6000 miles in an MJ

[NHMJXJ]

Yup ... I'm pretty much in awe.  Quite an adventure! 

 

 

[Salvagedcircuit]

Very neat to see the comanche venturing into other regions of the americas

[GonzoTheGreat]

Oooh, I can’t forget this one:

[GonzoTheGreat]

Ok. It's been a busy week. I've got a few updates.

 

First off, the title of this thread is way off. I've clocked over 7k miles since Massachusetts, and I'm still only in Oaxaca.

 

Second, some progress: We've taken the MX200 all the way from Puerto Vallarta to Oaxaca, and if anyone here plans to travel to southern Mexico, you've gotta drive this route. It's amazing. There are alpine mountains one minute, then palm trees and beaches the next, with a lot of jungle between. There are tons of little pueblos with all kinds of trinkets and fresh fruit for sale, then absolutely nothing but nature for miles. The coastline here is pristine and largely untouched by society.

 

Calamity also struck finally. I've been getting nervous that there were no major disasters with the truck, so I feel a lot better now that something broke.

 

I was going down one of said mountains, and the brake pedal got real soft. I never wished more that I had a stick shift, but the AW4 low gears worked great, and whatever that weird magic is that happens in the brake proportioning valve worked. I had blown the hardline on the rear passenger side. The fluid didn't drain all the way out, and I didn't totally lose braking, so I limped a half mile to a gas station to investigate.

 

The line had cracked and separated at the fitting on the wheel cylinder. Flare stayed in, line snapped off.

 

 

How could this happen to brand new lines? Well...  The guy who installed them left the entire hardline completely unsupported, and proceeded to drive several thousand miles on rough roads and cobblestone. Bad vibrations. The beach boys would not approve.

 

There was a parts store across the street by some incredible good fortune, though I cried a little when the guy said he could only sell me a compression fitting and some preflared line, and did not have a flare tool.

 

I do not like compression fittings. They are not DOT approved, they are not capable of withstanding the maximum pressure created in hydraulic brake systems during panic-brake situations. However, I didn't want to stay at that gas station forever, so it is what it is. 

 

 

Later, down the coast, we camped at this crazy Canadian dude's pizza shop on the beach. And while all of that sounded cool enough, when he let us into the back yard, I see a CJ-8! It's a work in progress. Someone had swapped in a forklift engine and tranny. He's sourcing parts to put back a 258, or maybe a cummins 4 cylinder.

 

 

I also had to stop when I finally saw another Comanche. It's in rough shape, but the owner still uses it to haul water. And yes, I got the VIN, and put it in the registry. 

 

 

There was also this laundromat I couldn't use, for obvious reasons 

 

 

And finally, a pic of the MJ under the palms, because it looks damn good here.

 

[Salvagedcircuit]

Hell yesss! Excellent update. I'm glad you are able to keep rolling and the AW4 carried you through

[GonzoTheGreat]

Ok, once again, I'm a bit past-due for an update, so here goes. We finished up Mexico with a couple days in Oaxaca (super cool city, definitely worth a trip). Met some "overlander" types. I highly recommend the iOverlander app to anyone who plans to travel like this. You can guess from the pic who had the easiest time driving through the tourist districts and parking in garages.  I have had no regrets about driving a 35 year old mini-truck on this trip.

 

 

outside of Oaxaca we saw some pre-hispanic ruins

 

 

I also drove some of the most exhilarating roads of my life. The mountains around Oaxaca are extreme. The grades are extreme, the temperature is extreme (max temp was 107F on the little thermometer I keep under the glovebox INSIDE the cab), the drivers are extreme, the road construction is extreme. Granted, I typically opt for the road less travelled, but one of these windy roads was completely torn apart for repaving, so it was brand-new asphalt, and smooth sailing one minute, then one-lane dirt construction site, with an unguarded cliff on one side, and not a single sign anywhere, just piles of rocks in the right lane, to let you know the lane ends.

 

 

All was well, except another alternator altercation.

 

 

The front case bearing gave up the ghost, probably in part from the blistering heat, but mostly because I bought the cheapest one on rockauto.  Thanks "BBB Industries"  This one is 100amps to keep up with my silly accessories, but I still had the old 60amp as a spare, so that got us into town, where I found a local guy who could source a new bearing, so we're back in action with 100amps.

 

 

That was it for Mexico, and honestly, I grew up hearing a lot of negative stereotypes about this country, but I didn't find any of them to be true. I had a great time. I never once felt unsafe. The people are great. The countryside is beautiful. I'm excited for the eventual return trip!

 

A few days ago, we crossed into Guatemala. We got the vehicle permit with no problems, just administrative BS. I felt like I was back home in MA at the RMV. 

 

We were only in Guatemala a half hour and I found a friend.

 

 

I couldn't find anyone there, but I got the VIN and put it in the registry. Somebody's definitely put some work into this one.

 

 

We spent some time at Lake Atitlan, in the "cloud forest." The people there are super chill. The weather was nice. The coffee is amazing. It was cool.

 

The little 2.5L has really pulled its weight with all these elevation changes. I never wanted a stick shift more though. The AW4 can't decided between 1st and 2nd when it's in low gears, but I've only gotten the brakes hot enough to smell once, which I didn't love, but considering we've been back and forth between sea level and 5000+ feet like 8 times in the past 2 weeks, I'd say we're doing ok.

 

Yesterday we climbed an active volcano, and camped on the inactive one next to it. This was my view over coffee this morning:

 

 

So that was pretty cool. Guatemala is super beautiful. The roads are trash, and the locals drive like maniacs, but I kind of get a kick out of the challenge. I'm REEEEALY glad I put in new suspension and steering before I left though. There have been many poorly maintained roads, and google maps does not know this country. I've been routed through some pretty back-woods "streets" including countless wash-outs and one river crossing, but the best was when I drove though a mile-long dirt path with 12" deep ruts through a broccoli field that google maps told me was a public roadway.  I'm well over 8k miles on this trip, and they have not been gentle miles. I can't imagine driving anything less rugged than a Comanche.

 

Also this morning I got another tire puncture, so, shout out again to Safety Seal for the high-quality plug kit. I don't like a plug on a steering tire, but it's between tread lugs, so it should be fine.

 

 

Next stop: El Salvador. We're still shooting for Costa Rica by the end of the month.

 

And thanks guys for the comments! I'm glad you enjoy the silly shenanigans!

[Salvagedcircuit]

Holy moly dude, you may be the one and only comanche driver who has driven near ancient ruins. This is the right kind of bonkers!

 

[fiatslug87]

You’ve seen more MJs in Mexico than I’ve seen in three years! Keep the updates coming.

 

What are the gas prices like down there?

[GonzoTheGreat]

9 hours ago, fiatslug87 said:

What are the gas prices like down there?

No place is as cheap as the states. Except maybe Venezuela. I miss the cheap gas at home, but all in all, it’s not too bad here. It’s better than Europe at least. 

Mexico is 23 pesos/L which is $5.15/gal

Guatemala is 35 Quetzales/gal which is $4.51

and El Salvador is $4.35USD/gal

 

19 hours ago, Salvagedcircuit said:

This is the right kind of bonkers!

Thanks! I don’t mind being a little unstable.   

[Limeyjeeper]

What an amazing, once in a lifetime experience!!