4,242 miles. That’s how far we’ve gone since we left Celina, Ohio on this trip. We chose to do the oil change in Lakeland, Florida, at Abbey’s Aunt and Uncle’s house.

We had a chance to take care of some other issues that have presented themselves recently:

• About a week ago, the blower motor started to squeak really loudly, and then one day it seized and blew a fuse.
• The clutch pedal has been sloppy since we’ve had the van. I investigated and found that the pivot point was badly worn and ovalized, resulting in lots of slop.
• The headlights have been dim and the high beams only worked if you held in the switch.

We ordered some parts and had them shipped to Lakeland ahead of our arrival. Then we spent a long day (or two) working on the van. Replacing the blower motor requires removing the dash, which isn’t too hard but it is tedious and time-consuming. We found a couple old mouse nests in the process.

Having the dash out made it easier to get to the clutch pedal assembly. It’s amazing what 286,000 miles of shifting can do to a pivot point – look at that wear!

When the blower motor failed, I tested the resistor for the blower (it’s what gives you different fan speeds). Nothing was in-spec, and the wires were all mouse-chewed, so I made sure to replace it as well.

I figured now was a good time to rotate the tires. Having a full size spare means I get to rotate it in as well. Rotating tires is important. It gives you a chance to inspect the condition of the tires as well as your suspension and brakes. Everything looks fine.

I resolved the headlight issue(s) by replacing the switch, cleaning some ground connections, and wiring in two relays (low and high beams). The relays help because the Germans wired the headlights through the ignition switch, meaning the ignition has to be on for the headlights to be on. This is all fine and dandy, but by adding relays I shortened the electrical travel path and thus reduced voltage drop. The headlights are now noticeably brighter.

Since the headlight grounds were kind of dingy, I went around and cleaned up every other ground I could find under the dash and at the engine. Some were pretty corroded. After all this was done I swear Evelyn now starts and drives better.

Evelyn has been driving well thus far, and with this recent maintenance she’s ready for the next leg of our trip!

Cheers!