How reliable is your hot rod on a road trip?

1969 f100, drove it round the block, but it was a good trip! we got far enough to get gas in the tank!

 

Chandler, AZ to Vegas for Viva Las Vegas the past 2 years. 350 miles or so each way.....no problems except last year it took about 2 hours to go 2 miles over Hoover dam. Got a little hot and the drum brakes started pulling after riding them for that long. What made it fun was I never knew which way it was going to pull. Other than that, smooth sailing....

 

420mi a week to work and another 250 on weekends. 350/700r4 8in in back, rides like a dream. driven to Las Vegas next year for show.

 

Thanks. I like your Model A too. Looks like it's a pretty serious machine!

Logged another 650 mile one day trip to the Hot Rod Garage openhouse in Sand Springs, OK. Left water pump started leaking a little but didn't cause a problem getting home. 13 hrs in the car that Saturday and very comfortable with the memory foam seat. I'm a believer in that stuff. I remember thinking that my butt felt like i'd only been in the car 10 minutes. Spring seat with memory foam = nice ride! Ear plugs would have been nice going over in the 40mph gusts of crosswind though!

 

I used to travel abit on the east coast doing ind. maint on heavy equip. i hated the long drives. hoping that will change when my car is on the road. maybe it was the rattle and humm of the diesel in my dually that made it boring and put me to sleep

 

I followed the Big Olds north out of Wells NV that year (2009).....could not keep up.....the lady has a leadfoot.

 

The '37 got about 8,000 added to it's odometer, before I had to tear into the rear suspension. The guy that built it took a few shortcuts when hanging the rear end in the car, so the driver's side rear radius rod is toast. It's got a stock 98 GMC Vortec 350 and a TH400, and had a bulletproofed Columbia 2 speed in it. New rear end is a 8" with 2.79 gears.

I've put a few thousand miles on the '40 this year, too. The '40 has a 350/350TH combo with an 8" and 2.79's out back. It gets around 18-20, depending on how far my foot is into the carb.


In front of the MO Governor's Mansion, Jefferson City, MO. 11/17/2011

 

San Francisco area to Victoria B.C. July last year for Northwest Deuce Days, about 3800 miles. Great trip, never missed a beat.

 

Not really a hot rod but definitely a high miler.My 1955 Pontiac Safari was purchased in February 1994 and except for a period of about 3 years when it was down for a transmission has been driven all year round(I try not to drive in the snow)and has logged about 175,000 miles so far.
I used to make the trip from Michigan to Massachusetts every year to attend the Ty-Rods show and that was about a 2,500 mile round trip.It still has the rebuilt engine that was installed before I got it and the only items I've replaced are a couple of push rods(trying to see how tight I could wind it) and a crank pulley and fuel pump plus the usual tuneup stuff.
It is on it's 3rd transmission and second rear end;fifth set of tires and I don't remember how many brake sets.
The only problems I've had on long distance trips has been a plugged radiator(cleaned on the road with Liquid Plum-R);an incinerated generator;several wheel bearings;a ballast resistor(I keep a spare one now)and a plugged fuel line at the tank that I fixed using a McDonald's drinking straw and a Swiss Army Knife(my tools were at home).
Couple of scary times in the mountains of upstate New York in October when we ran into a heavy snowstorm on the way home.Drove about 75 miles and passed about 6 cars all the while my wife is trying to clean the fogged windshield and I'm hoping the wiper cables won't snap.Had about 4" of snow piled up on my water skis and surfboard(wish I had a camera for that).Oh yeah;the driveshaft bolts loosened up once too.

A couple of pix;1st is at the Ty-Rods one year taken by Dennis O'Brien;next is at another Ty-Rods show.3rd is in my driveway and the last is on Denise's front lawn.

 

Like Dale said - the best way to break them is is to jump inn and drive it - like from Mass to Tulsa and back.

I think the longest trip was Mass to Winnipeg to St Paul and home - three times (74/77/79). Or was it to the Memphis Melt Down (Nats) in '80 and then took a detour thru New Orleans and Disney World on the way back to Mass. 39 trips to the Street Rod Nationals. And no matter how many times we've broken or gotten lost (or even burst into flames) in the last 324,000 miles, it's sitting in the garage and ready to go anywhere.....

 

3400 miles in 10 days on the hot rod power tour this june. not as tough as you open car guys though; ac, stereo and cruise worked fine. master cylinder failed the day i got back home. self built. am definitely going detroit to texas next yr.

 

I've driven my Buick the 1100 miles each way to the HAMB Drags a few times with no incident, though this year she didn't want to go. IF you put a lot of miles on your car at some point you will most likely have an issue or two, but no more than with a late model.

 

The 51 ford I have for sale in the classifieds has been on the road 7 trouble free years now, over 10,000 miles, 24 mpg, 305/350turbo trans. I built the engine.

 

Finished my '46 Austin sedan this spring with 327/TH350 and 3.73 gear rearend. Put over 3,000 miles on it this summer getting the bugs out. Never let me down, but I did find various things I needed to improve or alter to make it better for me.

 

36 Ford touring sedan running a 283 adapted to the stock drive line including the mech brakes. I drove it from Wash DC to the Nats in Memphis Tenn. and back in 103 degree weather (stock unpressurized cooling system) in 1980. The 2bbl Rochester carb float developed a crack and sank. It was fine on the highway but it would flood at idle. I made it to Memphis and bought a rebuilt carb to get home on. It had a flat with 16" tubes on the wide five rim. I watched as 2 black gentlemen changed the tube by hand on the concrete floor again in 105 degrees. They were my heroes. I doubt that a modern parts store would have a rebuilt Rochester in stock today.

Drive the sumbitch it's got less miles on it than my daily driver. I've always been able to get home.

 

UPDATE-- just a tad under 1400 miles to the Revolution in Austin this past weekend. No problems in the roadster but it was a little chilly. All prewar Ford running gear. I haven't figured the gas mileage yet.

 

I don't really take any long trips but I put 1000 miles on between the first week in June and the end of Sept. SBC Offy tri-power with Rochester 2GCs with Turbo 350 and 3:91 gears. I plan to drive it alot more in 2012

 

When I bought my 57 fifteen years ago,I flew from NY to Iowa and drove her home non- stop. It had a 350/400 in her back then.

 

1000 miles in Colorado over 4 days two years ago. Then 9 hrs roundtrip to Muskegon last year for the Power Tour.

 

I drove my '65 Biscayne with a 500 hp 454, Richmond 6 speed and 3:42 gears from Torrance to San Diego. I actually built the car to go on one of those long distance cruises, like "Americruise", but I sold the car before I retired.

 

21 states 6000 miles one road trip, 1931 Model A, Not everyones choice Diesel just grab May's issue of Hot Rod made the cover. With a lot of help from my friends, You"all the best.

 

I can't even make it around the block without something going wrong.

 

Well I drove 250 mile and lost a starter,battiery,flywheel and alternator all at same time!! Not in that order but you get the picture! then I drove 850 mile and never had a hitch!!

 

24 Model T Topless Touring with a v6 Chevy and automatic

Nashville, TN to Sacramento, CA and back: 6000 Miles, with a minor mishap of a broken exhaust hanger due to dirt road travel in Iowa.

Nashville to Tampa, FL: 1300 Miles round trip in the cold of feb.

Nashville to Vermont: 1600 miles without incident

 

32 ford roadster with 8ba flathead and an s10 5 speed. Home built by me ,including the 2x3 tube chassis. Have driven it on several long distant tours, the longest about 3100 miles. Broke a throttle cable at goodguys colombus a few years ago. The good folks at tyhe lokar booth helped me out

 

The ol 57 never misses a beat. Drove it from CT to OH, drag raced all weekend, and drove it home. Can't kill that old y-block.

 

Lol

 

i have 305 thats been out and sittin for 10 plus years was still able to turn over by hand 6 months ago was running when i took it out of car worked dam good too would it be wise to replace top end gaskets and freshed everyting up before i install in truck??

 

Missed you at Power Tour last year. Hope to look your car over some time.

I've had my '40 Chevy ragtop for 33 years and 180,000+ miles. Been to Bonneville a couple times with it. Last long trip was Muskegon, Louisville, Bonneville, Cut Bank, MT and home in 2006. That trip was around 7000 miles...lotsa side trips and day trips while camping. Repacked front wheel bearings in a Walmart lot in Butte, MT one morning. Car has a ZZ4 Crate engine and 700R4. I've had a number of small issues but nothing that kept me from forward motion. Lost overdrive up in Jackson Hole, Wy in 2005 and drove it home the old fashioned way - 1:1 in 3rd.

Charlie

 

26,000 miles on Model A Tudor, lots of long tours, no major problems. 327/350 3.00 nine inch. I know guys that are afraid to go anywhere, fearing a breakdown.