Short Story
Day two into my 1-week whirlwind trip to Mojave National Preserve, Phoenix, and San Diego. 20 miles away from paved road, heard squealing serpentine belt. It eventually went silent. Lost brakes and power steering. Drove it 20 miles that way to Goffs Ca. Called SMB, they (Heber) diagnosed it as a failed vacuum pump. Called Ford roadside service (immediate service), they sent a tow from Needles (30 miles) to pick me up. Took Ford Dealer 1 day to diagnose, 2 days to order parts and 1 day to repair. Per Ford “The vacuum pump exploded”. Completely broke apart into two major pieces. Breakdown happened 10Am on Monday. Got the van back at 3PM on Friday. All work is warranty. The dealer, Colorado River Ford in Needles (good people) never once mentioned the aftermarket add-ons as being a problem. Progressive RV insurance says they will pick up the “reasonable” cost of expenses (lodging and rental car). We made the best out of a bad situation. I’ll write up a full trip report later.

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... Charlie
EV-2 build is now complete, (yeah right).
KZ6T

Sorry to hear that Charlie as I know you have your family with you. At least it sounds like you are staying positive and that it is not going to cost you anything. That is a really strange "breakdown". Best of luck on the rest of your trip.

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2007 Ford RB Diesel SMB 4x4 Pueblo Gold; Custom configuration (aisle layout); PIAA 580 driving lights; Picked up on Oct 19, 2007.

Oh boy. Sounds like things did work out though, aside from spending your whole vacation at a Ford dealership. Being able to drive the rig out of the back country is certainly a plus.

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2006 Baja Tan SMB 4X4 EB50 PH 6LPSD
Mohawk Royalex Solo 14 foot canoe (light white-water)
Mad River Kevlar Explorer 17 foot canoe (flat water)
Dagger Royalex Legend 16 foot canoe (white-water)
Maravia New Wave 13.5 foot raft (fishing and white-water)

Wow, Charlie! I can't imagine driving my van 20 miles under those conditions. Which was worse, no brakes or no power steering?

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'07 Ford EB50 PSD SMB $x$