Toshi's thread
- Thread starter Toshi
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Finished last two episodes of S07 of Clone Wars tonight. It was a 4 part arc as Jon had mentioned, and those last 4 were excellent. The production quality and music in particular were a step up from the rest of the series. Some truly lovely shots in there.
But after a short row and 45 minutes on the Peloton + today's RBG news + the world in general I could take no more tonight.
I think I'll rewatch Episodes I, II, and III then launch into Rebels.
I migrated from the zero gravity chair to the ground, to sun my back. She came over to say hi at ground level
Wasting time during my (actually busy) 5-10 PM shift tonight. What would relaxing the 35' limit a bit yield, still in the gas Class A realm (so F-53 and 2020 V-10/2021+ 7.3 V8)?So Class C or A it is then. 35' or less, good family layout with bunks ideally not right by the adult bed, king bed (!). I like this tool to browse floorplans for time wasting like this.
With this arbitrary set of requirements, in particular the king bed and permanent bunks (as opposed to converting a sofa and a dinette every day), it actually looks like only 2 floorplans work, both Class A. They're basically just mirror images of each other.
Thor A.C.E. 32.3
33' 5", 12' 2" high so Zion compatible (irrelevant with their shuttle anyway). Seatbelts for 6.
F-53 chassis, 7.3 liter V8 but 6 speed as opposed to the 10 on the pickups these days. 8,000 hitch weight rating but only 5,000 overhead from GVWR to GCWR so would be a matter of not loading up fully if with a toad.
Forest River FR3 32DS
33' 11" and 12' 5" so right under the limits. 8 seatbelts.
F-53 but they haven't updated their specs from the old 6.8 liter V-10 to the 7.3 liter V-8. Interestingly on the 228" wheelbase whereas the similar overall length Thor is on the 208" wheelbase. 5,500 headroom between GVWR and GCWR but only a 5,000 lb hitch.
Tiffin Open Road Allegro 36 UA
38' length or so. 22.5" wheels! and optional air and hydraulic (?) suspension options. 26k GVWR but only 30k GCWR so 4k towing. On the upside one gets 1.5 baths and perhaps better construction? nah, probably still slapped together! Optional 2 kW inverter and 2 solar panels--weak sauce for true off grid, not that this can leave pavement much at all.
Fleetwood Boulder 36F
38' 9". Very similar structurally: 22.5", 26/30k GVWR/GCWR, air/hydraulic suspension options. 2 full baths in this one, though! Not on floorplan but in options list is the extra overcab bunk. Otherwise amazing how similar these layouts are.
Ok, back to work.
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That's what these fucking things are for. Not for "escaping" civilization, but by simply dragging all of civilization *with* you to somewhere sort of remote ('cause you can't get these abominations anywhere *actually* remote) and then irritating actual campers with the fucking generator, 'cause you can't miss "Dancing With the Stars."
Work almost done! and indeed was busy. Over the 4.5 hours thus far I've read 15 CTs, 12 ultrasounds, and I believe 38 plain radiographs.
Back to this thought above, which is how these lumbering beasts are restricted to pavement, and pavement that doesn't challenge any sort of approach or departure angles, to boot.
Check that rear overhang, Batman!
With this in mind, time to waste a bit of time prior to my 10 PM clock out time on 4x4 Super Cs, as they're of similar overall length to these two monstrosities from tonight's shitpost. Any better in angles?
Edit: got busy again. Work getting in the away of wasting time! time to go home.
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Nexus Rebel 35R. Apparently this only exists as a floorplan and a few crappy renderings thus far.
Facing the master bed is a closet. Forward of that is a set of double bunks, and being a Class C there's another bunk above the cabin, I believe.
This one's specs are interesting as compared to the 22/26k GVWR/GCWR Ford F-53 based ones as above. International Class 6 chassis, 22k GVWR but 37.5k (!) GCWR. 15.5k towing, in other words, although their hitch tops out at 15k flat. Duramax and Allison drivetrain, 19.5" wheels. Also interesting is that it's 34' 11" length, so technically sneaks in at that magic National Park level.
Thor Magnitude/Omni (can't tell difference) BB35
That's still a ton of rear overhang! Whoa.
Layout is a bit more cramped than one would expect for 36' 8" length due to that truck nose. F-550 platform, 19.5k GVWR, 40k (!) GCWR but somehow that math leads to a 10k tow rating?
Furthermore, that 19.5k GVWR is apparently limiting, as the cargo carrying capacity on one seen in a forum post is only 1,613 lbs! That is amazingly low: as the sticker notes, 622 lb of that would be a full water tank, and tongue weight counts against it as well!
What can I conclude from this pointless exercise? These 4x4 Super Cs seem pretty stupid from a construction standpoint. They still have ridiculously long rear ends and thus would have nearly the same restricted mobility as a regular Class C or A. In the case of the F-550 based one with the heavier bunk bodystyle as well there's barely any cargo carrying capacity, too, which makes that nominal tow rating entirely irrelevant. (I guess tongue weight is why they only claim 10k towing when there's 20.5k headroom between GVWR and GCWR! For flat towing a car it wouldn't matter, though.)
To continue my academic interest in such things, the F-550 manufacturers like Thor really should be stepping up to the F-600 platform instead. That extra GVWR would be key to making it useful with the same heavy body + 4x4 slapped on.
Edit: same issue with poor payload (CCC or OCCC in RV lingo) on the Ram 5500-based Dynamax Isata. Reportedly 1k via this link for 4x4, ~1400 lbs for 4x2, quite sad even before considering front/rear axle distribution issues!
One could handily solve the CCC issue by going to a Class 8 truck chassis, like with this DynaQuest XL with near-7,000 lbs room between UVW and GVWR and 20k towing to boot, but that's hideously expensive at that point.
There does seem to be a bit of a happy medium, thankfully: Class 6 International chassis on something like the Nexus Triumph 35TSC. 24.5k GVWR, 33k GCWR, and a 10k hitch if GVW < GVWR. Half the price of the Class 8 setup and presumably good CCC (on the order of 5k likely).
Cliffs Notes from my fevered research:
1) F-550/Ram 5500 based Super Cs have pitifully low OCCC, exacerbated by 4x4 (~1000 lbs for the latter!) and front/rear axle distribution issues. This makes their purported towing capacity useless unless for a toad. I don't see their point at all, especially since they have the same crazy departure angles like Class As.
2) Gas Class As on the F-53 chassis have very sad towing capacity, and again have OCCC issues.
3) Class 8 truck-based RVs solve this nicely but are super, super expensive. A decent compromise may be something Class 6, like the Nexus Triumph 35TSC with ~5,000 lb OCCC, or a F-53 from a better manufacturer that actually sizes GVWR and UVW better (like Tiffin).
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I would hate having to drive such a beast around and then still be confined in a small space like that with tree small kids.
In a parallel universe where I have oodles and oodles of free time to wander about with the family I'd spring for this based off of my readings/my assessment of various platforms' relative overloadedness. It seems like it'd be a pleasant enough place to be (pictured isn't the bunk layout but general idea is in line) even with all of us:
The problem with all travel-the-nation scheming is that I don't have the time, and likely this won't change for many years yet.
It'll be the much better long term play to get a place in the mountains rather than a depreciating, shoddily constructed fiberglass body atop a long ladder frame, but Zillow's much less fun for my brain than number-filled spec sheets...
If you can't do it with today's interest rates you aren't going to do it with negative rates. All else being equal total cost remains constant and prices will go up.I would totally buy more real estate if I had negative interest mortgages available a la Europe.
As a buyer youu want cash and high interest rates.
Plus when fees are taken into considerations they are not negative so it's still not like I am getting paid to borrow money. The one with the best rates at the moment is pretty damn close to zero but then I would have to start paying off the loan which does not make sense when I my loan is less then 40% of the value of the house.
That's if the price is perfectly elastic and responds 100% in inverse correlation with the rates.
It's pretty insane though how cheap it is to borrow money and now they are talking about savings above 42,000 USD you have the pay the bank a fee to store the money.
Got the Land Cruiser back from getting detailed. They got the insulation truck-incident scuffs on the hood out completely and in general did a fantastic job with it as always. (Arapahoe Collision & Mechanical. They really take pride in their work.)
2021 Ford F-150 Can Tow More Than Any Other Half-Ton Truck Ever
Power ratings are also on the rise as the F-150 PowerBoost hybrid tops the charts.
www.thedrive.com
2021 Ford F-150 max possible payload and towing specs,
For family truckstering with a trailer, assuming 1,000 lbs of people and luggage and 15% tongue weight that'd work out to trailer weights of 6,500 lbs for the 3.3, 5,600 lbs for the smol diesel, 10k for the 2.7 EcoBoost, limited by GVWR/GCWR for the 3.5 EcoBoost and 5.0, and 7,500 lbs for the PowerBoost.
Update: found a good specs PDF that lists payload by body style. Normalizing all to SuperCrew 4x4 "long" bed spec, noting that that's not available with all engines (!). Shortest rear axle ratios and highest GVWR where specifiable, noting particular packages required.
For family truckstering with a trailer, assuming 1,000 lbs of people and luggage and 15% tongue weight that'd work out to payload-limited max trailer weights of:
- 5,100 lbs for the 3.3
- 5,350 lbs for the smol diesel
- 7,200 lbs for the 2.7 EcoBoost
- 10,900 lbs for the 3.5 EcoBoost and 5.0 +/- 100 lbs
- 5,400 lbs for the PowerBoost.
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Vehicle stupidity will be after Project Mountain House for sure! Timeframe on that is probably winter 2021-2022 or later unless I get rash and stretch.
So maybe May?
Rental car review:
2019 Nissan Sentra. Rented from a neighborhood Hertz in Denver. 25,000 miles on the odo but already feeling beat.
Pros:
- not a Spark or Yaris, I guess?
- turns on and goes
Cons:
- just exudes cheapness from its mousy grey, narrow interior
- coarse sounds and slow to boot
- low door frame and top of windshield despite good head room make it feel cramped
I'm pretty sure I wrote a very similar review about 2 years ago. It still sucks! (Rented it because the Land Cruiser was getting detailed and the minivan getting an oil change + 2 open recalls performed on the same set of days.)
2019 Nissan Sentra. Rented from a neighborhood Hertz in Denver. 25,000 miles on the odo but already feeling beat.
Pros:
- not a Spark or Yaris, I guess?
- turns on and goes
Cons:
- just exudes cheapness from its mousy grey, narrow interior
- coarse sounds and slow to boot
- low door frame and top of windshield despite good head room make it feel cramped
I'm pretty sure I wrote a very similar review about 2 years ago. It still sucks! (Rented it because the Land Cruiser was getting detailed and the minivan getting an oil change + 2 open recalls performed on the same set of days.)
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When we were dating up until our 2nd or 3rd year of marriage my wife had a sentra.
It had 4 wheels was reliable. It was incapable of idling and running the AC at the same time.
It had 4 wheels was reliable. It was incapable of idling and running the AC at the same time.
In today's news, Toshi rents a small budget car while the massive cushy car that he owns and loves is getting spit shined. He's quoted as saying, "the cheap car feels cheap, slow too... it did turn on though." In other news, we reviewed rain and found it wet.
It's funny because it's true.In today's news, Toshi rents a small budget car while the massive cushy car that he owns and loves is getting spit shined. He's quoted as saying, "the cheap car feels cheap, slow too... it did turn on though." In other news, we reviewed rain and found it wet.
Starting to get in the realistic realm of "Pay This Fucking Mortgage Off"...
Would *really* like to do this before Thing-3 goes off to university.
Would *really* like to do this before Thing-3 goes off to university.
I don't mind all small, cheap cars! I bet I'd enjoy my time in a Mazda3, for instance.In today's news, Toshi rents a small budget car while the massive cushy car that he owns and loves is getting spit shined. He's quoted as saying, "the cheap car feels cheap, slow too... it did turn on though." In other news, we reviewed rain and found it wet.
But the Sentra is just a pathetic car that exists for rental fleets and those with sub-540 credit scores.
Nice, Uncle Bro-tato.Starting to get in the realistic realm of "Pay This Fucking Mortgage Off"...
Would *really* like to do this before Thing-3 goes off to university.
Older Sentras were once known for being high quality, good handling, inexpensive and fun to drive cars. The modern Sentra is none of that but inexpensive.
By contrast Honda, Toyota, Mazda and Kia can provide all that in a modern vehicle.
I would have included Ford but they abandoned cars in the US market not to mention some seriously unreliable automatic transmissions.
Have only driven one Nissan of late – a rental and I was very unimpressed. Mazda on the other hand is killing it right now with their offerings. The Mazda3 is great.
The Sentra is like a surly old lady working at the DMV. Will get the job done, but in the least enjoyable way possible.
Am afraid to ask... whats wrong with hotels?
Oh, nothing. But it'd be awesome to have a Tesla Semi-based RV. A Super C indeed.
Seems like the 8mm of ground clearance would be... problematic. 
Wouldn't be necessary as you couldn't stray far from major highway charging networks let alone go off-road.Seems like the 8mm of ground clearance would be... problematic.