Best FREE camping spot on the Mogollon Rim | Boondocking in our Thor Tellaro 20A | Bob & Hillary

VAN LIFE VLOG: Ep: 39 // We needed to escape the desert heat and headed for the high country at the Mogollon Rim in Arizona! We traded 100+ degrees for 55 degrees and lots of rain! Unfortunally our window on the sliding door is still broken so we were a little concerned to say the least. We end up finding more problems with our new van but still manage to make the best of it!
Subscribe to our channel! ► / vancaskeys
Connect With Us!
vancaskeys
Watch our whole Baja series here: • FMM Visa Problems at t...
Timestamps:
0:00
:24 We are concerned with all the issues our van is having
1:15 Gas Prices are insane!
1:49 It's raining and we are not prepared
3:11 We almost crash!
5:42 Our first look at the Mogollon Rim...we are freezing!
7:28 We found the perfect spot!
8:15 Bob explains all the alarms we are getting and why things aren't working
11:34 It WORKS!!!! It's a miracle!!!
12:45 A thunderstorm is coming!
13:33 Using the shower for the 1st time
17:30 Bob cooks an amazing dinner
18:10 FIRE ALARM goes off!
19:16 We are off to explore the Mogollon Rim
21:00 Bob is losing bad
21:53 It's freezing! Time to turn on the heater.
22:25 The next day
26:18 Time to leave
27:43 Our Sunroof almost flies off while we are driving!
SUPPORT US
Shop at our AMAZON STOREFRONT www.amazon.com/shop/hillarymc...
SumoSprings Rear for Dodge RAM ProMaster - www.amazon.com/shop/hillarymc...
DISCLAIMER: most links in this description are affiliate, which means that if you buy from my link, we will get a small percentage of the profit at NO EXTRA COST TO YOU!! Thanks for supporting us
WHO ARE WE?
We are Bob and Hillary, from Chandler, AZ. While we love living in Arizona we are not going to lie...the summers are brutal! So since both our boys are now in college we decided it was time to buy a #van and travel! We originally thought we would build one out. But after the past 2 years we realized that prices went up and things were hard to find. So much is on back order. So we did the next best thing! We bought one completely finished and ready to go!
What is our WHY? Why do we want to share it with you? The biggest reason is we have had some hard times and lost very dear people in our life which has caused us to want to make the most out of every moment we are given! Our goal is to inspire everyone to chase their dreams no matter their age and season of life, to help people see the behind the scenes of a couple doing that very thing! And if we can help you achieve your very own home on wheels that's icing on the cake! #vanlife #travelvlog #vanlifecouple #vanvlog #VanTour #Vanlife #tellaro20a #rampromaster #2022tellaro #tellaroVan #2022tellarovan #VanCouple #TravelCouple

[@stevenstark5650]

Oh my LANTA, that driver just stopping in the middle of the road nearly gave me a HEART ATTACK! You handled that really well, Bob and Hillary!

[@Vancaskeys]

Haha! Right! Crazy!

[@stevenstark5650]

If it makes you feel better, we have a brand new Coachmen Nova 20C that hasn't been out of the garage since we drove it home from the dealership in August. 2022. Due to an accident and illness in our family, then winter setting in, we have YET to even begin to encounter our own little newbie glitches and frustrations. Pray for us! Your perseverance and humor gives us hope! Thank you!

[@Vancaskeys]

Oh no! So sorry! Looking forward to hearing about your travels... hopefully soon!

[@neeciej19]

"People are stupid." 🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂 you two ARE my people!!!!

[@Vancaskeys]

🤣😂🤣😂

[@neeciej19]

@@Vancaskeys I say that all the times when I am driving. 😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣

[@Vancaskeys]

@@neeciej19 🤣😂🤣😂🤣

[@lynnknight3652]

You two just kill me 😂. I love how you show the good, the bad, and the ugly. I want to camp with y’all.

[@Vancaskeys]

LOL!!!!

[@outdoorsdon]

Gotta love new rig bugs - NOT! The Rim Country is beautiful and full of weather surprises. Black Canyon , Willow, Woods Canyon, & Chevelon Lakes are amazing during the week with minimal campers. Enjoy life and go with the flow. Hold Thor accountable!

[@Vancaskeys]

Right lol! It is beautiful...thanks for more great ideas.

[@esthers5772]

Rainex, what a riot 😂 That was a beautiful spot. Glad you are enjoying the van, despite the problems. I’m so sorry about the poor build quality. One or two issues are to be expected on a new build, but this van is a disaster. Truly shocking. You’d think that Thor would be teaching out to you make it right. This does not reflect well on them.

[@Vancaskeys]

😂😂😂 we do have an appointment to hopefully get it all fixed 🤞🏼🤞🏼🤞🏼

[@tp96720]

Thor Rize 18M owner here, sorry you are having so many problems with the van but glad you are not letting them keep you from getting out there. We have mostly fit and finish issues with our van but while upgrading to lithium batteries, the installer we hired found our house and chassis batteries wired together which actually gave us more useable power but also could have caused a problem if we ran them too low and then couldn’t start the van…glad that we accidentally discovered it, if not for upgrading the system we wouldn’t have known. As another commenter noted you shouldn’t run your AGM batteries below 50% or you could permanently damage them. You can program the Auto Generator Start to come on automatically in the BMPro if your batteries fall below a chosen voltage and even program quiet hours for it in case you’re in a campground with rules. I also noticed your awning doesn’t work with the physical arrow buttons on the bottom of the BMPro, neither does ours, I think it’s normal that it only works through the touchscreen…lights work with those physical buttons on our van though. I’m curious to find out if when you get it fixed those physical buttons also work with the awning.

[@Vancaskeys]

Oh wow! Thanks for sharing this! Thanks for the great insight and info!

[@stephenackerman7761]

“I wanted to shower because I was cold” man I have been there! Wanted to shower when cold and also when hot. You have me grinning with RainX on the toilet lol

[@Vancaskeys]

😂😂😂

[@martykong3592]

AhhhhhhhhhhhhhhMAZING how you two make the BEST of things! Most of us would be nervous, frustrated wrecks! THANKS FOR SHARING! All the BEST and Cheers! ::)

[@Vancaskeys]

Awww thank you!!!! 😃

[@danhalpert2284]

Great video and beautiful sights. As a non rv owner (for now) everything is interesting to me, even cooking dinner. How to make a decent healthy meal with a tiny kitchen. I appreciate your honesty and you guys have raised our consciousness of many nuances of vanlife. I love to travel off season when the tourists are mostly back home for the winter. Happy travels. BTW your video beats network tv!

[@Vancaskeys]

Wow! We beat network tv! Not that's an amazing compliment! Thank you! There are high highs and low lows to van ownership for sure. Our goal is to show it all! The good, bad and ugly and hopefully help others with there own van nuances. Thanks for making our day!

[@dianejimenez8327]

I glad you guys had a nice trip !!! No matter what happens !!! You both are kind people!!! Keep smiling👍😊🤗🙏❤️

[@Vancaskeys]

Aww thank you Diane!!! Hope you guys are doing well! 😃

[@brianjohnson1062]

So sorry you are having so many issues. I follow 7 other you tubers that live and vacation in their Class B. You two seem to have the most issues. I’m almost ready to buy a Class B. Thanks to your videos I will not consider a Thor product. I have to laugh at Bob being cold at 65 degrees. I live in Maine, 65 degrees is a warm spell. I hope your issues get resolved soon so you can have a carefree vacation. I live in Oro Valley AZ a few months of the year and saw you at the Phoenix RV show a couple of months ago. Happy Travels

[@Vancaskeys]

Hi Brian! Yikes! We have the most issues 🙃 Sorry our Van is causing you to not want a Thor…we just hope once we get everything fixed it’ll be good to go. But it’s been frustrating for sure! We used to live in Alaska and agree when we lived there 65 was a warm one…now we are babies! 😂

[@dwoodygura]

Thx for tKing us Long. One of our camping must haves, a 5x7 blue tarp.

[@Vancaskeys]

You’re welcome! That’s a great add! We will have to get one!

[@marsham3331]

I certainly learned a lot from this latest video! The greatest thing this video did for me was make me a believer in your credibility! Bob is a very positive and patient guy and you are right there to support that Hilary! The ongoing challenges you are having with this brand new RV is almost unbelievable and is certainly a very sad state of affairs! This company better take care of their issues with this van and take very good care of you two! Most people dealing with all of this would be ranting and raving and not showing near the patience you are! We loved where you went and all you shared with us, your loyal followers! Thank you for your honesty and the great example of personal integrity. We greatly respect that! Best of luck on all the broken, non functioning items along with the plethora of error messages! Hope they get it all fixed soon so you (and all of us) can hit the road soon! Love your videos and adventures! Thanks 😊

[@Vancaskeys]

Thanks Marsha! You are so sweet! We will have to take a road trip to the East Coast someday!

[@npwalker6780]

You guys are a total riot. We also have a RAM van; -good luck getting yours ship-shape.

[@Vancaskeys]

Haha! Thanks!

[@cj9667]

Good evening Bob and Hillary! You guys make me chuckle all the time..freezing! So sorry you are having so many issues with the rig. Can see the frustration on your faces! But you made the best of it! Rain?? It’s scorching down here in the valley! Thanks for taking us on an adventure! Oh my gawd..that idiot making a uturn right in front of you! Cidiots for sure! 🤦‍♀️ Surprised Hillary didn’t scream!

[@Vancaskeys]

Thanks CJ! The issues sure do stink but you are right we are trying to make the best if it! We are lucky Bobs so handy.

[@nhbomar]

Way to keep a good attitude in the face of lots of frustrations. Perfect camping spot - deer running by is a bonus! Hope you get all the camper issues fixed soon.

[@Vancaskeys]

We are trying. It's either that or cry LOL. The deer running by was priceless!

[@tylerstravels0610]

And i thought our new van was bad with having a fridge that was not fitted correctly !!! lol Oh the fun of van life. Only teething problems, sure your dealer will sort it all out, well they should . Its a lovely looking van, same as the Fiat Ducato's over here in the UK by look of it, and believe me, they have their problems as well. By the way 65 cold !!!! Thats boiling over here :-) . Great video and fantastic scenery.

[@Vancaskeys]

We agree! It’s going to eventually get sorted out. It’s just a process! We do love the van!

[@user-vm3yd2rp7f]

Love the vid. I probably would carry a camper's stove. Canopy. And a mister buddy heater.

[@Vancaskeys]

All good ideas!

[@marshaphillips3556]

Love watching your videos, so sad that there are so many issues! You both have such patience!

[@Vancaskeys]

Thanks Marsha!

[@TC-yi3ue]

I have watched several of your videos (love em). Cant believe the patience you have...pretty sure I would have gone postal with ALL the issues...

[@floridahermit4874]

Just a note. If you don't have lithium batteries draining then below 50% is vary hard on the batteries.

[@Vancaskeys]

That’s good to know! Thanks!

[@patkincaid8061]

Hi from a fellow Arizonan! Re: the van issues…they told us at La Mesa (and several other dealers) not to buy Thor because they just don’t have the quality control. We went with a Winnebago Travato and haven’t had any major issues in 2 years so far. Sorry you’re having so many problems. And trying to get LM to do ANYTHING with service is like pulling teeth. Good luck!

[@Vancaskeys]

Hi!! What part of Arizona are you from? We’ve been afraid of this. We had no idea that Thor is not good quality 😞

[@patkincaid8061]

@@Vancaskeys East of Phoenix in Apache Junction. And yeah, they told us that Thor has the most repair problems of any company they service. I’ve heard of a lot of people having issues with them.

[@Vancaskeys]

@@patkincaid8061 I wish we would have known about Thor. Just when you think you've done enough research...We love Apache Junction!

[@TC-yi3ue]

Love it there! Such a beautiful place.

[@Reneellinedance]

Hi I have a 2022 Thor Gemini 23TW and yep the BMPRO Control board was giving me grief two months ago with my AC. Darn thing would just shutoff and it would say 68 degrees when it was clearly over 90 degrees. So I updated the firmware on the BMPro control Panel and now I have upgraded the battery from the stock battery to two Lithium batteries and so far no more issues. I hoping my issues have all gone away or the next step is to have the BMPro panel replaced.

[@Vancaskeys]

Great advice! Our BMPRO control board is brand new-the other one didn’t work at inspection. But maybe it does need an update. Hmmm…we will check.

[@tinaklingseis1012]

Great video you guys!!!!! I love camping up there, it’s so beautiful!!!! Can’t believe after everything, the skylight pops open😱 And gooooo Hillary winning all the games👍🎉🎉😘

[@Vancaskeys]

Thanks Tina!!!! ❤️❤️❤️

[@georgejoseph9186]

My wife and I have the same van as you but with the sky bunk. We have always had shore power and haven’t boon docked yet. We haven’t figured out how to use the inverter-can you do a video on that or send some instructions. Also the solar panel hasn’t been working like it should so it is at the dealers being worked on. The joys of owning a RV. Thanks

[@Vancaskeys]

How fun! Bob would love to give you instructions. You can email us ([e-mail]) or send us a DM on our Instagram page @vancaskeys and he will answer to the best of his knowledge :)

[@gailcambra4650]

I have a Thor Rize. I love watching your videos for information. Did you get the recall on the propane connector? One more thing to fix! I still don’t understand the inverter. I’m boondocking tonight so hope to figure out how to use it for coffee. I think you mentioned you have to turn the van on? I’ll see what happens. Keep filming! I’m surprised Thor doesn’t help you out so they look better. Take care

[@Vancaskeys]

Thank you Gail :) No we did not get the recall 😬 One more thing to fix...Oh well we are going to get this van in ship shape....hopefully lol. Surprisingly Thor reached out to us late afternoon on Friday (7/15) and had watched our videos and want's to help us. So stay tuned!

[@alfredm99]

Hello. I have enjoyed watching your adventures, especially your baja trip. Really sorry that you have had so many issues with both of your vans. As others have mentioned, Thor is unfortunately not known for their quality, but I hope they step up and get things fixed for you. I shot them an email with a link to this video and hope someone over there takes notice. Love your positive attitude in spite of all the problems. Good luck & hope things get resolved for you soon!

[@Vancaskeys]

Thank you! We are hoping it’ll all get sorted out eventually 🙃 We do love the van but we need to get everything fixed!

[@TakeAHikeToday]

Love the Videos! I too bought a Thor Sequence 20A in Jan of this year and experienced the same type of issues. After several trips to the dealer for a number of different reasons, i sold the Thor 4 months later. Never will I buy a Thor product again. I wish you guys luck!

[@Vancaskeys]

Thank you! Sorry this happened to you too!! Ugh! So disappointing.

[@sgtzilla58]

If that was my van I would drive right through the show room at the dealership. With a big picture of a lemon. You guys shouldn’t have that many issues with a brans new van. Love your videos and wish you the best of luck getting all the items fixed.

[@Vancaskeys]

LOL! We’ve thought about doing that!

[@brucenalder8646]

Glad you’re enjoying your new van

[@Vancaskeys]

Thanks!

[@pbzr7939]

Hillary for the win! Good work!

[@Vancaskeys]

Woot! Woot!

[@pbzr7939]

@@Vancaskeys Hoping it is just shakedown stuff, you'll have it sorted and roaming all over soon!

[@Vancaskeys]

@@pbzr7939 that’s what we are hoping for!

[@TrishBenedict]

All RVs have problems; however, Thor is known to have more than most. Take lots of trips - quickly - and make notes of everything that goes wrong, and get it all fixed while you’re in the period when they’re happy to take it back and fix all the little kinks in it. Because later, even if you’re under warranty, they will challenge you and tell you that the broken latch is not under warranty or something like that. (Or “Come on and we’ll take a look at it and see if it’s under warranty.“ if you live an hour or two from the dealer, you don’t want to drive it out there just to find out that it’s not under warranty.) That was our problem. Get as much as you can fixed now.

[@Vancaskeys]

Great advice! Thanks!

[@lindadino9757]

I love watching your show! I have the same Thor proMaster 3500 and set up except with a pop top. I have had all of your issues and more, but I do love my van. Where do you store your rug when your driving? I have so many ????s this is the first van I have ever owned used to tent camping before. Needed it more for medical reasons. But it is a pleasure to drive, sleep in and love the extras. Any advice for me?

[@sylmac65]

Sorry to hear you're having so much trouble with this new van but it's definitely made me rethink my plans of purchasing a Thor van. I've had my eye on the sequence 20k for about a year now🤷 not sure anymore.

[@Vancaskeys]

Honestly it's made us rethink it too 😂 Hopefully not everyone has this many issues with their Thor.

[@luckystamper]

Glad you had a beautiful view, but really not a good advertisement for a Thor Van. I would be driving it to the dealership. Hope things get better and we get to see more great videos.

[@Vancaskeys]

Thank you! We have an appointment scheduled to hopefully get it fixed 🤞🏼

[@scottd2063]

Love your vlogs! Hey, we're curious where you were camping. Was it the dirt road spur where Rim Rd veers to the right? (Near Woods Canyon lake)

[@FEARNoMore]

Question: Those aren't house drain pipes under the sink obviously, they are RV pipes, rubber drain hoses? They can withstand boiling water/ hot oil?

[@Vancaskeys]

Great question! The drain pipes can handle hot water…probably not hot oil. We haven’t had any issues as of yet.

[@FEARNoMore]

@@Vancaskeys 😉👌

[@mariemcmahel8618]

God Bless you guys! I have decided I don't want a van!

[@Vancaskeys]

Thanks Marie! Owning a van in an adventure-good and bad to say the least lol!

[@tomgraulty4988]

Sorry you’re having such a hassle with this. I wonder if the system thinks the engine is On when the key is in the ignition?

[@Vancaskeys]

Thanks. I think you might be right.

[@twooldtwohike1620]

Brace yourself it gets worse I have a Sequence…… tons of issues .

[@Vancaskeys]

Oh no :( Sorry you have issues too...

[@bevn362]

Use propane to run the furnace

[@Vancaskeys]

👍🏼

[@bizpo1286]

This is normal for Thor. They have had terrible quality for many years.

[@Vancaskeys]

Really? I wish we would have known 😔

[@cj9667]

@@Vancaskeys Neil Balthasar “Ultramobility” you tube has posted reviews on class Bs. He is no nonsense and honest about every rig..the good, bad and ugly! Sadly he doesn’t do posts any longer. There are issues with all rigs, some more than others.no USA made rig is exempt!

[@karenkelly1451]

@@Vancaskeys my salesman at Camping World said that too.

[@judy6416]

I’d return it

[@chuckgriffiths4077]

A known lousy builder of RV's combined with the worst RV dealer! What did you not research first? Most long time RVers know this.

[@diegocamino3214]

What’s the coordinates?

[@Vancaskeys]

34°20'18.3"N 110°58'47.3"W