We’ve had our new Weekender for a week now and I thought I’d post an update.
The first priority after delivery was to give our new baby a good wash. It was filthy from the trip from SouthernCalifornia! We took it to our favorite local car wash (a brush-less one) and gave it the works – wash, wax, undercoating wash, etc. The result: stunning!
Next we filled up the gas tank. One recommendation I’ve heard and read about this rig is to use premium fuel in it. The reason: it’s supposed to increase the fuel economy. One source was a friend who was a Eurovan fan (he was at least his second rig) and the other source was Pop Top Heaven. I consider both these sources reliable, so premium fuel it was.
The next task was to take the Weekender to the state DEQ station for testing. You have to do this in the Portland Metro area before you can get it licensed. The DEQ locations are closed on Mondays, so I took Westy in on Tuesday morning. I was a bit surprised when the tester informed me that the test could not be completed because the engine “wasn’t ready.” Not ready? What is that all about. She asked if the battery had been disconnected recently and I said it had because it just got out of the shop. She said that the computer that controls the engine resets itself when the battery is disconnected and that you have to drive it a while before it gets enough data so it can be tested.
Well, it was a late summer day and the sun was shining, so we hopped into the rig and drove from Portland down to Silver Falls State Park (just outside of Salem, OR). This put on about 100 miles of combined freeway and winding country road driving. Plus, it gave us a chance to do a mini-shakedown trip with our new Weekender.The Weekender is a delight to drive! It has fantastic visibility and handles like a car. Lots of power, too!
After a quick picnic lunch we headed back to Portland and stopped in at the DEQ test station. This time they were able to completely test the engine and we received our DEQ certificate and a VIN verification form.
Our next stop was the state DMV office for registration and title paperwork. The Oregon DMV has a nice online presence where you can find out what forms are required, fill these in electronically, and print them out to take with you to the DMV office. I had all the paperwork done, so we got in line and completed the process of making our Westy an official Oregon vehicle. We opted for the special “Pacific Wonderland” license plates. We liked this design because they are like the old Oregon plates from the 50’s. They had these plates in stock at the office, so we walked out with our new plates. Getting the registration done was a huge relief!
