Different Approach...

[ChuckB]

I actually decided on a 2004 Porsche Cayenne S, in addition to the rover. It had everything I wanted, my last road trip in the rover made me decide, it does not have enough power for 4000+ miles of highway driving.

Pictures to come monday.

It has center, and rear lockers, and low range. No air suspension, and 17" wheels. I'm interested to see its capabilities off road. It's not going to be like my DI, but I think it will be sufficient as in reality I would't venture from the highway very far.

COOL! I can't wait to hear your impressions. I was looking at those the other day and didn't realize the GTS can be had with a 6-spd. The GTS is probably the least offroad worthy Cayenne of the group though.

 

[MattScott]

So far I have a few bugs the dealer needs to work through, all things they have TSB's about, so no biggie. I will say when I got on the highway for the first time, I was somewhat used to the acceleration on my rover, looked down after merging at it was nearly 110mph, needless to say the brembo's were used.

I also got pulled over on my way home. I was not speeding, swerving, or doing anything wrong, they gave me a warning for the factory glass tint. I've been pulled over on three different occasions now for this, they just look for DUI's; but I really think they singled me out, because I'm 18 and in a Porsche.

 

[mountainpete]

I'll revive this picture as my answer to the topic at hand. I would consider this the ideal vehicle to road tour with:

 

[Storz]

I've gone from MI to FL and back in a Z06 and an XLR, and from MI to GA in a C4 Corvette. Sports cars make awesome road trip vehicles, and you can get off the beaten path in a different way than you can in a truck

 

[bootzilla]

Either one would be fun - obviously the M5 would be more comfortable, but I think the Lotus would be more of an adventure. I've always wanted one of those, and with the Toyota motor, reliability shouldn't be a problem.

Also like the idea of the S2000 or a Miata - anything that is going to be reliable - just one less thing that you have to worry about and more attention you can focus on having fun.

 

[Every Miles A Memory]

I think the Lotus would be a great car for the road trip.

We had one for a weekend to do a write up on for a magazine I used to shoot/write for and when we turned it back in, the guy looked at the odometer and asked, rather loudly, "Did you ever stop driving it?"

I think we put on 500 miles in two days time and barely burned gas. The thing averages around mid 20's for mpg and that was hammering it the entire time along twistie back roads of Michigan

Only problem about going on a long road trip in a car like this would be keeping your driving record clean! It's just too hard to go slow!

At one point we were traveling down a rolling country road when we felt the car land hard and realized we had caught major air over that last hill. We both looked at one another laughing that "triple digits was too fast for this road!"

Two back packs might be stretching it with the truck space in this ride though! But sounds like a fun idea!

 

[ttravis5446]

I bought a new VW GTI at the end of August '08. It had under 200 miles on the clock when I picked it up. As of right now it has just shy of 15,000. It has been all over the south west so far. Took a trip from WY, through CO, NM, AZ, and UT in October. Then moved from WY to CO in it in November. Then moved from CO to CA in it last month. This car is a blast to drive, has 200hp, and handles like a go cart. I think that 15,000 miles in just over 4 months is a new personal record. it consistently gets 30ish mpg and has needed nothing but a couple of oil changes so far. Big change from the 96 Disco that I traded in on it. :ylsmoke:

 

[4Rescue]

I bought a new VW GTI at the end of August '08. It had under 200 miles on the clock when I picked it up. As of right now it has just shy of 15,000. It has been all over the south west so far. Took a trip from WY, through CO, NM, AZ, and UT in October. Then moved from WY to CO in it in November. Then moved from CO to CA in it last month. This car is a blast to drive, has 200hp, and handles like a go cart. I think that 15,000 miles in just over 4 months is a new personal record. it consistently gets 30ish mpg and has needed nothing but a couple of oil changes so far. Big change from the 96 Disco that I traded in on it. :ylsmoke:

Yeah an Older VW Golf/GTI would be a great all around tourer. New MKIV and V's are great too just not as reliable (alectronic issues abound) or as easy to tune/work on. MKI-II and III's (and even early MKIV) are easy to build and get amazing levels of power out of their motors (relative to their size and comlexity), lots of available parts, great reliability etc. good handlinging to boot.

Cheers

Dave

 

[lexwoody]

A used Range Rover Sport (Super Charge) would had been a great choice. On the line between street performance and off road abilites.

 

[ttravis5446]

Yeah an Older VW Golf/GTI would be a great all around tourer. New MKIV and V's are great too just not as reliable (alectronic issues abound) or as easy to tune/work on. MKI-II and III's (and even early MKIV) are easy to build and get amazing levels of power out of their motors (relative to their size and comlexity), lots of available parts, great reliability etc. good handlinging to boot.

Cheers

Dave

I now have over 20k miles on the GTI with a move to Northern California since the last post. I have had no problem other than a tire blowout from sidewall damage. I am extremely happy with this car and it has been infinitely more reliable than the two MK2 cars I had previously. Tuning for the 2.0 is getting better and better all the time now too.

 

[bentwanderer]

cross country on road expedition?

Yes i have done a couple dozen of them. Also by bicycle, and a couple on a motorcycle. After putting a bunch of miles on Mexican roads and N.W.Canada to Alaska, my front end is completely shot. And that is why i am now doing off road travel only. If you ever intend to see anything besides the night clubs and or B&Bs,theater etc.(that is not really expedition tho) you will encounter very bad roads as a norm.My next dream trip will involve a bicycle trip to the headwaters of the Missouri river and a canoe/kayak trip back to Florida.

 

[Squatchout]

Back in 1976 when going to college i had a 1971 honda 600 coupe:

That summer i took off and traveled from San Francisco to the Canadian Border and back. Slept in the passenger seat fully reclined and camped/cooked out the open hatchback. What a trip. And at about 65ish mpg it was a cheap date.

: ) Thom

Ha Ha, way back I had a Honda 600 Sedan. I've slept in it many times. I traveled all over and did a whole lot of backpacking out of that tiny little car. Wish I still had it. It would be a perfect commuter for me now. I'm thinking about a Smart car now for that purpose. It's amazing what you can do in a decent little car. You just have to be creative. Lot more "adventure" to that then the conventional way. My wife used to have an '86 Honda CRX si. We did several long road trips in that and had a blast. It had far more room in the hatchback than you would think.

I'd love to do a cross country in a high end sports car. But I think an old Mg or something similar would be more adventurous. We are redoing a '68 Camaro convertable and plan to use it for road tripping when it's done. Not much trunk space in those either.

 

[a.mus.ed]

This guy had an idea along the same lines:
http://jalopnik.com/5559767/i-sold-everything-to-buy-a-lamborghini-and-drive-across-the-country