Your favorite road trip car ?

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Workingdog1

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This might be fun and unfortunately controversial.

I bought this Buick Roadmaster 4-5 years ago and still working out a few bugs but . . . I love this rig and swear it's the best car I've ever owned and driven.

For a jaunt to the market with trunk space to long trips with the ride of an old school Grandpa car it's hard to beat.

Iron head LT-1, 260 HP Vs. Aluminum head 300 HP in Vjette this thing rolls.

I came out of the local Rite-Aid and saw this in a small community and chuckled endlessly.

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We got this in 2012. You would not believe how smooth the ride is. Best road trip vehicle I've ever had.

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Those experiences are cherished and are difficult to replicate and my sons will always remember seeing relatives and friends a thousand miles away.
 
Gonna take this is a little different direction. My favorite road trip vehicle is my 1956 Austin Healey 100. Sure, it lacks pretty much every creature comfort- manual everything, no AC, no roll up windows, no roof, no cupholders! Not much trunk space either, so, one suitcase and it had better be small. Prepped for vintage racing, so, lower ride height and stiffer springs all around, it lets you know about every inch of pavement it covers.

But drive 1,000 miles, run some AutoX laps, and drive 1,000 miles home? Sure thing. Drive from northern California to SoCal and rip up and down all the canyon roads? Yup. Drive in the rain? Sure, just keep it over 60 so the rain goes over the windscreen instead of into the cabin.

Somewhere out on I5 near Mt. Shasta
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Silver Star Resort, British Columbia
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Lake Tahoe, another ski resort parking lot AutoX
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Westwood, California
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Sweet !

But at 65 and having to commute in my '88 K-5 for 190 miles one way once a week 3 hours with tire/exhaust/window noise and the ride I don't miss it though I still own.

I've had my share of thousand mile road trips one way nonstop as that seemed appropriate years ago.

This car style wise is Butt ugly I always believed and would never have thought to own one.

The ride, handling and comfort is unreal. If my health holds I'm looking forward to road trips in the Roadmaster.

I'd gladly look at older Mopar products to test drive if there are any recommendations.

I have never sat in or driven a Lincoln Town car but know some swear by those.
 
2022 Ram pickup with the EcoDiesel engine. Very quiet, fuel efficient and the ride quality is very good. 31 mpg is nothing to sneeze at!! :thumbsup:
 
Workingdog1 said:
This might be fun and unfortunately controversial.

I bought this Buick Roadmaster 4-5 years ago and still working out a few bugs but . . . I love this rig and swear it's the best car I've ever owned and driven.

For a jaunt to the market with trunk space to long trips with the ride of an old school Grandpa car it's hard to beat.

Iron head LT-1, 260 HP Vs. Aluminum head 300 HP in Vjette this thing rolls.

I came out of the local Rite-Aid and saw this in a small community and chuckled endlessly.

View attachment 1716352807

View attachment 1716352808
Click to expand...
If the cats like it, it's a good car.
 
72bluNblu said:
Gonna take this is a little different direction. My favorite road trip vehicle is my 1956 Austin Healey 100. Sure, it lacks pretty much every creature comfort- manual everything, no AC, no roll up windows, no roof, no cupholders! Not much trunk space either, so, one suitcase and it had better be small. Prepped for vintage racing, so, lower ride height and stiffer springs all around, it lets you know about every inch of pavement it covers.

But drive 1,000 miles, run some AutoX laps, and drive 1,000 miles home? Sure thing. Drive from northern California to SoCal and rip up and down all the canyon roads? Yup. Drive in the rain? Sure, just keep it over 60 so the rain goes over the windscreen instead of into the cabin.

Somewhere out on I5 near Mt. Shasta
View attachment 1716352824

Silver Star Resort, British Columbia
View attachment 1716352825

Lake Tahoe, another ski resort parking lot AutoX
View attachment 1716352826

Westwood, California
View attachment 1716352827
Click to expand...
Do you still own that? One of the favorite cars I've ever owned was a 67 Triumph Spitfire MK2. It was a very balanced car.
 
I really liked my `94 LHS that car would keep up with most. Daughter in-law needed a car so I gave it to her.
Now it's my `67 Dart with the OD it is really fun. Be even better when I get the factory ac working again.
 
My 68 Barracuda in it's current iteration, is a fine cruiser at 65@2240.
It was a lil finer at 65=1600/85=2100, but that was a different combo.
Except
for windnoise and lack of A/C;
But, those wing-vents work pretty good for my upper body, and the floor doors drive the air right up to where it needs to be. So, I don't miss the A/C so much.
But the wind noise at 85 with the windows down, is atrocious. Bring earplugs, 8 hours is a long day. Spring and Fall are better with the windows up. The most miles I've done in one day, is Winnipeg to Calgary, about 800/850 miles ...... but, I mightabin going a lil faster at times.
Just so you know, by the math;
65@1600 is same as 85@2100, 105@2600, 125@3100, just getting up into the torque. Double overdrive is pretty cool.
But I know, ya gotta love a car like this a lot, cuz honestly 85 for 6 hours is a stretch.
Several years ago I bought a 2014 Chevy Orlando frt driver CUV. It has a 2.5liter VVT, DI, 6-speed auto that cruises 65@2100. as well. Smooth, quiet, comfortable, A/C, cruise, pwr windows, and a nice-enough sound system. The miles just roll on effortlessly, and it gets a wee bit better fuel mileage at 65.....Which rapidly drops going any faster. By 75 she's sucking gas pretty bad, as the car is a total brick. As far as cruisers go, this one is about the best/second best we've ever been able to afford.
The other was a nearly new 2008 Buick called a LaCrosse in the Usa. 3800/4speed auto that was. Great fuel-mileage too. Nice car, until some middle-aged woman texting while driving, drove thru a stopsign without slowing down..... T-boning the car, with my wife at the wheel. The car was a total write-off. My wife shrugged it off. She's tough bird.
 
Back in the 80's it would have been my 77 Monaco ex state patrol car. That thing would cruise all day and still be comfortable. Now its my 2014 Charger R/T. I have driven it across the states a couple of times and it will average 29mpg. Not too bad for a heavy v8 car
 
The Barracuda (the fastback and now the convertible), I have over 6000 (road trip) miles on the fastback and over 4000 on the convertible. For me it is the journey not the destination.
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Alan
 
Workingdog1 said:
Sweet !

But at 65 and having to commute in my '88 K-5 for 190 miles one way once a week 3 hours with tire/exhaust/window noise and the ride I don't miss it though I still own.

I've had my share of thousand mile road trips one way nonstop as that seemed appropriate years ago.

This car style wise is Butt ugly I always believed and would never have thought to own one.

The ride, handling and comfort is unreal. If my health holds I'm looking forward to road trips in the Roadmaster.

I'd gladly look at older Mopar products to test drive if there are any recommendations.

I have never sat in or driven a Lincoln Town car but know some swear by those.
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Not trying to throw any shade! I've ridden in a couple of Cadillacs of a similar style, I totally get the appeal. Logically cars like that make complete sense to me. But I'm pretty sure that Healey imprinted on me, I enjoy the hell out of driving but the more comfortable the car is the less I enjoy it. It becomes a chore to accomplish whatever it is I'm doing (like commuting to work) instead of something I enjoy doing for itself. Driving is an experience for me, not just a way to get somewhere else. It's weird, I get it.

RustyRatRod said:
Do you still own that? One of the favorite cars I've ever owned was a 67 Triumph Spitfire MK2. It was a very balanced car.
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Yep, still own it. It's the reason why I've tried so hard not to tear my Mopars all the way down for a restoration. I probably put close to 100k miles on it, using it as a daily driver through high school, the last few years of college and my first few years of work with the Forest Service, with substantial commutes for all of them. Plus the road trips, large and small. When I was in college I used to just drive canyons for a few hours to clear my head. I tore it down for a rebuild, changed jobs, bought a house, bought my Challenger, bought my Duster, you get where this is going.

I finally have it back in my new shop so I can start working on getting it back together again.
 
72bluNblu said:
Not trying to throw any shade! I've ridden in a couple of Cadillacs of a similar style, I totally get the appeal. Logically cars like that make complete sense to me. But I'm pretty sure that Healey imprinted on me, I enjoy the hell out of driving but the more comfortable the car is the less I enjoy it. It becomes a chore to accomplish whatever it is I'm doing (like commuting to work) instead of something I enjoy doing for itself. Driving is an experience for me, not just a way to get somewhere else. It's weird, I get it.



Yep, still own it. It's the reason why I've tried so hard not to tear my Mopars all the way down for a restoration. I probably put close to 100k miles on it, using it as a daily driver through high school, the last few years of college and my first few years of work with the Forest Service, with substantial commutes for all of them. Plus the road trips, large and small. When I was in college I used to just drive canyons for a few hours to clear my head. I tore it down for a rebuild, changed jobs, bought a house, bought my Challenger, bought my Duster, you get where this is going.

I finally have it back in my new shop so I can start working on getting it back together again.
Click to expand...
That's cool! I got the British car bug when I was in auto shop in school. Our instructor had an Austin Healey bug eye Sprite.I think it was a 60 model if I remember right.
 
My ram 350 van and it even has a roller 360. It was a government crummy pulled all but front seats and the second row seat and put a double mattress, some coolers and an RV toilet and cruise the Oregon coastline stopping where we choose. Some of our best times!!

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I did a couple of road trips with this back in '08 and '10. The pic is of my Dad who passed a few years ago. I bought the car in Arizona and he and I drove it back. I also did a West Coast trip down to Monterey.

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To me road trips are different than just long distance driving. For a road trip I’ll take my 63 falcon, turbo Honda j35 v6 and a 6 speed manual. Awesome road trip car.
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For just long distance get from one place to another type driving, my 2009 BMW 335D M Sport. Every creature comfort you could ask for, smooth, quiet, fast, and 40mpg.
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For the wife and I its our 41 thousand miles 2018 Caravan, all the seats store away under the floor to make room for treasures, or me :lol: we know what a treasure I am :rofl:

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