Week 11 - This week doesn't deserve a title

This week was different. Exciting. Unexpected. Challenging. With significantly more lows than highs. But let's start from the beginning.

On Monday, we had to say goodbye to our two beloved dogs, Dora & Buddy. We had the whole day left to get our van ready and enjoy some cuddling time. Late in the evening, the owners returned, and our journey continued.

The next day was a driving day, covering the 300 kilometers back south to Auckland. Just before our destination, where we still wanted to take a small hike, our van chose to turn on the engine check light. It was clear to us that we needed to seek a workshop immediately and hope for quick assistance there.

We headed to the first workshop in a small village, and the owner couldn't help us directly but promised that we could come the next morning so he could read the error code and possibly tell us what the problem is.

So we continued to our overnight place, which thankfully was only twenty minutes away. However, the little and actually quite nice walk there couldn’t uplift our spirits. We took the time to research on Google and ChatGPT what the issues could be.

The next morning at the workshop, the owner was at least able to read the error code and inform us. Some issue with the turbocharger is defective, and it can't build enough pressure. His suspicion was that something is leaking somewhere, and therefore the turbo isn't functioning properly. However, he lacked the capacity for further investigation or repair, so we had to look for another place and workshop.

After thorough research, we decided to drive to Pukekohe, where there were several workshops, hoping that one of them could fit us in for inspection and repair. On the way there, we called the first workshop, which couldn’t help us but recommended another workshop instead. So we went on until the third workshop finally had some availability.

Upon arrival, our van was inspected immediately, and indeed, a problem was found that explained the error code. The radiator had a small hole from which air escaped. The shop said they couldn’t repair the hole directly but would take care of finding someone who could. They would take everything out, fix the radiator, and then reinstall it. However, this would take at least a day, possibly two days depending on how quickly someone could make the repair.

This meant we needed to find a place to stay on short notice. We booked accommodation for the next two nights, packed our most important items for that period, and left our van at the shop for repairs. The workshop promised to contact us after noon with an update on when everything would be ready so we could plan accordingly.

In the afternoon, we received the call. Our van had been completely repaired, everything tested, and the error code would not appear again; everything drives great, and we can pick up the van today, everything went faster than expected. On the one hand, we were glad that the repair was completed and we had our van back, but on the other hand, we had booked the AirBnB in vain, in a small town where we certainly wouldn’t have stayed otherwise. We decided to pick up the van right away but spend the first night at the AirBnB and leave again the next morning. The AirBnB wasn’t inviting us to stay for the second night either (dirty, no Wi-Fi, cold). Unfortunately, we couldn’t get a refund for the second night. When picking up our van, we noticed that the noise that had bothered us about our van and wasn’t noticeable at first was still there. We went back, but at the workshop, they reassured us and confirmed that everything was fine and had to sound like that. So we trusted their judgment and felt relieved for now.

So we set off again on Thursday. The region of the Coromandel Peninsula was our destination. Since the weather wasn’t forecasted to be very good on Thursday, we mostly planned to drive and make a few small stops whenever something interesting came our way. We stopped in the town of Thames and took a walk along the coastal path and through the city center. After we discussed the plan for the weekend again, we adjusted the route a bit, so we’d have to drive less overall. For the night, we aimed for a DOC campsite in the Coromandel Forest to tackle a bigger hike the next morning.

Friday brought everything different than planned. Flexible was our second name for this week.

The weather didn’t want to cooperate at all and was nothing like the weather report had predicted. It rained all night, and in the morning, low gray clouds hung in the surrounding mountains. Thus, we decided against the hike. Sloppy trails to run uphill for about three hours, only to have little to no view, seemed pointless to us. So we postponed the hike and made our way along the coast towards Coromandel town.

But that plan didn’t work out either. After about an hour of driving, our engine control light greeted us again, forcing us to visit the next workshop. Since no workshop in Coromandel town had the time to look at our van, we were advised to drive to Whitianga and try there. Since it was already Friday at noon, we made our way and drove another 45 minutes. At the second workshop in Whitianga, we had success, and we were assured that someone would look at our van in the next two hours.

So back to a small walk through the town to pass the time and anxiously hope that something could be found and a repair could be done promptly.

The workshop assured us that they had experience with Ford Transit vehicles and had seen them for repair many times. The diagnostic tool indicated that the error code was the same as before, but the workshop found another cause. One of the air hoses leading to the turbo had a tear and needed to be replaced. However, the repair could not be done until Tuesday at the earliest, as the necessary spare part needed to be delivered.

This was bad news for us, as we needed to be in Te Puke by Monday morning, where we would probably start our first job in New Zealand. Through a Facebook group, we had contact with a kiwi plantation and agreed to come by on Monday to sign the contract and start work. Without our van that definitely could not drive the 200 kilometers to Te Puke, this posed a huge problem for us.

We mentally went through all our options. Before purchasing our van, we had taken out insurance and also signed up for a membership with the New Zealand Automobile Association (called AA here).

So we called AA and explained our situation and that we wanted to utilize the corresponding services. The first feedback was that we weren’t eligible for everything, as our van was at a workshop, and the insurance only covers us if we have a breakdown on the road and an AA-appointed inspector determines that we cannot drive the van any further. The proposed solution was that we must drive to the adjacent parking lot and wait for the relevant inspector there, so that the insurance could then apply. Said and done, and about 15 minutes later, the roadside assistance arrived, to whom we explained the situation. Steve was incredibly friendly. He confirmed to AA that our van was undriveable, and we thus had a claim for a replacement. Also, he immediately got the key from the workshop so we could bring our van there on Sunday. Everyone here seems to know each other and helps out. Our luck in misfortune.

The situation now looked as follows: We would stay for the next two nights at the Freedom Camping site in the town of Whitianga. On Sunday morning, we would meet with Steve and take our van to the workshop. The workshop would keep our van until Tuesday (hopefully) everything is repaired.

The AA covers costs for a rental car for 3 days and up to 450 NZD. We had already booked one directly on Friday for the period from Saturday to Tuesday. Unfortunately, we do not receive additional accommodation, as we apparently have to choose between a rental car and accommodation.

After organizing everything on Friday, we searched for an excursion or activity for Saturday. We got lucky and ended up in a touristy town. The weather was too good not to do anything. Thus, we booked a boat tour along the coast to Cathedral Cove. We sailed into countless caves by boat, and the guide shared some exciting information about the area.

On Sunday, we drove with the rental car towards Te Puke and made a few smaller stops along the coast. We drove again to Cathedral Cove to walk through the arch on foot and take pictures. From the boat, the angle was simply not good for this cove. We enjoyed the sun and the beautiful walk to the beach.

In the evening, we checked into our hotel. This time we were lucky. There was a deal on booking.com, so now we are in a 4-star wellness hotel for 45 euros a night.

Monday will hopefully start our job, and if all goes well, we will drive the 200 kilometers back to Whitianga after work on Tuesday to pick up the van and return the rental car. Then Tuesday evening/night, we will head back to Te Puke to be back at work on Wednesday morning.

In this week, we have thrown our plans out the window countless times. Therefore, we are curious if our current plans will work out. But as always, we will find a solution for it :-)