After being completely surprised by Jo's parents at Chris and Shelly's block, we enjoyed a wonderful few days catching up on family news and enjoying the serenity of their piece of paradise. It was truly wonderful to relax and enjoy time together. It was also a good time to take stock of all our gear and make sure we were ready for the imminent return of Rocky...
A wonderful picnic at the future house site
We did a little bit of exploring in the area - you would be crazy not to. One place we visited was the iconic Milla Milla Falls. It is as beautiful as it looks, and has been on countless photographs and brochures - but on this occasion the water was a little too chilly to entice the little people to enter the water.
The iconic but chilly Milla Milla Falls
We also visited the nearby Mungalli Bio-dynamic Diary - and not only enjoyed some delicious yoghurt and cheese, but also learnt a little about what being bio-dynamic is all about. It is more than a commitment to use organic and chemical free processes. It is a holistic approach to the sustainable use of the land starting with the health of the soils. Oh, and their lunch was delicious.
Mungalli Falls
The curious locals check us out
The return of Rocky
Whilst staying with Chris and Shelly, we received a call from the dealer to let us know that Rocky was ready to be picked up. It was wonderful news, and I couldn't wait to get back down the hill to pick up our much missed transportation.
It was fantastic to jump back in the drivers seat and appreciate how comfortable this car is to drive. I couldn't get the grin off my face as I drove back to the family - and seeing the expression on the boy's faces as we pulled in the drive was priceless.
Rocky is back!
For the technically minded, the simple breaking of our serpentine belt due to a tensioner pulley coming out of alignment had caused a catastrophic chain of events. Part of the belt had got under the timing cover, causing the timing belt to not just skip a tooth or two, but break also. This caused serious damage to the valves and cylinder head, but thankfully the pistons and the block were undamaged. The parts list was extensive, but included a new cylinder head, water pump and a modified timing cover to ensure it never happens again.
I will be keeping a sharp eye on the tensioner pulley in question, to make sure this never happens again. Ironically the car will run without the serpentine belt quite happily as the water pump is driven off the back of the engine. So the old pantyhose trick should indeed work, if I run it around the alternator to keep the batteries charged... All the stuff you find out with the benefit of hindsight and bit of experience.
What has been incredible and needs to be stated again was the unbelievable level of support from Volkswagen. When you consider where we broke down - nearly 1000km north of Cairns, their roadside assistance in the form of VW Assist far exceeded my expectations. Not only did they ship Rocky back to Cairns for repair, they also paid for our accommodation until Matilda also arrived in Cairns, they paid for our flights from Bamaga to Cairns, and they also arranged and paid for a hire car with a tow bar until Rocky was back on the road. Emma from Volkswagen and Warwick from VW Assist will probably never read this - but they are part of a wonderful team of people and we very much appreciated their support over the past month or so.
We considered lots of dual cab utes in determining which one we wanted to travel around Australia in - and the more research you do online the more horror stories you find about every model available. Our decision on the Amarok was based on its comfort, towing ability and overall size. It is
a brilliant car - and whilst we identified a weak point, it also highlighted the lengths Volkswagen will go to to honour their warranty and look after their customers. Would I recommend an Amarok - absolutely.
But enough of that - it is time to get back on the road again...
No comments:
Post a Comment