Drives - where have you been? Longest drives., Mine is minimal, but there should be better. Options

[Pat Garvey]

This was suggested in th Originality forum. Doesn't belong there, so I sent it here, and said I would be the first.

My first longest drive in 38 years has been 600 miles each way. Yeah, pretty "missy".

That drive was to the Pocono Parade in 74.

Know this - there was, and still is, only one expedient way to traverse PA - the turnpike (I-70 & I-76). Now, in 1974, the PA turnpike was really, really BAD! Particularly if you were in a lowered 914. It was 200 miles of pure torture, and pureed kidneys. Each expansion joint seemed 12 feet tall! Gas was almost non-existent, though I got my best mileage ever.

Long story short - won my Parade concours class, placed well in the rally & autocross. BTW - that's all there was to a Parade in those days.

Longest trip was from Cincy to New Orleans the following spring - 900 milrs each way. Not a HUGE drive, but it was really destructive to my 914. And the reason I had to repaint it in late 78.

Nice(though hot July) drive until we reached north Mississippi. Then we went through a "storm" of love bugs. Fritz was wearing a bra then, but we had to ditch it after that storm (have never seen anything like it). Wasn't salveagable so I thru it away. Not fooling here - it was caked 1 inch thick with dead bugs.

So, we made our way on - to Hahnville, where my ex-army buddy lived with a Zambezi '73 914. Ate enough bad/great food to fill a lifetime & headerd north after a week there.

The same F_cking storm of "love' bugs attacked us on the way north, only this time I didn't have the bra for protection. By this time my 914 paint was ruined & the front glass needed to be scraped - like with a winter frost scraper.

When I got home from the drive, and after trying to remove the remains of the "love bugs", I was decimated. My beloved 914 had been ruined. The acid that the love bugs left behind was devistating.

That's why it was reprayed in late 78.

Next time I'll pack an extra bra. Like them oor hate them - they work
Pat

[MDG]

I do an annual drive to visit my wife's family in the maritimes; Toronto to Moncton 1500kms (about 900 miles) each way takes about 13 hours and my wife doesn't drive!

Toronto to Vancouver three times - about 4500kms (2800 miles) each way - best time three and a half days with 3 drivers.

T.O. to FLA too many times to count; roughly the same distance as driving to Moncton. Did a bunch of these in my old 914. Edit: no it's longer - about 2400kms (1500miles) each way. Seems shorter when you're in your 20s I guess.

And one drive from L.A to T.O. but I was one of 4 drivers and frankly, I was passed out most of the way. And I have no idea how long it took - felt like most of the summer. Probably a week. There were a LOT of stops.

[SirAndy]

- From Oakland, CA to Moab, UT

- From Oakland, CA to Little Rock, AR

- From Oakland, CA to Seattle, WA


All three without any major issues ...
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/cheer.gif) Andy

[Socalandy]

767 mile one way to the Red Rocks Classic last year in Grand Junction and then the trip home visiting Arches, Bryce and Zion national parks for a total of 1,830 miles.

What great trip with only a leaky valve cover... OK, it was a bad leak and I left a trail (IMG:style_emoticons/default/hissyfit.gif)

looking forward to this years RRC!!!

[ConeDodger]

I drove the BumbleBee Racer back from Portland after buying it from Jim Chambers. Flew up on a Southwest flight. Enjoyed a night of frivoulous jocularity with the Thursday night WCR crowd. I still crave TurtleGirl's Beer! Then after watching the drive take off for the mountains and talking to Jeff Hines and JP Stein a bit, I took off for Sacramento. Straight through, no issues except the sunburn on my left arm...

(not my BB depicted)

[Ferg]

1258 Miles from Boulder CO to Portland OR for WCC only one way though (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

1302 Miles from Boulder CO to San Jose for WCC, 2604 round trip.

2 one way trips from orange county to Boulder for fly in drive home new cars.

1 one way trip from Las Vegas to Boulder, Same deal fly in drive home.

Ferg (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif)

Stories to go along with them, but to tired right now

[McMark]

I, once upon a time, drove from Napa, CA to Reno, NV in ONE DAY! A whopping 200 miles each way. I broke a CV in Reno and had to leave my car abandoned for a few days while we went and partied in Moab, then fix it on the way back.

That's my longest drive in my 914. So sad.... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif)

[Cap'n Krusty]

You figure it out. I drove my (barely) former race car '56 speedster, lowered and decambered with "airport " gears and an 8:31 R&P from Washington DC to Los Angeles. Pretty interesting, driving through a Kansas spring rainstorm, I'll tell you.

The Cap'n

[Mike Bellis]

I bought this one in Irvine and drove home to SF. 400 miles or so. when I got home my right arm was sun burnt and the CV bolts were almost out of the tranny.

My longest drive was not in the 914. San Francisco to Houston to Jacksonville to Philly. 3650 miles took me 4 days, driving at least 12 hours per day.

[underthetire]

In the 914, from Oakley to Morgan Hill. I suck, its only a whopping 90 miles each way. Or, went to the swap meet in fair oaks, that was 85 each way.

Don't know how you guys can do it, my back was killing me after only an hour and a half in that car.

[lotus_65]

almost every year from minneapolis to frankfort, michigan. then up and down the twisties all around the western coast of the lower peninsula, usually 1200-1600 miles total. sometimes i go to ann arbor too, visiting friends and family.

[hot_shoe914]

I did 814 last night for the Buttercup build!

[flippa]

Moved from Boston, MA to Redondo Beach, CA in August 1991.

I need to find the log book of the trip, but it was @ 3200 miles.

Moved back & forth from Redondo to Sacramento a few times between 1992 & 1995 however far that is.

[drive-ability]

I have driven from Irvine Ca. to Everson Washington 1260 miles there and back twice. I would hesitate to drive across country.

[tod914]

Had a PPI done, then flew into Oakland from Los Ang. back in 1999 to pick up my 1st teener. A white 73 2.0. 140k on it, just repainted and engine freshened. So he said. Test drive went fine, signed the title and handed him the check. Went out to start it for the drive back.. nada.
After getting it going again, lights started dimming, engine bucking and it died again. Replaced the voltage regulator with the help of one of the big shops out that way that merged with PP I believe, then off down the coast. Silicon Valley traffic.. let me say this, I'll never drive through it again. Rest of the trip went well without any other events. Love the Cali coast line. Had Otto finish sorting out the car before it was shipped back to N.J. Was funny, it was a toss up for this white car for 7k, or a Red 73 2.0 that was pristine for $12,500.00. $12,500 was alittle more than I had to spend at the time. So I went for the white one. 10 years later that car that I wanted so bad, ended up on ebay last summer, and it's finally in my possesion. Anyway, that's the longest drive I made. 2nd furthest would be from Northern NJ up to Watkins Glenn NY for historic car racing. Total blast!

[RJMII]

One summer I drove from Cedar City, Utah to Katy Texas, then up to Denver CO, back to Katy, then back up to Denver and on up to Worland again.


The previous summer I volunteered for a drum corps as a driver. I'm quite sure that I drove a few thousand miles that summer.

[Porcharu]

I do an annual drive to visit my wife's family in the maritimes; Toronto to Moncton 1500kms (about 900 miles) each way takes about 13 hours and my wife doesn't drive!
T

You average almost 70MPH - that is smoking fast over 13 hours. I can barely manage 60MPH average on my almost weekly trip to my house in the foothills, and it's only 140 miles - I run about 72MPH most of the time. The last 25 miles are a little slower, the 914 would have no problem maintaining the speed.
Steve

[martinef1963]

When I retired from the AF I picked up my 914 from Fairfield (Travis AFB) and drove it to Miami FL. Things turned interesting in the middle of TX - I thought my clutch was giving out. We had to push start the thing in gear with my son. Later found out the nut that holds clutch cable onto the clutch disengaging fork was backing out on it's own... Surely, something my son and I will remember for years to come...(not funny at the time...)

[JJ914GT]

Drove on every meter of highway in Australia in a 1973 HQ Holden Premier wagon.

Drove from The Netherlands to Northern Africa in a 1970 Opel.

Drove from Brisbane to Adelaide, through the outback in a HT Holden Kingswood wagon

And the 914 has only been from Amsterdam to France and to the UK ( Goodwood) because it's still in the workshop, waiting on it's new STI engine...

what can I say, I love roadtrips. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/w00t.gif)

[veltror]

I did a 4500 mile trip across Europe in my 76. I then did a 2900 mil trip the following year and another 1800 mile trip later that year. No problems.

The car needs to be driven and long distances to be sure...