Can you believe it? Ron and Barb got rid of the poor ole Horizon. On August 14 they took possession of a new 1991 white Toyota pickup truck, complete with pretty white shell (cap or canopy —whatever you want to call it). It was all wired up for towing and the Yakima bike racks were firmly in place. 

Just a few days after the last Newsletters went out, so did the car. This time it was a wiring problem; a short in the fan caused wires to burn. The result was that the car died. Ron and Barb decided that they would let the car sit for the two weeks they had left and then simply tow it out of Yosemite. Ron made an appointment at a Chrysler dealer in Lodi, California, which was a fair sized town near their first destination (Isleton, CA). 

The car was delivered by 8:00 a.m. Monday, July 29, but not repaired until Wednesday the 31st (parts had to be ordered). The cost, including three hours of work to find the short, amounted to $250. Once repaired, Ron remarked that the ole car seemed to be in really good condition now---nothing else could possibly go wrong. Barb shook her head; she had heard that one before. 

They drove that brown bomb all over Napa Valley and into San Francisco, towed it up to the Redwoods and drove all around that area---even on some pretty raw dirt roads. It seemed okay. 

Sunday, August 11, the Hofmeisters crossed the border into Oregon and set up camp in a Coast to Coast campground in Talent. Since it was early in the day, they took off to explore the surrounding area. Ashland seemed to be the most interesting and the closest, so they headed there, parked, and walked around. But as they were leaving, Ron put the car into reverse and let out the clutch to hear some awful noises and a lot of jerking. It was happening again--- clutch or transmission or both. They looked at each other and immediately decided to drive to Medford and look in the car lots. 

Ron had originally thought of waiting until they got to Eugene (larger city) and until that moment was even thinking they could get by without buying a new vehicle. 

It was easy to see that Medford was a good sized town with lots of auto dealers. The big three and all the Japanese brands were available. They were browsing in the Toyota lot when, to their surprise, a salesperson appeared. Unlike Michigan, dealerships are open Saturday and Sunday. After talking a little and getting a base price, they left promising to return on Monday. They drove around the corner to the Nissan dealer and talked to the salesmen there. Both had nice trucks and the price was about what Ron had figured. 

Early Monday morning Barb and Ron were at the Toyota dealer. The negotiating began and went on till noon. Since the truck was stripped down and they wanted air, radio, carpeting, and seat covers, deals had to be made. Then the dealer drove the Horizon before giving a trade-in price. All they were willing to give for it (they were going to wholesale it) was $200. Ron said,  "NO, all the new parts are worth more." In true salesmen fashion, he asked what Ron needed. "Five hundred dollars," Ron said. There was a conference somewhere and when the salesman returned he said $400 was his very best, but he juggled something else somewhere and the bottom line was now acceptable to Ron. 

Salesman Rich took the pair to Kountry Kampers to pick out the canopy, but later when they went to pick it up, the off-white top clashed badly with the stark white of the truck. Barb had seen Truck Tops Plus and went there. Julie was super and they got a much better top and information on installing the bike rack on the canopy. Julie fixed them up at a modest cost of $45 (for rain gutters), guaranteed the work for the life of the truck, and the bike rack fit nicely. 

By calling the RV dealers advertised in Trailer Life Campground Directory, they found that Mike, at Triple A RV could wire the new truck for towing and squeeze them into their busy schedule. The job they did was very professional---100 percent better than the job that had been done on the Horizon. Total cost was $214. 

Barb said it was fun getting the back-end all organized, and they enjoyed the air conditioning since the temperature was nearly 100 degrees every day. They said it was even fun to be able to listen to a radio—the one in the Horizon broke long ago. But both agree that the best part is knowing that they have dependable transportation. 

Ron was a little nostalgic about that old Horizon. He hadn't had a new car in a long time when he bought it in 1983. Barb remembers that she had to furnish the transportation on their first date (October 5, 1983); he took delivery of the 1984 brown Horizon the next day. At any rate, this closes the book on the ole Horizon.