seankrider

Here's a lob, that I fear could go very bad: We are embarking this weekend on a ~1,200 mile road trip from Sacramento to just outside Boulder. In the Cayenne! Longest road trip undertaken to date. So...

What should I do (to the car) to prepare for such a long haul? And what things should I pack with me?

Unacceptable answers are:

* Trade in Cayenne for more reliable vehicle before you go;
* Tow more reliable vehicle behind you;
* Bring thousands in cash and directory of all dealers in Nevada, Utah, Wyoming and Colorado;
* Directory of car rental agencies in same states, and directions to nearest airport;
* C-4, and long fuses;
(etc.)

CTT with 98K miles. Google says 17.5 hours (though oddly the Nav says 15...), I-80 entire trip to I-25 at WY/CO border, then winding mountain roads last hour in from Boulder. Two adults, three medium-ish kids, maybe three or four decent sized bags in back. She'll be running fresh front rotors & pads, four new tires by Friday, changing air filters tonight, changing oil tomorrow night, and checking fluids before we go. Pipes already changed out; cardan shaft has not reared up yet; plugs and coils replaced maybe a year ago; 6-mo old battery...

I'm thinking I'll carry: 2 qts of Mobil1; jumpbox; fix-a-flat; AAA card; maybe LTC's cell number...?

Please limit your smart-*** answers to 5:1 ratio vs. real answers.

p.s., If the outbound trip does not go well, I may have a car for sale if any Denver residents are listening.

mudman2

Just drive

whistle34

do you have satellite radio?

EnigmaWmn

I don't know what you need to bring, I just know that I'm bringing lots of:



in anticipation of your road trip updates

ltc

^+1

Besides, what's the worse that can possibly happen?

Renn 951

We put over 800 miles on our 2004 CS this past week, towing the 996tt round trip to Watkins Glen and the wife doing some touring of the area while I was at the track. Had the coolant pipes replaced six months ago as preventive maintenance, which was reassuring when the water temp needle moved above 180 degrees when towing uphill in 90 degree weather. The CS performed flawlessly.

Enjoy your road trip!

deilenberger

Well.. I'm leaving on an 8,000 mile trip in the Cayenne soon. Coast-2-Coast-2-Coast. My prep consisted of doing the 60k service a bit early, replacing the serpentine belt, putting the aluminum pipes in, and tossing a spare driveshaft center bearing in the spare tire well. The truck is going up in the air for a last minute inspection Friday.

I really don't expect it to be a problem. It's highway miles which are much easier on a vehicle then the usual around town stuff. And I did a few shakedown trips of several hundred miles the past few weeks, the truck performed flawlessly. Biggest concern now is picking the CD's I want to take with me..

nkgosselin

People went cross country in wagons, just drive.

I drove from Ohio to Denver in a 951 that had an engine fire that I bought cheap.

The pig will be fine.

deilenberger

This thread got me started poking around a bit looking at Cayenne reliability. Apparently Consumer-Reports panned the Cayenne (bottom of the reliability list) - due mostly to electrical problems. ALL the German cars were near the bottom, including BMW and Mercedes.

Somehow I think it was the coil issue that got Porsche that rating. It's certainly not an unknown problem on other vehicles, but Porsche's handling of it that probably got them the rating... not that it disabled that many cars.

Anyway - my point (which I rather lost above) is - despite the reputation of German cars for unreliability - with a bit of work on our part they CAN be reliable, and work just fine for this sort of trip. My last C2C2C was done in our '03 BMW 525i-T when it had about 65,000 miles on it. It ran flawlessly. Never missed a beat.

My first C2C2C was in a 1958 Saab 93, 3-cylinder 2 cycle, and aside from a fuel pump problem, the trip across country was uneventful (and the only spare part we had with us was a spare fuel pump, Lucas pumps will do that..)

mcbit

+2

That's the sort of mileage I do every week in my '05 CTT, wouldn't even consider it being a problem.

Divot

Vito Corleone called and said to "act like a man."

yeldogt

I cary an extra quart of oil for in 911 -- not my CS -- never needs oil. All my cars have flares or some type of emergency triangle -- and on long trips I toss in a can of flat repair. Nothing is far away anymore -- unfortunately.

The coolant pipes were a "no go" for me. Once I found out about them -- I had them replaced before I went any distance from home. I have a "no side of the road policy" in my house. If you have a flat get off the highway -- I don't care what happens to the tire or wheel -- but the pipes failing ....... stop the car.

wirunner

Some very good ideas above.

What fun would a trip be without some P!g adventures!?

Nahhhh, you'll be fine just drive! I actually think P!gs make excellent road trip vehicles - very comfortable and smooth at speed.

mcbit

I can change a tyre at the side of the road but what else nowadays?

No roadside assistance here; only faith!

user 83838290

+3
about the same mileage/week over here, no issues at all (apart from spending over a G on gas...)