Locate an Auto Repair Shop in Gardnerville, Nevada

Nice area. I would like to live around Gardnerville.

At the end of June I had accumulated 1,000 miles of mixed city/highway driving on my on month old RX400h. I was now ready to begin my approximately 2,000 mile road trip that would take me from sea level to mountain passes as high as 7,500 feet. The following are some of the parameters that I used in how I drove on this trip: I decided to drive my 400h just like I drove my RX300 on several past trips over the same route. I generally set my cruise control at the posted speed limits when road conditions and traffic permit. I used 87 octane gasoline (Chevron, Shell, Union 76, or Texaco). I fueled up when needed, or when a major change in terrain was about to occur. I will report the mileage in two ways (actual calculated mpg/navigation system mpg). On July 1, my wife and I headed south on I-405 from Bellevue, Washington. We both had two pieces of luggage and two carry on bags that would all be allowed as carry on luggage for airline travel. It was a cool morning as we picked up I-5 south at Renton and I had the A/C off. The road to the I-205 cutoff just north of Vancouver, Washington is relatively flat with some gentle rolling terrain. The traffic was light so I had the cruise control set a 60 mph until we reached Olympia where I raised it to 70 mph. By the time I reached Tacoma my mpg read 28.4. When I raised my cruise control to 70 mph my mpg read 28.6. When I reached the I-205 bypass, my mileage had dropped to 27.6. When I rejoined I-5 with my cruise control set at 60 mph, my mpg had increased to 28.3.The highway the rest of the way to Salem, Oregon was flat and level with a 65 mph speed limit. For this leg I turned the A/C on. We stopped for lunch in Salem with the mpg reading 28.5. We continued on and when we reached Roseburg we began elevation changes from sea level to 450 feet through gentle rolling terrain. At this point I stopped for gas after 363.2 miles on this 1st tank. The mpg was 27.06/28.20. We continued on for 15 miles to Canyonville, Oregon where we stopped for the night. We left Canyonville at 6:30 AM on July 2nd. This leg took us over foothills that reached 900 plus feet and then over the Siskiyou pass at 4,310 feet and then down in to California, climbing again to Weed, California at an elevation of 3,466 feet where we stopped for gas. Coming up the pass I encountered slow moving trucks (45 mph) in the two left lanes. The car effortlessly accelerated to 70 plus mph which was noticeably quicker than in my RX300. This leg of the trip, with the A/C off, was for 145.2 miles with the mpg reading 25.04/25.20. We continued south on I-5 until we picked up Highway 89 east bound just south of Mt. Shasta. The drive from there (89 to 44 to 36) to Susanville, California (119 miles) is one of my favorites with elevation changes from 4,500 to 5,500 feet. South of Susanville we drove on Highway 395 through Reno, Nevada which has an elevation of 4,490 feet. The terrain and altitude did not seem to have any effect on the performance of the car. The outside temperature had passed 80 degrees and I once again turned on the A/C. South of Carson City we turned west on highway 50 for the climb over Spooner Summit at 7,146 feet and then down to the beautiful Lake Tahoe (6,260 feet) where we stayed until July 6th. On July 5th we took a side trip to Gardnerville, Nevada which took us over another 7,500 foot pass. I filled up the tank here after 324.0 miles and a mpg reading of 28.19/28.20. Considering the elevation changes, I was a little surprised at the mpg. We once again returned to Lake Tahoe for one more night before heading for Novato, California on July 6th. With A/C on we headed west on Highway 50 over Echo Summit (elevation 7,382 feet). From there it was back down to sea level at Sacramento and then on to Novato over mostly level terrain. Just east of Placerville my mpg reached 31.4 and peaked several miles later at 35.2. We stopped overnight at Novato where we picked up my father-in-law for the trip back home. This added one additional passenger and one more piece of luggage to the gross vehicle weight. Since he can't take air-conditioning (one makes accommodations for 88 year old father-in-laws), we traveled the rest of the way without the A/C running. We stopped for lunch in Redding, California with the temperature at 97 degrees; not a pleasant driving experience inside of the car. I fulled up here after 393.5 miles (14.99 gallons) with a mpg of 26.25/28.10. We continued on to Roseburg where we stopped for the night. This leg took us past Lake Shasta, then up to Mt. Shasta, and again over the Siskiyou mountain pass. I decided to fuel up here and get my car washed. My mpg was 25.98/25.80. The next day we had a leisurely drive into Gresham. Oregon where we spent a couple of days visiting our granddaughter. After a few in town miles I filled the tank with a mpg of 27.1/28.3. The final 195 miles back home took just under three hours. I fueled up in Bellevue with the final leg giving me 28.41/29.80. The total trip was 1,954 miles and used 72.429 gallons of gas. My average mpg for the trip was 26.98/27.66. The total miles on my odometer now reached 3,030. I loved my 2003 RX300, but my 400h is quieter, has more power, gets better mileage (4-5 mpg highway), and is a lot of fun to drive. I like the firmer steering and noticed no pull either left or right throughout the trip. The mark Levinson audio system performed admirably as we listened to a 15 CD audio book, CDs from classical to soft rock, my ipod mini, and Tom Brokaw's "The Greatest Generation" on tape. The navigation system is improved with several new screens and the rear seat cup holder and storage compartment was appreciated. To quote Willie Nelson, we "Can't Wait To Get On The Road Again."

It seems that the new sensor in the transmission did the trick. No more engine light 1000 miles later. Actually today we got our best mileage ever: 23.6 mpg. I hope it's a sign of improvement after the reprogramming; however having gassed up in Gardnerville, Nevada, it could also be the lack of MTBE.

2001 F250 SC SB 4x4 PSD Two weekends ago we drove from Gardnerville, Nevada (near Carson City and Lake Tahoe) down to Yosemite National Forest. Drove around the forest and into Medesto then back home over Ebbetts Pass. A scary road. Not trailer friendly. No middle line and just wide enough for two vehicles. Just had camping stuff in the back and no trailer. I did the calculations for my trip and I was expecting something around 18 MPG but it was an amazing 24.6 MPG! I've never done so well. That's almost as good as my '97 Grand Prix.

I am considering purchasing a Extended Cab 2500HD 4WD and would like to get advise concerning towing with a SB vs. LB. Dealers seem to giving conflicting info (whatelse is new). Jeff (ruddster) thanks for the info on Dave Smith Motors, have already contacted them. P.S. I live in Gardnerville.