Bought a truck, now planning the 2,600 mile trip home!

[Naetzker]

Well, after listening to a lot of sound advice from many of you, I found a nice truck. Only problem is that its 2500 miles away! It is an 85, standard cab, long bed, 4wd, efi and appears to be in original condition.

I will be planning a trip to retrieve it. Flying to Sacramento where the owner has graciously agreed to pick me up, then possibly driving to SF, where I used to work as a mechanic and may be able to give the truck a good going over before the 2500 mile ride home.

Any thoughts? Places I should visit along the way, people who may want to have a beer along the road, etc?

oh yeah! heres a link to some pics; http://picasaweb.google.com/Mark7130/1985ToyotaPickup4x4#

 

[Owyhee H]

Im not along the way but good luck on your journey. As long as you don't want too make a record of crossing the country you should have a nice trip. Enjoy the views and stop a lot, there is lots to see. This time of year it might be a good idea to put some sandbags in the rear if your are taking any of the major passes, plus these old rigs ride better with a little weight in them.

Congrats on the new ride and safe travels.

Idaho85

 

[sisu]

Nice looking rig. Just out of curiosity do they have problems with auto theft in the neck of the woods? Two clubs on one truck!

Have fun on your trip.

 

[Patman]

Nice looking rig. Just out of curiosity do they have problems with auto theft in the neck of the woods? Two clubs on one truck!

Have fun on your trip.

Some parts of Sac are a little......Sac'ed:Wow1:

Every time I have flown to go get a vehicle, the trips back are always some of the best memories. Even if they are just mad, sleepless, dashes home.

Enjoy the truck, and especially the little adventure to get her home!:smiley_drive:

 

[sasaholic]

the bay area has alot of theft, but not really for older toyota trucks. mostly hondas, acuras, escalades, and higher end stuff. its not horibbley bad, but is is a higher rate than alot of places

 

[austintaco]

Awesome! I agree, road trips to pick up a vehicle are the best. Maybe you can ship some gear to yourself so you can do some road side camping? What route are you taking?

 

[CLynn85]

Congrats on the purchase, looks nice! I'm not along the way, but we've done 2 cross country trips from VA to the west coast and back, so that's 4 different routes, you're welcome to browse our two blogs and see if anything catches your eye:

http://clcrosscountry.blogspot.com/

http://clcrosscountry.blogspot.com/

Mind sharing what you scored it for?

 

[Naetzker]

Thanks for the kind words!

@Austin, Not sure which route yet! As I said, I may head south, stop in Sonoma at the Autohome distributor and spend a day in SF.
Will pack some basic camping stuff- will be pretty cold, depending on which route, but will want to try out the Airland!
Maybe a national park or two???

@ Clynn, I have driven across country a few times, but its been a few years! Thanks for posting the links to remind me of some interesting spots along the way.

I am hesitant to say what I paid for the truck. Lets say it was very fair for the condition.

See you down the road!

 

[4runnin']

Sounds like a very cool adventure! let me know if you need a place to crash or wrench on your truck...could show you some cool dirt roads too. Im in Merced (2 hours east of SF)

 

[corax]

If you've never been in northern coastal California amidst the big trees, I would highly recommend it, maybe take a drive through Napa Valley along the way (take the 101 up, it's much more scenic).

Here are some pics of the area, start at post 20 . . .

 

[Naetzker]

Sounds good!

Sounds like a very cool adventure! let me know if you need a place to crash or wrench on your truck...could show you some cool dirt roads too. Im in Merced (2 hours east of SF)

Hey!

I will try to send my info- cel and travel plans- in the next week or so.

Thanks!

 

[ddog45]

If you want to stop in Colorado I will meet you for a pint. I have a sweet work schedule so something should work. I have a driveway and tools if anything needs to be fixxed.:victory:

 

[Deleted member 9101]

Im not along the way but good luck on your journey. As long as you don't want too make a record of crossing the country you should have a nice trip. Enjoy the views and stop a lot, there is lots to see. This time of year it might be a good idea to put some sandbags in the rear if your are taking any of the major passes, plus these old rigs ride better with a little weight in them.

Congrats on the new ride and safe travels.

Idaho85

I use bags of kitty litter from wal-mart and wrap them in a garbage bag to keep them clean. when the trip is over, I unwrap them and return.

 

[Martini]

I wish mine was that clean, nice rig.

 

[greg mgm]

That's a really ambitious trip!
I did a road trip from So Cal to Montana and back to buy a vehicle and I loved it. One thing I didn't do was to make a mini vacation out of the trip, but I think you have that covered!

Not sure what route you are planning, but Bryce and Zion are must sees!
Other than that, enjoy the trip and post pics..:bike_rider: