Almost 500 miles on a 2-day roadtrip through the Catskills!

[Poindexter]

After consulting with my fantastic mechanic- who told me to "Go drive that f****r already!" I set off last week on a road-trip to the Catskills and back from NJ. I covered 460 miles in 2 days. I drove almost non-stop in each direction- about 4 hours each session. The car ran *flawlessly* every second of the way!

The sheer mileage I traversed, comprised of equal measures of both high-speed highway and unbelievably twisty back roads, all with constant changes in camber and altitude- measured in the hundreds of feet- was one of the most amazing adventures I have ever experienced. Blasting higher and higher through the clouds, at one point you can actually see the aero effect of the air deflecting up off the windshield actually pushing the cloud layer upwards right ahead of me as I approached, while driving higher and higher through a scenic mountain pass.

And the endlessly twisty, almost totally deserted back-country lanes kept begging for more and more of the go-fast pedal. It was sheer heaven to blast along, with safe (very long) sight-lines of the road ahead, as well as having many extremely long stretches of road with no homes, literally stretching for miles, so apexing at high-speed was the norm. I'll start off with one or 2 now, and add more later. I hope you can enjoy them, as low-res and noisy as they are. Next trip I'll use a much better fixed-mount video camera with several external microphones to pick up the engine sounds- not mostly the wind.

Pix are here, and the videos are on my CarDomain page.

[Carl Beck]

I can't find videos on that Page - where are they, or how does one access them??

Carl B.

[ggarrard]

Carl - Found the following after some digging...

http://video.cardomain.com/Clip.aspx?key=CED0AF42DA20BD82

http://video.cardomain.com/Clip.aspx?key=E082D677011B0735

GWGarrard

[Poindexter]

Yeah, CarDomain sort of hides the videos. Thanks ggarrard, for finding the direct links. It appears that the direct link to my video page is- http://video.cardomain.com/Poindexter333

Otherwise you have to click on the link to my Member ID on the upper left of the home page, and it will then display a new page, where you can then click the link for "View Poindexter333's Video's". Not the most direct way to the videos. Of course it looks different when you're logged in, too. I'll be adding a few more slightly longer videos later too.

CarDomain seems like a decent site, where you can build anything from a simple to a more detailed website for your vehicles- all for free, which is nice.

[Darrel]

Why is it people are so apprehensive on taking their cars on long drives? I wouldn't hesitate to drive either one of my z's cross country. The zxt has been to seattle and back twice avging over 4200 miles round trip. The 240z went to long beach and back with a stop to go on the willow springs track, although it wasn't racing, but still fun.

Glad you had fun and will be able to take it to national z conventions. This year's will be in Cleveland with the track day at mid ohio.

[swbooking]

Nice glad you had fun. I love road trips.

We made a run up the 5 fwy to San Jose and back down on Hwy 1 a couple months ago. 16 hours of straight driving, over 1200 miles. It was pretty awsome. I know exactly how you feel, the 1 had some long twisties that we just had to let the car rip on.

[Poindexter]

Why is it people are so apprehensive on taking their cars on long drives? I wouldn't hesitate to drive either one of my z's cross country. The zxt has been to seattle and back twice avging over 4200 miles round trip. The 240z went to long beach and back with a stop to go on the willow springs track, although it wasn't racing, but still fun.

Glad you had fun and will be able to take it to national z conventions. This year's will be in Cleveland with the track day at mid ohio.

Darrel, I've driven to California from NY, and to Florida from Massachusetts before, once in a 1968 Z-28, and once in a Mercedes 6.9, but my Z had been stored for almost 15 years, and while I had done thousands of dollars worth of work, replacing almost every wear part under the car, and every piece of engine rubber belts and hoses, as well as switching to all new high-quality fluids (i.e. Red Line trans lube, Royal Purple engine oil, RL Water Wetter etc...) I was concerned about doing so much high-speed distance driving, although I had tested her pretty thoroughly locally.

I should not have worried. My mechanic had prepared the car perfectly, and the trip was 100% fun, with not one concern or problem during the entire trip. I do need to replace all of the weatherstripping, so there's less wind noise in the cockpit,(yikes, forget about listening to any music) but that's all. I would not hesitate for one second to take her 1,000 or even 2,000 miles away now! There's plenty of room for baggage, and plenty of room up front, and it's such a pleasure to drive a fantastic car that handles almost by sheer thought. And, oh those engine sounds!!! I only have the "middle" muffler, so when she approaches the top of the hp/torque curves, say above 4,000 revs, she really roars!

Just what a Grand Touring car is supposed to be all about.

[Carl Beck]

Carl - Found the following after some digging...

http://video.cardomain.com/Clip.aspx?key=CED0AF42DA20BD82

http://video.cardomain.com/Clip.aspx?key=E082D677011B0735

GWGarrard

Ah.. great - thanks...

Carl B.

[Poindexter]

I've added several more nice clips. The simplest way to access them is to use this link to jump directly to my video page- http://video.cardomain.com/Poindexter333.

Thanks everyone for commenting and looking. Unfortunately most of my friends are not car people and think that this amount of focus on something as "stupid" as cars is foolish. It's a shame, considering how much fun they're missing.

At least you all understand.

[Darrel]

The zxt I use for the longer trips. On the way back from Seattle I took 101 south from seattle following the coast along washington and oregon, then after entering CA, I moved over the PCH.

The 240, would have to put A/C and tunes. Going through nevada and utah wasn't too fun during June. But it was still a lot of fun.

Did I mention I rebuilt(refreshed) the 2.8 engine that was in the 240? First engine I had ever completely disassembled and put back together. I still take it out to the track when I'm able. Hopefully our new track will be ready for wheels next spring.

The 240 had sat for 14 yrs before I got a hold of it. After I rebuilt the engine I took it out to our local track. It still had the 14 yr old brake pads and 30 year old struts and springs. A year after that I replaced all the bushings and springs. The springs and struts I used tokico illumina package.

www.highplainsraceway.com

[Carl Beck]

The single biggest problem with driving a 240-Z on longer road trips - is finding a passenger that you want to share a road trip with, who will let you do ALL the driving, without bitching about how fast your going!! ;-)

Always glad to hear from others that have used their 240-Z in a Grand Touring mode... They are simply amazing cars. I've covered all 48 lower States and a lot of Canada in my 240-Z's over the past 38 years. No matter how good the camera, all you can hope to capture are a few visual records, that remind you of the actual event.

The US and Canada have breathtaking scenic beauty and it is not only visual - but must be experienced by all the senses to really be appreciated. The amazingly clean, crisp mountain air at noon, or the heavy warmth of driving through the clouds in the morning. The smell of wheat fields rolling almost forever through the mid-West, the smell of thousands of acres of corn fields, the smell of fresh cut hay... Camp out a few nights, spend a few nights at good hotels. Take the time to drink the local water, brew fresh coffee at dawn in the mountains and watch the sun rise. Come home after covering several States in a week or two... and you will have a whole different perspective on personal freedom and the natural as well as man made wonders of the US and Canada.

FWIW,

Carl B.

[Poindexter]

The zxt I use for the longer trips. On the way back from Seattle I took 101 south from seattle following the coast along washington and oregon, then after entering CA, I moved over the PCH.

The 240, would have to put A/C and tunes. Going through nevada and utah wasn't too fun during June. But it was still a lot of fun.

Did I mention I rebuilt(refreshed) the 2.8 engine that was in the 240? First engine I had ever completely disassembled and put back together. I still take it out to the track when I'm able. Hopefully our new track will be ready for wheels next spring.

The 240 had sat for 14 yrs before I got a hold of it. After I rebuilt the engine I took it out to our local track. It still had the 14 yr old brake pads and 30 year old struts and springs. A year after that I replaced all the bushings and springs. The springs and struts I used tokico illumina package.

Rebuilding the L-28 engine must have been an experience that you are extremely proud of. One day soon I hope to buy a 240 shell, and fit a turbo (perhaps even a twin turbo?) L-28 into it, to take advantage of the low weight of the 240 body, and the higher power of the turbo'd engine. That car will be the Z I will take onto a track, but not this one. My current sweetie-pie is just too original to stress so much, even though my mechanic- who was an original 1970 Z owner himself, and a mechanic since before that time, has pronounced it as clean an older car as he has ever seen before.

I really don't want to take the risk with her, although I might take it onto Lime Rock for a few easy laps. There are things I just won't do on the streets- like drifting. Just before I buy new tires I'll try to rub them smooth at Lime Rock. The Z does drift beautifully, and I have found I can control the path through the corner easily with the throttle alone. As far as the AC, I would love to restore the period-correct, dealer-installed AC, but that is an entire project by itself, one I'm not ready to undertake now. I've driven it on many 90-degree days before, and as long as you're moving well, and the humidity is not stifling, the car is very bearable. And I do have a radio installed, but with *no* door or hatch weatherstripping left, the wind roar drowns out most of the music at highway speeds.

The single biggest problem with driving a 240-Z on longer road trips - is finding a passenger that you want to share a road trip with, who will let you do ALL the driving, without bitching about how fast your going!! ;-)

Always glad to hear from others that have used their 240-Z in a Grand Touring mode... They are simply amazing cars. I've covered all 48 lower States and a lot of Canada in my 240-Z's over the past 38 years. No matter how good the camera, all you can hope to capture are a few visual records, that remind you of the actual event.

The US and Canada have breathtaking scenic beauty and it is not only visual - but must be experienced by all the senses to really be appreciated. The amazingly clean, crisp mountain air at noon, or the heavy warmth of driving through the clouds in the morning. The smell of wheat fields rolling almost forever through the mid-West, the smell of thousands of acres of corn fields, the smell of fresh cut hay... Camp out a few nights, spend a few nights at good hotels. Take the time to drink the local water, brew fresh coffee at dawn in the mountains and watch the sun rise. Come home after covering several States in a week or two... and you will have a whole different perspective on personal freedom and the natural as well as man made wonders of the US and Canada.

FWIW,

Carl B.

I love your sentiment Carl, and I have copied your comments and sent them off to my poor, unfortunate friends who just don't understand what all of the ruckus is about- about old cars in general- with some "friends" pronouncing them all "junkers", and about classic sports cars in particular. I would agree that the Z is one of the finest Grand Touring cars ever built. There are precious few nearly 40-year-old cars that I would ever consider driving over long distances... or on short jaunts either!

I agree that the Z possesses that magic combination of elements that make every moment behind the wheel- at least for me- a treasure, but then again I have an unlimited capacity to see the beauty and majesty in nearly all of my surroundings. I just find it easier to live life that way. There will always be enough misery around, so I'm determined to be as positive as I can.

Like yourself, I can appreciate the simplest joys in life, as you so eloquently have stated above. The sight of clouds descending slowly over the road I was traveling on, hovering visibly just feet over the car before engulfing my car in wet cotton, bringing the smells of the nearby farms, rivers and lakes from where the moisture originated...to the sights of the rolling hills and mountains of my recent route, from fields full of wild flowers where you can smell honeysuckle and other sweet flowering essences literally for miles to the fresh, tangy slightly "electric" smell of the negative ions flowing from all of the running water rushing over rocks and falls.

The toughest part is indeed finding someone to enjoy these sights, sounds and smells along with me as my co-pilot/navigator on what I hope to be many, many more of these road trips- local at first and then hopefully of a much longer duration. Luckily I am well-thought of as a driver by all of my friends- who usually choose me to drive either- in the city, or the highway. My car is only back on the road a little over a month now- after 15 years of slumber (!), so I have a lot of exploring to do in my Z, and perhaps I can slowly change people's perceptions by introducing them to shorter trips at first. So if I can only convince many of them that a small- at least on the outside- tinny sounding (only when they slam the door! ) 38 year-old car can provide a more enjoyable driving experience than all of their Jags and Lexus's combined- not that those marques don't have their better attributes. But, luxury is providing for all of the senses, and IMHO, isolating one's self from the sights, sounds, smells and feelings of the road with electronic suspensions, and extra-thick glass (usually tightly rolled up too) is hardly driving. It may be more comfortable in a way, but is hardly as satisfying...to me at least.