamer to live vicariously through you in this fantastic adventure.
Best regards,
Wes

[dmc]

Originally Posted by robmir

Any update regarding Bolivia´s severe flooding and how you will cross the country , now that some of it has been designated Disaster Zone by the goverment ?

Still working on Bolivia. I was given a very good contact by a friend who is helping me figure out a plan of attack. the gist however is that I am picking up my friend and leaving Bolivia as quickly as possible spend some time in Argentina and Paraguay and hopefully give the rain some time to settle and some recovery to take affect then return later. not much more i can do at this point.
dmc

[dmc]

Originally Posted by DarkCloud

dmc,

Is your SA trek taking you through Venezuela? Just wanted to know if you'll be in my neck of the woods at some point

Actually no. you can read about it here in the second paragraph. just too much going on. i'll have to save it for another trip.
dmc

[dmc]

Originally Posted by latinoguy

Not to hijack...but then again this is an adventure post now....If there is water running thru the main river on the valle sagrado...book a rafting trip...a great way to see ancient Inca ruins and enjoy some water time. Breath taking views of 19K ft. snow peaks. (Eric adventures was the outfitter we went with..good people.) Or better yet...follow them with your rig and discover some trails which I am sure you will find.....
Also, Lima blows, the best neighborhood is Miraflores, you will feel safer hanging out in that area, can't recommend many other places there...The petty theft in Lima is as bad as Mexico City be VERY careful...not worth staying over 2 days. Better off driving south and visiting the beach towns...especially if is summer there right now. Great vibes, enjoy the local ceviche.

yeah Lima did blow. I was there for 2 nights, about a day and half. city was gross and dirty. i stayed in miraflores and basically recuperated.

[dmc]

Originally Posted by boliviancruiser

I am in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. If you are coming through I can park my mostly stock 80 next to yours and see if it learns anything. Dinner is on me.

I am still trying to figure out exactly what I'll be doing for Bolivia. Conditions are pertty much dictating my plans. i don't think i have too many choices.

[dmc]

Originally Posted by boliviancruiser

I am in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. If you are coming through I can park my mostly stock 80 next to yours and see if it learns anything. Dinner is on me.

I am still trying to figure out exactly what I'll be doing for Bolivia. Conditions are pertty much dictating my plans. i don't think i have too many choices but i'll be sure to keep you informed. i always prefer a locals suggestion for dinner over the guide books.

[dmc]

So i've been spending a lot of time in bed lately so i'll finally be going to Machu Piccu in the morning. After all the positive posts here i'm even more excited. they don't make it easy or cheap to get there but it sounds like it's worth it. i'll post up tomorrow night or monday before i head out for Bolivia.

[DarkCloud]

Originally Posted by dmc

Actually no. you can read about it here in the second paragraph. just too much going on. i'll have to save it for another trip.
dmc

Sound reasons, too bad Chavez f'ed that up for you. Just so you know, US gov't doesn't really exaggerate as much as you think, things here are pretty much as they say or worse, and a lot of shit that happens here doesn't make it to the news. Oh well *sigh*

[robmir]

Originally Posted by DarkCloud

Sound reasons, too bad Chavez f'ed that up for you. Just so you know, US gov't doesn't really exaggerate as much as you think, things here are pretty much as they say or worse, and a lot of **** that happens here doesn't make it to the news. Oh well *sigh*

Tell that to Danny Glover, Naomi Campbell or Oliver Stone because they enjoyed kissing Chavez a** when they went there and for Glover it was worth, because he left with a lot of money to finance a movie.

[voorland80]

Originally Posted by dmc

So i've been spending a lot of time in bed lately so i'll finally be going to Machu Piccu in the morning. After all the positive posts here i'm even more excited. they don't make it easy or cheap to get there but it sounds like it's worth it. i'll post up tomorrow night or monday before i head out for Bolivia.

awesome, dave. thanks for the updates. good job troubleshooting ruby!
dam, sorry to hear you've been sick - we had doctors - plenty of meds. drink plenty of gatorade and only bottled water but then, you know that.
it's great to hear to you will visit machu picchu - a unesco world heritage site and one of smithsonian's "28 places to see before you die". just watch out for the "clappers" - they don't like to see people lounging on the nice open lawn areas! if you have time, climb huayna picchu for a great view down. just be VERY careful, we want you to be able to continue with your trip!
rad trip, this adventure of yours, take care

[ThaiCruiser]

Congrats to a trip of a lifetime. I believe that a lot of folks here, myself included, are drooling over your blog.

Have a safe and pleasant trip, and keep it coming!

[latinoguy]

So whatabout the bumpstops? I was curious what you had to say...

Originally Posted by dmc

one more thing i thought about adding to this thread, but it will require pics, is bumpstops. i don't see many people going the route i went, or if they do, like me, they don't think it that grand of a mod. i see a lot of people lowering their bumpstops or making custom stops. i used fj80 bumpstops and pulled my later style bumpstops off. it will make more sense and i'll explain the reasoning why later tonight or maybe tomorrow.

[NorCalLC]

Excellent trip and writing! I'm also living vicariously thru you.

[robmir]

Originally Posted by NorCalLC

Excellent trip and writing! I'm also living vicariously thru you.

I bet it´s more fun that traveling only with a backpack and not have to worry about his baby parked in the road

[Bluetribal]

I was in Peru last June for the Inti Rami festival, Awsome trip, Machu Picchu is incredible, Lima is gross, but Cusco is Great! I wanted to rent a cruiser while I was there but never found the time in my 8 day trip.
Wish I would have seen this a couple days ago, I would have recommended hiking up Mt. Putukusi, the view across to Machu Piccu is INCREDIBLE! (See Photo)

[dmc]

Originally Posted by latinoguy

So whatabout the bumpstops? I was curious what you had to say...

i spaced that off. i'll go take some pics right now. i just rotated my tires this morning would have been perfect timing.
dmc

[dmc]

the last week has been pretty chaotic. more importantly the last 2 days have been insane. my phone died so i lost all access to my data and email, i've crossed two borders, paid three bribes, filled my tank with diesel (not my fault) travelled on a visa i'm not sure was legit and crossed the 20k mark. one pic for the day. i'm poaching wirelss in Ascunsion and am not sure i want to stay parked here for too long. Hopefully i'll get an update later this week. oh and did i mention i've been awake for 40 hours straight?

[lawdawg]

That picture is easily one of the single greatest generators of wanderlust I have ever seen!