Results of 600 km roadtrip in BJ60 & diesel costs

[peterdouglas]

For those of you who have been following my challenges and concerns with my BJ60, here's an update. Two actually. First, I took the BJ60 on an 80 km round trip from Barrie to Wasaga Beach and back on the weekend. It was fine. Absolutely NO leaks of any sort after parking when arriving there or when back in Barrie. Over the 300 kms of city driving spread out over several days the week before, sometimes it leaked oil and/or antifreeze and sometimes it didn't.

Yesterday I drove 600 kms from Barrie to Montreal. Before leaving I topped off the coolant to just above the "low" line on a cold engine. It always seems to get down to that level and stay there. The rad was full to the top. Half way to Montreal, I stopped in Kingston. On a warm engine, the coolant was a bit higher that the "low" mark. This morning, on a cold engine, it's once again fallen to below the "low" mark. When parked, I noticed no coolant leaks on the ground nor any wet spots under the truck (though it wasn't a thorough examination, so I may have missed something). Otherwise we got a first class mystery!

As for the oil, it was at the full mark on a cold engine before leaving. Halfway in Kingston, again on a warm engine, I noticed 4 small drops of oil appear on the ground soon after parking and shutting off the engine. After 30 mins, they did not get any bigger. The oil was down a bit, but when I checked on a cold engine this morning, it was back to the "full" mark. Interestingly, on the 40 kms trip to Wasaga Beach on the weekend, it didn't leak a drop of anything, nor did it leak anything when I got back to Barrie.

Any ideas on these strange leaks? I no longer see coolant on the ground, but it seems to always get to just below the "low" mark and stay there. The leaks after parking haven't happened in a while. As for the oil, 3 small drips in a row and one to the side. All are on the right (passenger) side of the engine.

FYI: anyone interested in fuel economy/costs... filled up in Barrie, stopped in Kingston and it took exactly $50 of diesel at 1.37 a liter. Filled up in Montreal last night, and it took $42 of diesel at $1.49 a liter. Odd how it consumed less in the second half of the journey. But man, I really need to get that veggie oil kit soon! Unless I get frustrated enough to sell the truck...

[Joe Egolf]

Sounds like to me you are doing real well.Oil lervels are best checked in am b4 starting on level parking space.Coolant can vary too , best indicator again in am cold IMOP . Do you have a coolant reservoir??

[Joe Egolf]

I got 26mpg on my last trip through NY and Vermont,Visited "Poor Wally" [Tyke Moses] in N. pownal Vt. too.Got some needed parts and 2 Poor Wally Shirts for the fun of it . Nice Guy too.

[peterdouglas]

That's good to hear... I was getting worried about the oil and coolant. As long as it's nothing serious, I'll be happy. Ideally, no leaks would be great, but so far, so good.

As for fuel economy, I need to convert to MPG. But, even without doing that, my fuel consumption does seem a bit high. Then again, fuel prices have really shot up lately.

[rchalmers3]

Hey man, great to hear you are out and about!

Those liquid issues don't sound too severe. Maybe you could continue to monitor the coolant to see how long the coolant level stays at the place it seems to drop down to?

Rick

[peterdouglas]

Originally Posted by rchalmers3

Hey man, great to hear you are out and about!

Those liquid issues don't sound too severe. Maybe you could continue to monitor the coolant to see how long the coolant level stays at the place it seems to drop down to?

Rick

Thanks bro! It was great to be able to take the BJ60 on a semi-long road trip. It's the longest single trip I've taken it on so far. The Cruiser will be parked until Tuesday until it's time for me to head back to Barrie.

You're right, so far the coolant and oil issues don't seem to severe. I hope they stay the same, or get better! The only thing I'd like more is for fuel prices to come down, or get that veggie oil system set up soon.

[brownbear]

I think you're being silly about the fluids, the breather does do some mist of oil. Coolant changes a bit all the time on these. Don't look to closely at that. I too get a drop or too of coolant appear once and awhile.

I've been on the road for one month with my BJ60 already and 11,000 kms to date. I have toured lots of states and provinces. My truck on the scales was 3020 kg and the my trailer is 810 kg, so I am hardly taking it easy.

Just get out there and drive it, enjoy it and take your time going where you need to go...

[AJAEbj42]

Go for it!!! Summer has come to the Okanagan, you need to be in your Cruiser dude!