Before any alarm bells ring, we are OK and the RV is intact,
except for something in the engine. The ominous yellow warning light showed up
as we motored along somewhere near the border between New Brunswick and
Nova Scotia. Not long after that, we experienced our first loss of engine power,
while other vehicles sped past us.
A quick check to our Sprinter owner’s manual gave us a
dealer’s address in Halifax. So we pulled in to the Nova Scotia information
centre to get some maps of the province and city, and set out again. Not long
after, Val pulled over again and said we needed to detach the car from the RV
to eliminate any extra strain on the troubled engine. I hopped in to the Honda after we
removed it from the hitch, and drove behind Val as we limped on to Halifax.
We alternated between 110 km per hour, the speed limit, and
spells when all Val could eke out was 80 kph or even 60 a couple of times,
madly manipulating the gears to keep the rig going. Every time I saw a hill
looming on the horizon, I prayed he’d be able to get to the top without pooping
out!
I stuck like glue to Val’s rear (well, the RV’s anyway) all
the way, until we got to the toll booth at the bridge into the city. We were
channeled to different kiosks and I ended up ahead of Val, unable to hang back
till he caught up because of the heavy flow of traffic and the short turning
lengths that the GPS was barking out at me. I carried on, not even glimpsing
the RV in the rear view mirror, hoping we’d end up in the same place!
Somehow we did make it to the same dealer, shortly after
three o’clock, where a very nice service rep named Brittany listened to our
tale of woe. She’s the Sprinter expert, and took efficient notes on her
clipboard as she looked at the dash of the RV (Val left it running so she could
see what icon we were talking about) and asked us questions.
With some advice on local hotels and a
hurried packing session (including taking perishables from the fridge and
throwing them into a cooler bag with ice packs), we headed out again to find the
hotel. Now we must sit and wait to find out a) what the heck is wrong and b)
how much it will cost.
Fortunately, when we got to the hotel, we got a room; they
told us it was the last one available! Whew!
Oh, and I called the campground we were supposed to stay at
near Truro to cancel our reservation for tonight, and because we didn’t give
them 48 hours’ notice, they are charging the full amount. So that $50 we saved
the other day by not using a ferry? That’s where that money has gone!
Our next steps are unclear. It depends on what they find. We
will keep you posted. Cross your fingers for us!
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