I was traveling across the USA for the entire summer of 2023 in my 2005 Saturn Relay (which I also refer to as my “mission vehicle”) , starting in California, and going all the way to Niagara Falls, New York. I spent a few days or weeks in a few different locations along the way, based on different events I attended, and visiting people and/or places. My primary purpose in traveling every year is with the goal of being a missionary/evangelist along the way, which is the purpose of my Christian ministry.
Most of my evangelism is informal and includes pamphlets, but I also do e-Evangelism (online), as well as v-Evangelism (video) among many other things. I am originally from the Christian Reformed Church (CRC), based in Grand Rapids, MI, and attended Calvin College & Calvin Seminary, but later moved to Jackson WY, and then onward to California where I also attended Fuller Seminary (Pasadena, CA), and was also a certificated teacher for several years.
After Fuller Seminary I started my own ministry and devoted my time to reaching people with the good news of Jesus Christ. And yes I also enjoy sightseeing, hiking, etc along the way. I have enough in my budget to pay all my bills, taxes, gas, auto insurance, registration, etc, and a credit card with enough credit for emergencies as well. In other words, I am on a budget, and sometimes skip using a hotel for budgetary reasons, but nonetheless, I always have enough to pay all my bills and costs. I say this because it will become relevant later in the narration.
After reaching Niagara Falls and also visiting a nearby cemetery where some of my ancestors are buried, among other things, I started the westward return. Everything was going well for most of the trip in terms of my vehicle, until somewhere a little eastward of Denver. It was near Colby Kansas around July 7 that I felt a difference in the performance of the vehicle. I am not a big “gear head” as they say, so I just learn as I go. I stopped in at a few shops the next day, July 8 (Saturday) to see if they could give me any answers.
Unfortunately, in this area, most of the shops are either not open, or close early on Saturday. I did manage to find a few places including Great Western Tire, but was unable to ascertain anything with certainty from them. I did encounter outside elderly fellow at O’reilly’s who said he was pretty sure it was NOT the transmission, based on the noise he heard, and thought maybe it was the power steering. It turns out that this old codger may have had more wisdom than a lot of certified mechanics. Since the vehicle was still running, but not very well, I decided to continue onward towards Denver.
After adding some transmission additive I drove more slowly mostly along back roads to Denver and felt a little more optimistic as it was doing okay, if not great. Around Limon CO however I had difficulty with hills, seeming to slip going up, and also may have been correlated with the increasing heat (weather). Nonetheless, with a little tender care I made it to Denver, at which point I started inquiring with various auto repair & transmission shops - on the phone or in person, - including asking about a change of transmission fluid.
Most of the places habitually warned against changing the transmission fluid with a high-mileage vehicle (mine was reaching 200,000 at the time) saying it might make it worse. My thought about that was “damned if you do, damned if you don’t”. I only owned this vehicle for a few years and assumed the prior owner had properly maintained it, but I didn’t know for sure if he had changed the fluid on a regular basis. At the time I didn’t have a concrete idea about what is “good fluid” vs “bad fluid” based on look or smell.
One transmission shop I went to on July 10 in Denver called Rubens Transmission thought it was NOT the transmission (the owner actually took it for a short test drive and came back saying he though the transmission “felt strong”, but at the same time he thought the fluid might smell a little burnt) & also thought the serpentine belt may be slipping (it did look a little worn), or to be exact: “a serpentine belt causing a noise that was radiating over to the transmission area”. He actually disconnected the serpentine belt and the noise stopped. Hmm. hopeful.
SInce they only did transmissions, I took it elsewhere (a place called Los Jefes) and changed the serpentine belt . I was hopeful this was the solution. And it did seem to drive better ex post facto. So I stayed a few more days in Denver doing my ministry and visiting a few museums etc, as well as the Denver Zoo (one of my goals apart from evangelism is to visit as many museums and zoos as possible across America. I have two websites dedicated to Zoos & Museums of AMerica. After the Denver Zoo,I headed northward out of Denver intending to pass thru Fort Collins, and Laramie and up to Casper , then over to Jackson where I have relatives. I made it to Laramie no problem, even as the heat was increasing into the 90’s.
After a few hours at the University of Wyoming campus (I always enjoy the geology & anthropology museums there), I continued northward on Highway 30 towards Medicine Bow. All seemed well and fine. At Medicine Bow I turned on to highway 487: 95 miles to Casper. It was halfway on this stretch that I started to feel the familiar sensation that I remembered from around Colby KS. It seemed to be slipping again- with high RPM’s when I pushed the gas. I knew enough that I should stop and let it cool down. And did so. Higher weather temp also probably exacerbated the problem. So the problem seems to be correlated with high weather heat.
I stopped a few times along the route from Medicine Bow to Casper, and later I found out that perhaps the car computer had triggered the “limp home mode” along the way, because I really couldn’t seem to go faster than 30 mph for a stretch. And so I limped into Casper after dark.
The next day, Thursday July 13 2023, I looked around town for auto repair or transmission shops. And I came upon Dayton Transmission (maybe the only place that calls itself a transmission shop in Casper?). I walked in and a few ladies behind the desk were hospitable and offered to write me up for an inspection. However, I wanted to attend the morning mass at the nearby Catholic church, so I said I would come back in a few hours. There was no mention of an “inspection fee”. After church, I returned and they wrote it up.
When they asked my address, and I started to say “California”, I could perceive a barely veiled recoil, so I made sure I mentioned to the ladies that I ‘used to live in Jackson WY” given the prejudices some people have towards so-called “Californians”. No, we are NOT all lefty liberals. No, I am not a lefty liberal trying to relocate (I’m actually conservative). No, we are not all rich (but even the rich don’t like paying superfluous expenses) . No, we are not all poor (but the poor especially don’t like paying for unneeded repairs) . TO be clear, I am not really a Californian, having grown up mostly in Michigan, later Wyoming, as well as Hawaii & Spain, among a few other places. Nonetheless, it should be irrelevant in terms of doing business. It may also partially explain some of the below.
By the way, they never mentioned an “inspection fee” (aka “diagnostic fee”) while taking my information. A few minutes later a big burly fellow came out (never got his name) and said that since I was just passing thru they would take a look at it right away. That seemed nice enough. A good sign, I thought. And I assumed they had “technical expertise” given they are a transmission shop, so my inclination was to trust them. First thing they did was a check engine scan. The codes apparently indicated some transmission issues. Then one of their fellows took it for a “test drive”. As far as I could tell, they did nothing else. I don’t even know if they checked the fluid, or smelled it (later, as my knowledge about these things increased, I realized how utterly black and burned the fluid actually was, compared to what brand new bright red fluid should be).
After the test drive, the burly fellow came back out and started giving me his diagnosis, saying he believed the transmission was no good. He started offering me options including having them replace the transmission, and the various costs, as well as selling the vehicle to a place they recommended, etc. At no point did he offer smaller options first, including trying to change the transmission fluid. I finally asked him, “Why not try changing the transmission fluid first?” He scoffed and said, “it might help a little but you still won’t make it past Shoshone..” He kept referring to Shoshone as the limit I would make it if I kept going.
During this pessimistic conversation he also paused, and added in a stern manner, “You also need to pay a $50 fee.” At this point I had mixed thoughts & feelings as you can imagine. Yes, I agreed something seemed seriously wrong, but was not fully confident that it was a total transmission failure. I didn’t want to get into an argument about the $50 fee that they did not tell me about in advance, so I paid it.
It was at this time that the disposition of the ladies behind the desk also changed. One of them said, ‘Let’s see what kind of credit card he has..” as if I might not be able to afford it. Also during this conversation I mentioned the problem beginning in Colby KS and the burly fellow said ‘I thought you were coming from Denver” as if he was a lawyer trying to punch holes in my story. What the heck?
For some reason their conduct and tone towards me had changed after the fellow took it for the test drive. I realized the guy who took it for the test drive had probably looked in the back of my car and seen a sleeping bag and food etc and had concluded that I was some sort of vagabond and untrustworthy etc. As I mentioned before, I am able to pay all my bills, costs, taxes, fees, tolls, etc and do so. I sometimes bypass staying in hotels while traveling to keep costs lower. That’s not illegal or immoral. It’s just a fact-of-life. I have higher priorities than sleeping in a hotel every night while traveling- especially when I am a solo traveler. Using my van like a “camper van” is simply practical. Some people these days also refer to it as “van life”.
Finally, just as I was about to walk out the door the burly fellow who was trying to convince me to sell my car to a local place they recommended, added “Sometimes they will buy it and bring it here for transmission repair”. Aha. My red flags went up higher. They had done NO SIGNIFICANT TESTS to determine if it was in actuality a transmission problem other then check-engine scan and test drive. They hadn’t even checked the fluid, or if they had, didn’t seem to think the fluid was too black or burnt (or knew it was just the fluid but wanted me to think it was a total transmission failure). I found out later as I will discuss further below that the fluid was extremely black and burnt and should have been the first thing to try before replacing the transmission or selling it off at a low price.
Leaving Dayton Transmission, I did a few things around town. The vehicle was still drive-able, just not reliable for long distances especially in the high weather heat as it was at the moment. The other option I KNEW OF which Dayton had not offered was to use a U-haul to tow it using a dolly. I had done this before with a different vehicle. I decided to check out this as a first option. I decided that I could at least tow it home using a U-haul and then work on getting a more thorough inspection, repairs, etc, or even DIY options.
The only place that had the truck & dolly I needed to tow it was NOT in Casper but in Thermopolis, at a cost of $1482.34, not including gas (which added about another $500). I had to make a choice about finding a way to get to Thermopolis and return with the U-Haul & dolly, or take the chance of driving my vehicle to Thermopolis. The jeering words of the burly fellow at Dayton Transmission still haunted me: “You won’t make it past Shoshone…blah blah blah” )(and to further discourage me, he added that there’s no mobile service outside of casper)
Should I take the chance? Is he credible? Or just hot air? After checking options including rental cars and public transportation, or even hitchhiking I finally decided I would take the chance of driving to Thermopolis but would do so in the cool of the night to not only give my car an extra advantage, but also not to cause traffic problems by driving too slowly.
And so I began after the sun set, and around 10pm took my first break near an area called “Hell’s Half Acre” - apparently some interesting geography here, but too dark to see anything now. I also was praying intensely as I drove and rested. I believe in the power of prayer, without exception. After a 2-hour break I continued onward and passed thru Moneta around 1am, and took another 2-hour break at Shoshone, where the burly guy at Dayton Transmission assured me I wouldn’t make it any farther.
At 4 am I kept going to Thermopolis and pulled into town without any problems as the sun was rising. Since the U-Haul neighborhood dealer (aka Wow Discount) location didn’t open until 10am, I decided to go take a soak at the free hot springs bath house (thanks to Chief Washakie & the eastern Shohone tribe and/or northern Arapahoe for making this possible).
July 14, 2023: Around 10 am I pulled back over to the U-Haul location and took care of all the paperwork and hooked everything up and secured my van on the dolly. And continued on my journey, back towards Shoshone, then westward towards Jackson. My original plan was to visit relatives in Jackson for a few days and maybe go hiking etc, but now I had a time limit to get back to Los Angeles county (or the price would go up).
So I kept going…over Teton pass, left on highway 31 at Victor Idaho , then highway 26 to Idaho Falls (7/16/23) where I spent the night. Did a little sightseeing along the way, as well as a little evangelism. Also enjoyed Twin Falls for a few hours… then turned southward towards Wells Nevada and onward to Ely ..etc etc filling up this big U-Haul truck costs a lot more. Remote highway 6 westward towards Tonopah, somewhat close to what they call “Area 51” allegedly known for extraterrestrial activity. Then Highway 95 thru Goldfield. Highway 168 towards Big Pine. Highway 395 thru Lone Pine - gateway to the highest point in the USA as well as the lowest point.
Mt Whitney is the highest peak in the continental USA- at 14,505, which I hiked back in 2007, and Death Valley at 282 feet below sea level. Finally made it back to Los Angeles (Bellflower to be exact) and returned the U-haul.
My car actually drove quite well when I first took it off the dolly. It was my first attempt since starting the tow across western USA. I thought maybe it was a miracle (Yes, I believe in miracles, and have experienced them!). But it wasn’t, this time. It started acting up again a few days later. And I was getting discouraged again. Maybe Dayton Transmission was right after all? And I couldn’t seem to find a place to do a simple change of transmission fluid. They all kept warning me it might make things worse. But if worse is end of transmission, I thought maybe it’s already at that point? Once again, damned if I do, damned if I don’t. So changing the fluid is the LAST RESORT before either getting a new transmission or selling the vehicle for salvage etc. I have to take a chance on it.
Since I couldn’t find a reliable place to do a transmission fluid change for me, I did some research on my own, and learned I could try pulling the fluid out the top thru the dipstick using a simple water bottle handle connected to a tube which I purchased at Home Depot. I was ready to give it the old college try as they say, using YouTube DIY as a guide. The wisdom I gained from doing a little online research was that maybe I should try just doing a little bit at a time, replacing one quart at a time, so that it doesn’t trigger the alleged ultimate catastrophe that so many mechanics seem to be allegedly concerned about. So I did a first quart, day 1 (7/24/23) , and looking at my notes I was on quart #5 by Friday, July 28.
One thing I immediately observed when I compared the old fluid to the new fluid was the DRASTIC difference in color and smell. The old fluid was pitch black and smelt burned. The new fluid was bright red and smelled much better. I also added some sea foam additive which may have helped a bit as well. By August 3, 2023 I was up to replacement quart #8. Of course, it would take more fluid to replace all the old fluid since I was doing it out the top, and every time I sucked out another quart, some of the new good fluid was coming out as well.
But the positive thing was that it was starting to drive better, and slip less. Nonetheless, by August 10, the old fluid was still dark, despite having replaced 10.5 quarts at this point. I write all this rather than simply “cut to the chase” because I hope it will help encourage or educate mechanics and transmission shops who are more ignorant than dishonest to try to SAVE TRANSMISSIONS rather than immediately go to “heart surgery” so to speak.
In other words, if I was having heart problems and went to a heart specialist, it would be a red flag if the surgeon immediately recommended heart surgery rather than to try this or that first, and come back (unless of course they honestly know it is at a critical point). The lowest invasive measure should be tried first. By August 19, I had replaced 12 quarts thru the dipstick and the car was driving much better. By the way, I also did a check engine scan upon return of the U-Haul and it was NOT showing all the transmission codes that Dayton Transmission said it was showing, although intermittently during this period of gradually changing the fluid, the CEL would go on and off, periodically. Sometimes it would indicate a transmission clutch problem. Otherwise, not. But it never showed all the myriad of codes that Dayton claimed it allegedly showed back on July 13. So I don’t know what to think about that either.
Given the heat and the hills from Casper to Los Angeles, I am certain my vehicle would NOT have made it back even going slowly. That’s for sure. However, it seems clear that an honest mechanic should have known the transmission fluid was utterly black and burnt and therefore “oxidized”. An honest, ethical, and competent mechanic would also think about the correlation between high weather heat adding to high engine heat and consider all alternatives before suggesting an expensive $2500 transmission replacement, or selling it off to salvage.
I must assume that Dayton transmission shop has done enough transmission work over the years so that if they are still in business they are somewhat competent. Therefore, I have to call into question their honesty and integrity.
This ordeal cost me $2000 in additional costs to get back to Los Angeles, when it seems entirely likely, if not certain, that had I tried a transmission fluid replacement, either gradual as I eventually did, or just doing an instant drain and replace, it would have SOLVED the problem for a cost of $100 to $200 if it was done by a mechanic for me. Certainly, there was NO JUSTIFICATION for the burly fellow at Dayton Transmission to scoff at my suggestion to do a fluid change - and continue to try to frighten my by saying I wouldn't make it past Shoshone. THis is not an athletic competition where one athlete might try to intimidate the other to get the upper hand. THis is a business contract where you need to rely upon honesty and integrity and expertise of the “expert”. I was at a point of inner discouragement, but not yet despair- namely because of my faith in God. Nonetheless, dishonest “gamemanship” to try to make me despair and capitulate to his doomsday forecast was absolutely wrong and dishonest, if not illegal (ie fraud).
Even after I had finally replaced all of the transmission fluid, I waited thru September, October, and November (and now December) to be absolutely certain that the transmission is still reliable. I’ve now driven from Los Angeles to Sacramento & also the hills of San Francisco, and back (several times) to know that the transmission is good and strong. And I am confident I could make it across the USA again, thank God. I am planning my next big mission trip using this same vehicle.
DATED: January 9, 2024
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U Haul Log:
Begin 7/14/23
Also $58 gas in Shoshone WY
Thermopolis to Jackson 213 miles
Jackson to Idaho Falls 89m $100 gas
Idaho Falls to Twin Falls 159m $65.47
Twin Falls to Wells 114m $61.76
Wells to Ely 136m $53.58
Ely to Tonopah 172m $76.81 (independence)
Tonopah to Lone Pine 173m
Lone Pine to L.A. 200+m, $36 7/17/23
Total $441 gas + $1500 rental
Transmission Fluid Replacement Log:
7/24/23 about 1 new quart exchange
7/25 quart #2 at university library (enging light on)
also added Sea foam again.
7/26 quart #4 NB Lib,
7/27 quart #5
7/28 quart #6 NB,
8/2 quart #7 carson ,
8/3 quart #8
8/9 quart # 8.5 santa ana,
8/10 quart #10.5,
8/12 quart #11.5
NOTES & RECEIPTS
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