They could not find the source for the diesel fumes. They pressurized the fuel tank for three hours and never found any leaks. They inspected and did not find any residue from previous leaks, etc. Diesel fuel does not evaporate, so wherever it drips or leaks will remain forever and eventually gather dust and dirt and grime which is what they look for when trying to find a leak. They searched everywhere, but never found it. I am convinced they didn't look "everywhere" because we still have the fumes and after running all afternoon when we left Gaffney, we had a strong odor in the coach again. It has to be coming from somewhere. . . we are not imagining it. They just didn't look in the right place or do the right test. But they tried everything they knew to do, so they left it at that.
The other problem is the "check engine" light which goes on when we get a "low coolant" warning. We had them change the coolant. We had it last changed at a Cummins shop and they didn't put in CAT coolant. There is a difference we found out, but that did not make the error we are having. The engine eventually goes into "limp" mode and then will shut down the engine. They worked for three more days to try and get it fixed. They again changed the sensor, put in a different module, ran new wires to the sensor, etc. Nothing worked, so they eventually gave up on that as well. On Friday they went into the computer and deactivated that sensor, which is what CAT in Ft. Wayne had done. That removes that sensor from the lineup and we were able to run again without that pesky warning. Still needs to be fixed, but we have to find someone who knows what to do.
It was extremely disappointing because we were certain this service center could do it all. We have a different opinion now. Don't get me wrong. . . the people there are very, very nice and they were very accommodating. But we don't think they do much with diagnostics and solving complex problems. They are very good on the various services you might want performed and cheaper than what we have paid before, but when it comes to our problems, they really didn't know what to do.
So where are we now? Red Bay, Alabama, where Phaeton Place was born. This, also, is not the place to fix our two major items, but we developed another problem they can fix, so we came here. When our large kitchen slide is out, we see a tear on the underneath side of the slide floor. It is fiberglas and we don't want it to get worse. It could be damaged more if not repaired, plus bugs could get in there. When Terry called them, they were very much aware of the exact problem and have a fix ready to go. So we have to wait here till our service number comes up and we will be all set. We thought while we are here we are going to ask around about the other two problems and see who is recommended for us to go to. We have heard of a shop in Decatur, Alabama. They are both a Freightliner shop and a CAT dealer, so they should be able to do both.
The ride over here was uneventful and long. We left Gaffney Friday 
afternoon around 4 p.m. We drove a couple hours but stopped before we got to Atlanta, not wanting to drive through there during rush hour on Friday night. We got up yesterday, Saturday morning, and drove over 300 miles, which is a long, long day for me behind the wheel, especially since we went through both Atlanta and Birmingham. I told Terry lucky for him I was having a lot of back pain cause that kept me awake on the longer than normal drive. LOL On the way over we saw an Oscar Meyer "Weinermobile" heading eastbound on I-22. Pretty cool!
So now we are in Camp Red Bay and already meeting new people which happens every time we come. It's been a few years though.Till next time. . .
Dale
