World’s Slowest RV

[@googleusergp]

Now it has one "deer power" under the hood, the horses left a long time ago. Speaking of 55 MPH, Sammy Hagar actually wrote the song, "I Can't Drive 55" in his hotel room after a trooper gave him a speeding ticket. Rumor has it the lyrics were already in his head as he was getting written up. Sammy Hagar also had a 1979 Trans Am with the license plate "IEATZ28" on it. Trouble was that since he was in California, it had a Olds 403 engine, instead of the optional Pontiac 400 which was not certified for use in California in 1979. In late 1979, a "Trans Am Street Machine" was given away by KMEL 106 FM radio personnel and Mr. Hagar at the now defunct Jim Troncatty Pontiac in Corte Madera, CA. There were 106 finalists and they picked a set of keys out of a bowl. The set that started the car was the winner. The car was a T-top 1979 Trans Am with an RPO code "L80" 403 Oldsmobile V8.

[@DanEBoyd]

Who would even take the engine out of that thing??

[@googleusergp]

For scrap.

[@googleusergp]

@@SST11B Oh "deer", it sure does.

[@harryballsacky]

NO ONE CARES

[@SteveMagnante]

Hello google User GP, I remember when Sammy Hagar was hitting it big - before the Van Halen era - and he had his Trans Am featured in Popular Hot Rodding magazine. I also remember Popular Hot Rodding did a story on how Blues Brothers star Dan Ackroyd built up a stealthy 1979 Dodge St. Regis police package 4-door with the E58 360 and all-cop-stuff but "wrapped in a plain brown wrapper" so he could zip around incognito. The story told how one visual deviation was a set of intense driving lights he mounted behind the plastic grille but he had to remove them because their intense heat MELTED the grille! Ackroyd and Hagar are two Hollywood folks who were / are really into cars as much as we are. Thanks for writing often and bringing useful info to the picture. -Steve Magnante

[@daynadiggle8169]

Yes , Steve , a lot of people hated the Le Sharo but they missed the best use of this wonderful vehicle ........ it made the perfect HO - WAGON ! That's right , it was better than a van , was perfect on the back row at the drive - in , and was perfect at the beach where we can drive on . Where ever LE SHARO was , the party was on ! I had two of these great vehicles way years past and yes , they didn't go 100 miles per hour , but who cares ? Mine also had generators on board for that summer fun . Just great memories I won't trade for anything !

[@fastinradfordable]

Except you did. Twice

[@daynadiggle8169]

@@fastinradfordable Hi Nathan . Yes I had a lot of fun with the Le Sharos . I am sitting here at my home base in central FLA . having my first whiskey root beer and thinking about all those old memories and the wonderful people I met along the way . I've traveled a long road and am close to 70 years young . It hasn't been an easy life but I managed so far . I've had lots of different vehicles in my life and was just thinking how big a part of our lives they can be . Some with good memories , some not so good . But a memory still the same . I love Steve's channel and it's a great place for motor heads , young and old to meet up at . I've been car crazy all my life and recommend this lifestyle to anyone ! Peace be with you , bro , and may your gas tank always be full . CRAWL ON !

[@SteveMagnante]

Hello Dayna Diggle, THANKS for the kind words. I enjoy "giving cars a voice" but really wish they could speak for themselves. But no. So I do my best to tell a little bit about them. Thanks again for watching and writing, Steve Magnante

[@ronnielambert1255]

My grandfather has one of these, we drove from Richmond VA area to Tennessee over Afton mountain several times, dad recalls it would top out in second gear at 30mph climbing that mountain on 64....

[@tony66au]

Steve you have constantly displayed incredible bravery exploring the Junkyard facing the untold, now told horrors of Mud wasps, Spiders, potential snakebite, Poison oak and now........ Porta Dunny's! 100% Worth it :-)

[@madmike2624]

awesome use of the deer head Steve!!!!

[@tims72demon]

My 86 Chevy pickup C20 was built for 55. I had to finally change the rearend gears and put an O/D tranny in it. So I went from 8mpg at 55. To 16mpg at 70-75. runs great now !!!

[@abeneufeld9690]

Out of curiosity what was the gear ratio that gave you the better mileage and what was the previous gear ratio when you didn’t get good mileage?

[@tims72demon]

@@abeneufeld9690 The original was a 4.10 we put in the 700R4 tranny, I’de have to lookup what that internal gear is in that. But we put 3.73 in the rearend. And at 70mph, it runs about 2000rpm. Major difference and such a pleasure to drive on the freeway now. I really do get 16-17mpg. And much easier to drive with that 700R4. 👍

[@Richert67]

The base of those vehicle are Renault Trafic mk1, a common work horse here in France ;)

[@siegessaule]

Way ahead of it's time. Imagine a 50 mpg rv in 2022!

[@MrR6guy]

right about now i think id buy one, 55 and 35 mpg..yeah id do that

[@AdamKruse-yc3kv]

We had one it was rated at 23 mog and never got more. And it was loud and miserable

[@scotthornhill8762]

Dude is smoking crack the turbo diesel at best would crack 20-25mpg. still good, but not 50

[@anibalbabilonia1867]

That’s a cool Winnebago! But you should do a segment on that beautiful, forgotten looks like a 1984 Jaguar xj6!👌😎👍

[@thor6580]

Just because...in your best Jeremy Clarkson voice, "It's a Jaaag"

[@jimkoval4725]

I still have my "radar detector" we all used while driving in the 55 mph era.

[@hankrobb6639]

Remember those days...our son was going to college in Clarks Summit, Pa. Pennsylvania had signs posting the fines above 55mph on Interstate 80. On one of our trips back home, we left around 2am trying to beat the predicted snowfall. I was running around 80mph when I noticed headlights flicking on and off. I slowed not knowing exactly what my eyes were seeing..it was already starting to snow. It was a State Trooper...who evidently showed mercy and was warning me. Several miles west of there, was another State Trooper who had already pulled someone over. That 55mph across Pa. was a killer..even in a '92 Honda Accord.

[@MrTheHillfolk]

Haha very familiar with rt80 as I left upstate NY in 95 and went to tech school in Cleveland. Lived there till the mid 2000s and still had my house there till about 7-8yrs ago as the selling market was in the dumpster. Anyways, by the last few years I knew pretty much every place to stop and get fuel or eat or hit a rest stop. And I lived thru it long enough to see it repaved from one end to the other and starting back at the beginning. Blizzard of 96 was a heck of a trip back out there ,but I made it in my diesel rabbit with mostly bald tires. Yep ,60 up the hill and pedal down the hill,it might hit 75 and drop back to around 60 going up the hill Like a slow roller coaster for 250mi😄

[@mexicanspec]

The problem with driving fast in that '92 Accord was the dim head lights. That was the only fault in that car. I bought a new '92 LX 2 door and the next year upgraded to a '93 SE 2 door in an aqua color.

[@Markie99352]

"Radar for your Protection ... and our revenue"

[@sombra6153]

I recall a Motor Trend article in like 1976 that pointed out that the life saving stats of the 55 MPH limit were based on CA numbers, and what may have been significant was that drunk driving also decreased. They attributed the drink driving stats to high cost and lower availability of gasoline cut down on drunks driving.

[@misigis]

Steve says, 55 speed limit was a major source of income for states. Just like red light & speed cameras today.

[@michaelv3340]

I remember when the speed limit changed in 1995. I went to the local highway and drove legally at the unheard speed of seventy. Those who weren't around can't remember how miserable the double nickel was. You didn't actually drive it, but you didn't know what the local police would allow you to do, and of course if they were running an "enhanced enforcement" you could get a ticket for anything over the limit.

[@edwardpate6128]

That facial expression when you opened that bathroom door, priceless!

[@bobbyoshomebuilt2544]

"Somebody's done a dry run in here" I always expect to see that at home depot.

[@robertellison4889]

A popular upgrade to the PowerPoint is a GM 3.8 Supercharged. My uncle modded his with one. Out of a Buick.

[@sickcoy13]

More like LaShart-o considering the dry run found.

[@richarddavis5542]

The Winnebago factory started and remains today in Forest City, IA, which is in Winnebago County. There have been acquisitions and mergers with other companies so they have other manufacturing plants in other states. I installed some computer equipment there so I got a personal factor tour a few years back.

[@TheRealSmithFamily]

There’s a MotorWeek test of this vehicle here on KZbin. Good watch too.

[@hard-wired-g3787]

I still have the speeding ticket I got from the CHP going through Palm Springs Ca at 3 am in 1982, 65 in a 55! Nowdays as long as you keep it under 90 the don't even bat an eye.

[@SteveMagnante]

Hello Hard-Wired-G, I spent 17 years living in the Los Angeles area and worked at Hot Rod magazine for 7 of those years. I had a 31 mile daily drive from El Monte to 6420 Wilshire Blvd. in west L.A. that took me over 2 hours TWICE EACH WORK DAY. Argh. But I do remember I'd always be driving along at 75 or even 80 and police cruisers would ride up on my rear bumper until I pulled over a lane to let them pass! I loved that the L.A. police didn't have any worry about freeway speeders, they had much more important duties to deal with - like the gang problem, drive-by shootings and REAL criminal offenses. I moved "back home" to rural Massachusetts about 10 years ago and somehow managed to never get any speeding tickets despite plenty of silly speed traps where going 45 in a 40 will get you popped. I am 58 now so my days of crazy driving and street racing are behind me. I say now: "the way to kill a bear is to starve it...obey the speed limit in small towns". Anyhoo, here's to travelling safely on highways at 80-mph. In modern cars it's not dangerous at all. Thanks for writing, Steve Magnante

[@Jeffreycarr-t7g]

​@@SteveMagnante from what u learned in 2 days about theas is they could do 75 moh plenty fast

[@chrisscearce]

How many of you thought the Rudolph was gonna be in the toilet also? No wonder they were slow it only had a one "deer" powerr rating under the hood. This video had me rolling and then the Kelly Bundy joke. WWEEEE🤣 Namaste Steve 🤙🏼

[@lilmike2710]

Steve said "Someone did a dry run in there." 🤣🤣🤣😁😂😂😂🤣😂😂💩💩💩💩💩💩💩

[@jimchari3697]

Steve. Winnebago corporate headquarters are located in Minneapolis Minnesota. The main production facility has always been in Forest city, Winnebago county Iowa. There are other production facilities located in other communities now. Like your videos.

[@ImTheJoker4u]

"Speed has never killed anyone. Suddenly becoming stationary however - Thats what gets you" Jeremy Clarkson

[@ImageOptometryBC]

Liking the ubiquitous Deer Head!

[@heymrjazzman]

Bonjour Steve. I love your junkyard crawls. They remind me of my youth when i would go and spend days playing in the old trucks and construction machinery yard close to home. Being from Quebec i speak french. I can confirm that Renault is pronounced Reno. Your junkyard being not to far from where i live i might go and visit one of these days.

[@joenovak2815]

How can you top both a Sammy Hagar and a Kelly Bundy reference in one video!

[@sometimesleela5947]

Was hoping for the trifecta of cabinets full of heating mantles and reflux condensers, but I'll take it.

[@Bbbuddy]

Imagine this thing in the mountains. The 55 limit was an example of Washington telling us what’s good for us, without thinking too much. Might work in Boston, SF or Portland, but not in Iowa or any other midwestern state.

[@christopherbero3388]

Love that deer cameo…..🦌🦌🦌

[@nunyabidness9895]

And we see the very last time Steve shows off an old rv's turd bucket. LOL! You got the deuce buddy!

[@johnwilburn]

Dry run!

[@jeremysomeone]

Love the video, love the return of the deer in every video ! These remind me of the Vixen motor home.

[@thor6580]

The reason you could have a trailer hitch on that thing is because it was a diesel, diesels make a lot more torque than horsepower and torque is what moves a vehicle.

[@johnnieguitar5724]

Good info¡ Steve, repeat after me please: "Ray No " ( Renault) Your French lesson for the day! :)

[@SteveMagnante]

Hello Johnnnie Guitar, Thanks for writing. I took Espanol in high school - too dumb for French. But I do have some sort of mental block with pronouncing French words in my native English. I "know" a Pontiac LeMans is technically to be expressed as 'Le-manghhhhh" but I just can's do it. I remember an old Steve Martin comedy album where he was pooping (with parody- of course) on the French language. He speaks a few lines of fake French then asks: "what happened? What happened?" The answer "He spoke French!" It was funny and tickled my xenophobe bone. But I swear from here on there is Re-NO-Way I'll ever mispronounce "Renault" ever again. Thanks for writing, Steve Magnante

[@stevejohnson1321]

For a long time, saturn with manual-shift was the tow-along vehicle. That usually required a rig more powerful than this.

[@Impactjunky]

My grandpa had a little Fiat back in the 70s that got over 40 MPG. It also had a steam cleaning system on the car that would inject water into the motor while running to clean out carbon buildup.

[@thrillbilly9785]

His face at 4:52 says it all. Priceless.

[@JimFlanagan4206]

Looks like a Ford Aerostar that took a few too many trips to the buffet!

[@o.c.smithiii2626]

I thought the cutaway chassis RV without a bunk over the cab was a Class B.

[@billlloyd4354]

One of those came to a shop I used to frequent needing an alternator. From Winnebago it was around six hundred dollars in the '80's.

[@danw6014]

Looks like that one is the ultra rare John Deere powered RV.

[@CR7659]

LeSharo sounds like what happened in the bathroom on that one

[@josephstanger873]

The 55mph speed limit I believe had a unintended consequence, many cars were released with lower gearing to have better acceleration with the limited power of the time, while making the engines run at higher rpms while going 55, which actually lowered the economy, and if you drove one of those cars faster, your mileage would crater above 60. A example of this is the Mercedes 300d, in the United States it had a lower rear gear, and a 4 speed automatic. At 55 I can return about 30mpg, while at 65 it gets about 25 and at 75 around 20-22 mpg. In Europe you could get the same car with a 5 speed manual, which let the car cruise at a lower rpm on the highway, which in theory would return better mileage.

[@johnsarian_cu]

I remember many cars of the 70s and 80s having extremely low numercial rear ends and detuned engines that would make full torque as early as 1800 rpm but gasp sometimes before reaching 5k rpm and certainly most wouldn't do more than just vibrate and make noise above that. Everything was matched for mileage. You could floor a GM V8 and hear that Quadrajet moan until you got up to about 30 mph and the revs started to pick up. Family had a 74 Cutlass with a 350-4V that would hit 52 mph top speed in first gear barely turning 5k. Almost the national speed limit LOL!! Bad times. Yuk.

[@judgegixxer]

Do you take the deer head to each vehicl? Or is there just 184 deerheads at Berneston Autowrecking?

[@antoniovillanueva308]

Customer: _How much for that turbo-diesel in the tiny RV?_ Yard: _One buck_ Customer: _YOU GOT A DEAL!_

[@dihydrotestosterone]

You broke a record Steve: 14 'but then again' it the video.... 🙋😜

[@SquirminHermanthe1eyedGerman]

My stpdad bought a new 1983 model & it wasnt that bad on flat open roads but struggled going thru the Blue Ridge & the Smokey Mountains ✌❤☮

[@tomjefferson3148]

loving the deer head

[@darrenbrisson4336]

Mags loved the snail joke actually made me snickle hahahahahaha 😆 🤣 😂 😅 😜 😄 😆 🤣

[@DistinctOgre]

I saw that backpack sitting on the hood of that old Jag and for a second I swore it was the "Draguar"! 😁

[@jamesplotkin4674]

That wall art freaks me out.

[@nikonordman7624]

7:12 a bike rack?

[@jeffclark2725]

Great video, always find out more infi,that wasn't thought of before

[@jamespetersen3933]

I was there too. Keep on crawling!

[@MrWill73]

That’s crazy that they were built with such a little engine. That motor must of had its tongue hanging out!

[@jimmartin735]

Someone probably snatched the Deere engine to hop up a zero turn mower

[@RC-cc4rv]

Get well Steve!!!

[@TrashcanGarage]

Well now, that was certainly a shitty experience.

[@DeadInsideButStillSmiling]

Watch out for that big cat crouching behind you Steve. 😸

[@jasonz7788]

Thank you

[@loupecci4901]

Is that Henry the Deer from Dearborn, Michigan?

[@2011joser]

It took me up to this video to realize that there is only one deer head and Steve is randomly placing it in the vehicles being featured. I’m not sharpest tool in the shed.

[@MJTAUTOMOTIVE]

The turbo diesel models never had a 5 speed transmission. and there is no way that you would of got 35 to 40 mpg out of that thing. They were that bad that the diesel was dropped by the end of 85 and it was petrol only with a 3 speed auto.

[@JamesJBurt]

you forgot to show Winnebago's interesting innovation on how to make a shower in a Class C

[@coolbreeze5561]

Someone pulled the slow diesel out and dropped in a John Deere, because we all know nothing runs like a Deer

[@Iloveyouallalittle]

I love the way he says Renault, here in the uk we say renno

[@sirmister4411]

I would have opened that bathroom door and blew lunch. It must have staaaannk

[@cwie2968]

What's with the deer heads? 😆

[@rawbsworld6604]

🤦‍♂️ now you clarify 😂😂 always sounded like Bernison to me 🤷‍♂️🙄 🤪 .. ✌️🤙

[@DanEBoyd]

I was thinking Bernindson.

[@adamthomas9829]

I had a Toyota dolphin with the r22 I can relate lolweeee

[@maxrockatanksyOG]

First & last time we see a Mobile Thunderbox on Steve's show?!

[@jameslaiola4976]

Great video Sir. Thank you. May i respectfully ask if these turbo diesel versions are governed at 60 MPH.? Or will these have the capability of going up to 75 or 80?

[@gregm9054]

My father was editor for a rv publication and remember it like yesterday going to a rv show to setup the both and seeing one of these trying to get up a ramp to go to the upper level of the show floor. All you heard was a reving engine and the rv just sitting on the bottom portion of said ramp, couldn’t get up the ramp more then the length of the rv. I was just about rolling on the ground. Biggest piece of crap ever to come out of the industry

[@jjbullavie]

There’s a draguar lurking in the back😳

[@myhomelife123]

Wouldn't it be funny if that deer head made a cameo appearance inside one of the featured cars at the next Barrett-Jackson auction? Hint, hint ...

[@DanEBoyd]

Excellent idea!😂

[@ripvanrevs]

The fastest depreciating asset known to mankind.

[@wretchedslippage3255]

Steve is a fuckin rad dude.

[@MichaelandCathy1999]

Ahhhhh!!!! Not the deer head!! Scary. 😂🇨🇦 Oh, and by the way, it’s “REN-O”, not “Renalt”, it’s French, silent “T”.

[@MattExzy]

'There's yer problem buddy, you need a new deer module..'

[@DanEBoyd]

We prefer to pronounce it "Wren - Ult," especially since here in the US, they changed the pronunciation around 1983 to "Wren - No," but also because none of their cars ever made a good showing here. The Alliance and Encore kind of did - they sold a lot of them, but within ten years, you never saw one still on the road.

[@SteveMagnante]

There is Re-NO-Way I'll ever learn how to pronounce Renault correctly! Thanks for writing, Steve Magnante

[@bobbyoshomebuilt2544]

The deer head is following you Steve!

[@slaggybuttonit]

I've been wondering how you spell Burnardston!

[@therepairshop6629]

One of the few vehicles my Yugo can dust.

[@gordonborsboom7460]

How many more places will we see the deer head New junkyard mascot??

[@MicroSoftner]

Dam no gold bars! lol

[@mexicanspec]

It is so odd to see 4 lug nuts on a motor home.

[@neilouellette3004]

I hope your Tetanus Shot is up to date Steve. Your goin' to need it.

[@wizard5637]

Who knew that Winnie was John Deere powered!

[@MrTheHillfolk]

Not me ,I didn't think there were many road legal Deere engines. Now I wanna know what model engine it was.

[@AdamKruse-yc3kv]

We had one with a diesel it was rated at 23 mpg highway and that's exactly what it got.

[@BurchellAtTheWharf]

I think that wall hanger is falling around the junkyard I think he wants to be your friend

[@b.s.adventures9421]

That model has one deerpower.

[@ayitsyaboi]

"...it was also a major source of income for other states." And that's why it's a problem.

[@TheREALJosephTurner]

Not sure how tall you are, but having to crouch in a motorhome would have been a no-go for me, even in the 70s and 80s. What is the headroom measurement in these things?

[@hensleyshobbies-doug7761]

I couldn't imagine the gas 4 cylinder engine pushing one of those things any more than 55, probably lucky to do 50 I'd say. Now that little turbo diesel would've been the best choice and that wasn't saying much either. Yeah those were made more for the European countries.

[@jamesstuart3346]

Ren-OH not Ren-ALT

[@runpny]

They actually have a cult following.

[@chrisbrady9122]

Could you make it have more power like engine upgrades

[@SteveMagnante]

I suppose anything is possible for added power but the lingering question remains, would the front wheel drive system handle the extra grunt. And for how long? Inquiring minds want to know. Thanks for watching and writing, Steve Magnante

[@chrisbrady9122]

I saw one for 800 needs some interior work and a mass air flow sensor .thinking about it, but I'm reading up on them this is a 1986 one

[@TheToolmanTim]

That first gen mighty be a bit underpowered, but looking closer under the hood we can see that nothing runs like a deer.

[@markpaige9032]

My 1966 Chevy van covers the 1/4 mile in 20 seconds @ 58MPH. Hang on!

[@Impactjunky]

@MARK PAIGE I don't know exactly what GM had to offer for vans but you could order a 70s Ford Econoline with a 460, a 4 speed and a 4.10 axle ratio and I always imagined one optioned out like that would have been at least respectably quick on acceleration. In fact I tossed the numbers into an ET calculator and one should be good for mid 15s/16s depending on exactly how heavy they are. That's not bad considering your average base model V8 automatic 80s Mustangs/Camaros were roughly 15 second cars.

[@rick74304]

Ren-o, Steve, not ren-ault; emphasis on the O, not the e like reno. Trust a bilingual guy.

[@aa64912]

Winnebago is also a Native American tribe. You did not want to attempt the mountains in one of these. Going down wasn’t bad but going up could be frustrating

[@merkbrains3105]

Beware Steve. I think that deer is stalking you.

[@4everdc302]

Look like it had Peugeot wheel bolt pattern on it I believe.