[BAN]

Hey Guys,

Just looking to start a conversation on Long Distance road trips after a fresh Restoration. The short of it, is im hoping to be completed my car (71 T-37 post) by end of year. Summer 2017 i was hoping to drive to Alaska and back, so why not do it in my old Poncho!

Paint, wiring, fuel system and interior is all i have left. I've done the build entirely myself including engine and trans build.

My standard personal time of feeling satisfied with reliability on a build and its reliability usually comes somewhere after around 10 hours of run time, traffic, freeway, around town errands and a few half hour freeway trips.

How many miles ,or what kind of run time do you guys usually think is your safe zone, i know anything can happen, and it usually will.

Post your experiences on long distance trips on a fresh engine build/restoration. This is what we have these cars for!

A little ways off but i'm just excited about the idea, and i can see the finish line.
Cheers
Sam.

[Ben M.]

I'm a fan of doing day trips, longer and longer in the summer heat to stress a car out. When I put a car together, I will drive it around a few hours on the first weekend, checking everything. Then I daily drive it to work a week or two, checking everything every few days. Then to appointments at my doctor's office which is 45 miles away in stop and go traffic and freeways. After that, I'm fairly confident in it and will just continue to drive it, checking the oil and under the car every gas stop or few days.

So far I've got 3000 miles on my '73 since I fixed the engine and air conditioning and it's been brutal in the 95-100F weather with 80-90% humidity and it's been sitting at 20psi oil pressure at idle, 60psi at 2000ish RPM, 195F in the driver's head, and blowing 40F out the vents. It's been doing this for 4 months now, ~200 miles a week. I'm almost to the point of just jumping in it and driving 500-600 miles and knowing it won't have a problem that could have been prevented.

I road tripped my old '72 Lemans to San Francisco and San Diego multiple times in the summer and fall and it did great.

Ultimately you can have confidence in the car, but you have to drive it regularly if not daily to earn that confidence quickly.

[Deadhead]

Did a '63 Safari, & went through similar motions to Ben before driving to Norwalk (600 +- one way). I would have liked longer than 30-60 days after rebuild. Car ran hot in the hot conditions due to Vac advance etc. not being 100% tuned. Stuff like that makes the trip less enjoyable since you can't focus on it. It is no problem, but can be a distraction.

I have driven unknown old Pontiacs across country a few times (3000+ miles longest run), but after doing all the work myself and knowing what goes into it, I would not do a long trip on a completely fresh car. If for no other reason than new components are not dead-nuts reliable or even close. Too many defective parts out there to betray you. Make it fun. I have one now that I did, & I would get in it and go ANYWHERE BC another I had that came set up just like it from factory did not cause any trouble for 25 years. So simple and reliable. Plus, you know every single thing about it and put it together one time, so…

I wonder how many you have to do before you never worry about anything?

[BAN]

Awesome info Ben, thanks and good to see ya!

Yeah lots of traffic duties i think are where the car really starts to shine.

Deadhead - you nailed it on the new parts fail deal. Thats my biggest concern, i think reliability comes with a motor thats made it over 100k. As if its made it that far, as long as it stays cool and has fresh oil, nothing would stop it.

Im hoping to have 5 month or so before the trip of driving and ironing it out. I think the real key is miles and miles and miles, sooner or later things stop coming lose, and stop breaking. I hope. But yeah, as you said, i have less confidence in the individual parts oppose to the overall build.

worst case would be catastrophic engine failure due to something silly like my rod side clearance not being dead on or something of the sorts. Anything else im not soo worried about, a few short trips on a flatbed to make it to the next town while waiting for parts is not a big concern. Just would suck to have something come up that i cant fix by a few day layover in a parking lot and some mail order parts.

but thats the big question..... whats that golden mileage on an engine where it tips past the point of failing and into the, as long as its cared for it will run 100k + interesting stuff!

[andyg]

The last engine in my car had 50 miles on it before I set out on the power tour in 2014, as did the whole car from a frame off restoration. About 50 miles further, the camshaft decided to shred itself apart, I drove it another 800+ miles on 5-6 cylinders.

So my highly scientific answer is, test it further than 50 miles..

[mechanickeith]

My 61 Tempest has 554,000 on it. I didn't hesitate to drive it from Phoenix to Norwalk & back in August of 2011. 4460 miles in 9 days. Carburetor with points ignition.

[David Jones]

I've aquired 99% of my mechanical knowledge here over the last 15 years. Before PY I was brakes and oil changes. I've completely changed the drivetrain out with components I built and installed.

I think about that (and say a little prayer) every time I twist the key. I'd drive it anywhere.

[vidguy]

X2 Everything David Jones said.

Best thing to do regarding the confidence is to make it your daily driver... Just drive it everywhere in every situation. You'll get to know your car quickly and ID any issues..

People ask me "How can you drive an old car as your only car? Aren't you afraid it'll breakdown?"

Not when YOU have rebuilt and replaced everything...
Drive it daily, then go.

[TheSilverBuick]

Typically I've had around a month between finishing a build and hitting the road for a long haul. If the car does okay around town and out on the highway for a good week, especially when it's hot out, then it'll likely go about anywhere.

First time, I bought a '72 Centurion, 455, with trashed crankshaft in April, rebuilt the engine in May-June, drove it for the second half of June and part of July then drove from Los Angeles, CA to Myrtle Beach, SC and back in a two week span. The constant-velocity joint on the driveshaft and the heater core both went out on me in South Carolina, but got a drive line shop to fix the shaft and I just by-passed the heater core since it was summer. Had no other issues outside the large fuel bill, lol.

I've had around the same amount of time a few times before Drag Week, which I drive my car from Nevada to DW, race, then drive home. 2013 didn't quite happen that way though =P Got stuck in Denver.

[sd7369]

Sometimes ignorance is bliss. 4 years ago I helped a long time female GTO owner put her freshly restored car together and get it running for the first time in 15 years. Her dad rebuilt the motor and trans before he passed. Shop did a great job on the body and paint but dropped the ball on the assembly.

In the fall she had the interior and convertible top done and had it back in her garage before the first snow. The following spring she jumped in it and drove 250 miles to the beach Memorial day weekend with no more than 2 miles on the car. No problems whatsover to this day other than a dead battery from lack of use. I am super envious of her because I know what CAN happen and she did not.

I usually follow the practices as most of the posters have stated but maybe a little more conservatively. I wasn't that way when I was younger, just didn't think about it but then again these cars were just another car which you could replace in a week or two.

[RocktimusPryme]

Provided you have the financial security to get both you and you car back in case of catastrophic failure I dont see why not do it. Obviously you want to and would likely regret it if you didnt.

If you would be straight up stranded if the worse happens? Then yeah its a bad idea.