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After taking a 2000 mile road trip to get an 09 C2 from a fellow RennLister, I thought I would share my experiences with the group, as it was a fantastic and satisfying event.
Background
I am a long time BMWCCA member, racer, and DE instructor who always wanted a Porsche in the garage. I thought I wanted a Cayman S with a PDK, so I spent a few months scouring the internet. I actually lost out on a beautiful 2010 Cayman S PDK because the car sold while I was on a plane flying back from my honeymoon.
In the proceeding months, I found an 09 Carrera PDK that was local to me, so I had to go test drive it. It was love at first sight, but something was missing. I took the car on 3 different test drives, and I ended up walking away from the car because I decided a PDK wasn't for me. However, that car shifted my base from a Cayman PDK to a 6 speed C2. I wanted the DFI motor and new PCM system, so I limited my searches to 09 and above.
After looking at multiple vehicles, I found the ONE on this forum. 70k miles, silver, 6 speed, decent option list, enthusiast owned. Coming from a mechanic background, the upcoming 80k maintenance didnt scare me in the slightest, and I am a firm believer that cars are meant to be driven.
So, long story slightly shorter, I got the car PPIed, we agreed to a price, and a date to conduct the transaction.
Since the car was in AZ, I had to make a decision. Do I:
A) Fly out, inspect the car, and have it shipped back
or
B)Drive it back
I decided that you only get a few chances in life to travel across the great United States, and I have never seen the vast majority of the states I would be passing through. So, I enlisted the help of a good friend and fellow RennLister, and we purchased one way tickets to Phoenix AZ.
Road Trip Planning
As soon as the tickets were purchased, it was time to plan the route. I had to get from Nashville to Atlanta, fly to Phoenix, drive back to Atlanta to drop my friend off, then drive from ATL to Nashville, all in 4 days.
So decided that we would take the northern route, and we HAD to hit up this tasty little section of road, also known as US-60.
So the road trip planned, everything in order, it was time to start the adventure. I debating on bringing my tow rig down to atlanta, but I decided that this entire trip should be done in the 911, so I ended up getting a sweet, sweet rental car in the form of a Toyota Corolla.
I wouldn't suggest buying this specific car once it goes up for sale after its rental life.
The car, my friend and I ended up at the Atlanta airport, and we were off to Phoenix. Once we landed, We were struck with the immediate thought of "holy hell its hot". Not a sticky, nasty southeastern summer hot, but a "I am standing in front of a hair dryer" type of hot. Since we just went back in time by 3 hours, it was time for some dinner at a highly regarded place on yelp. It was fantastic.
After dinner, it was time to sleep that nervous "what the hell am I doing" sleep that one gets when flying across country to purchase a car, or instruct two students at Road Atlanta.
First Day
The next morning, we awoke to a beautiful sunny morning with the hair dryer that was blowing in our faces only set to low. We met the previous owner, took the car for a test drive, did a cursory inspection in a hotel parking lot, and then signed the papers, moved some funds, and the deal was done.
Since we were in Phoenix, we had to stop by Evolution Motorsports and get the car tuned. I plan on flogging the crap out of the car on the track, so I wanted the car to have good throttle response, the ability to left foot brake, and as much extra power as they can give me. Once we got there, I understood why they are regarded as the best. Knowledgeable, good guys who are cool as hell and very much understand the 911 platform. The tune feels fantastic, the mid range came alive, and the pedal feel is amazing. For me, the biggest benefits of the tune are the ones which are hard to quantify, but will end up having huge benefits on the track.
Once the car was tuned, we met up with the previous owner to get the title work transferred, and we were finally ready to head east. Of course we first needed some fuel and a CB radio to enjoy the heated discussions of what trucker loves what type of beer.
We headed out of Phoenix on US 60, trying to simultaneously avoid pop-up severe thunderstorms containing hail, and make it to somewhere around Albuquerque NM by the end of the day. If you are anywhere in the vicinity of this road, I highly suggest making a day trip to see it. It reminds me of "the dragon". At this stage of the trip, we blew some trucker's minds about how "It's not every day you see a 'Porsch-uh' with a CB radio on it". A hilarious conversation ensued.
Anyways, I will let some pictures do the talking for this portion of the trip.
As you head out of the canyon valley and get into the "Show Low" area, the landscape immediately transforms into a forest and the temperature plummets. It was breathtaking to see the transformation.
The roads open up, the sky becomes huge, and the beautiful landscape of western NM is a fantastic view.
We continued on US 60 until Pie Town, NM. At this point, we were out of cell service, out of CB radio range with any one, and it was pitch black at night. We headed into the El Malpais national conservation area to get into I40. We saw all sorts of wildlife in the headlights, as I proceeded to drive my brand new (to me) 911 through a conservation park, at night, without cell service, while trying to avoid smashing the front end of the car into a large mammal. Once we got onto I-40, I felt like I just drove an endurance race. After a quick nervous laugh, we crested a hill, and the city of Albuquerque greeted us.
We arrived around 11:15, so we had about 45 minutes to get a sampling of the local beer, and crash for the night. We walked to the local brewery, had an IPA, and called it a night.
Day Two
Day two started with the glorious thought of "I finally own a P Car". We had an early breakfast, and discussed the plan for the day. We decided that today was going to be the long day of driving, as we wanted to cover the most ground possible. We set out, and saw this glorious mural, which we both took to be a good portent.
As we left New Mexico and got into Texas, things got rather flat.
After some fuel stops, we decided it was time for lunch. In one of those crazy life scenarios, just as we were discussing where to eat, my wife sent us a text saying to stop in at Rudy's in Amarillo TX (she made her own cross country trip a few years back). So, as a sign from the Gods that we were supposed to stop at Rudy's, we did.
As expected, the BBQ was fantastic. Since both my friend and I live east of the Mississippi, we enjoy pork BBQ, so it was high time to really get deep into the beef side of the BBQ world. The brisket is heavenly, even though I was told from a Texan that Rudy's sucks compared to others.
Our bellies full of BBQ, we headed eastward into Oklahoma into more flatness.
We tried to get onto US-66, but since we weren't in a C4/C4S, we decided that this sign meant we were turning around and getting back on I-40.
We passed through Oklahoma City, which has a neat bridge that runs over I-40.
It also has a great air museum next to the interstate. If time wasn't a concern, I would have loved to have stopped.
We saw a few interesting things on the side of the road as we made our way into the border of OK/AR.
We made it to Fort Smith, AR around 7:30 and decided to continue our BBQ fest, and had some delicious ribs (dry of course). Since we had never seen Fort Smith, we thought it would be a typical Arkansas town. We were wrong. Vibrant, clean, beautiful, this city truly is a gem.
We then proceeded to drive further east, and made it to Lonoke, AR for our second night's stay of the road trip. Since we were in the middle of nowhere, one would think that getting a hotel room would be easy, correct? Wrong. Apparently, there is nothing between Little Rock and Memphis, except for this exit with 5 hotels. Since we arrived at midnight, not a single hotel had a room available, except for a Hilton with a king suite room. So after 30 minutes of trying to find a hotel room, we decided that someone gets to sleep on the pull out sofa. We drove around 900 miles on the second day, but got to really see some neat things.
Third Day
The third day is where we decided that 1200-1500 miles is a reasonable distance to purchase a car. Any more than that, and the trip gets monotonous. We skirted around Memphis, and headed towards Birmingham, AL. On the way, we saw this little slice of 'Murica.
Since we both live in the SouthEast, the pictures sort of trailed off. We have a super exciting shot of the rolling hills, and some state signs.
We finally made it to Atlanta, with a total mileage of 1818. We averaged right around 25 MPG, at totally legal speeds the whole way
Fourth Day - Home!
I spent the night at my friend's house, and then headed to Nashville early Monday morning. When I got to my house, I had a pile of parts waiting for me. So, C2S wheels get loaded into the car and taken to the local tire mounter:
Used a tow strap to assist with the suspension install:
Mounted the GT3Tek Lip:
Installed some motor mounts:
And called it a night. The next morning, I took stock of the mods. I love the wheels, the stance, the spacers, and everything about the car. The 997.2 is everything I thought it would be, plus more. Its a great daily driver, date night car, and the performance is unmatched. The wife thinks its sexier than my 2002tii, the car is faster than my race car, it gets better fuel mileage than my diesel truck and has more creature comforts, so I can honestly say this car is a better car overall than the 3 other vehicles in my life. I look forward to further learning the car and performing my own repairs in the future.
Awesome trip!!..Love the clear taillights, I have the same model and it's been an awesome ride. These DFI motors run clean. Great choice of mods so far, the stance looks perfect.
Great P adventure. Rudy's are franchised. The one in Amarillo is a pretty good one really. Might stop in there next week on my way up to Northern NM. The orginal is in San Antonio and they will tell you they are the real deal. Taste tells the tale and, yep. Really good.
I wish I was taking the 997.2 next week but got wife plus other stuff to carry. Some really great ( and lonesome) roads in NM. Same colors and year as mine by the way.
I picked up a 2010, higher mileage, C2 as well earlier this year. Drove from rural PA where I purchased it down to ATL- fantastic road trip, and a great way to get aquatinted with the car!
Great story and pics, when you buy it drive it back don't transport it!
I did the same when I bought my 930 years ago and also my 997 last month but way less miles.
Great road trip. Have done all of those roads, but not in a Porsche. Must have been epic. And, Rudy's is a chain as OG said. There's much, much better. If you're ever in Texas, hit up any of the RL Texas crew for suggestions...T
Funny you mentioned "Apparently, there is nothing between Little Rock and Memphis, except for this exit with 5 hotels." That brought back memories.
I hit that same area around 11pm when I was driving my 911 back and also found no hotels except for a Holiday Inn that only had smoking rooms available.
The air in that room was so dam thick with cigarette smell plus a lightening storm hit around 2am I didn't sleep a single wink!
Thanks for all the responses and comments on the BBQ and the hotels! Glad to see other people had the same experiences as we did! GMan, I would have included a picture of the elk, but someone was too busy messing with the CB radio
Blu311, thanks for being so flexible on selling!
There's some really beautiful scenery to be found in the US. Sounds like an epic roadtrip. When my 997 was newer I once drove it 3 hrs across the state for a seminar, then 3 hours back home the next day. Now I rent something if I have to go that far away, as I couldn't handle a breakdown time-wise. Like you said, some opportunities are a one-time thing.
08-13-2016, 11:53 AM
09 C2 Purchase Road Trip
