Next month, I'm going on a 2000+ mile roundtrip from Houston, TX to Sarasota, FL and back. I'll be there for about a week, so is there any advice you can give me to prepare the car for the brutal trip? What tire pressures should I set it at? Should I redo the alignment and make it less agressive so I won't wear the insides as much? I don't want to buy a car bra either. Does anyone else wanna share similar long trip experiences with me? Are there any potential risks involved with exposing the Evo and its turbo on such a long ride in one sitting (yes, I've done it many times before with another car)? I'll be cruising around 85-90mph for your information .

 

As for preparing your car for a long road trip, here's some advice:

1. Drive with the windows rolled up. Driving with the windows down will increase drag and force your engine to work harder to meet your desired speed as suppose to having them up. You'll burn less fuel with the windows up so it will save you on gas stops.

2. Make sure your alignment and balance are good. You would want equal wear on all your tires.

3. Check your brakes. You never know what will jump out of nowhere late at night.

4. Check your oil and other fluids like brake and windshield.

5. Make sure your headlights and brakelights work.

6. Drink lotsa coffee, but don't eat in the car - out of respect for the Evo.

7. Since there is no cruise control on the car, make sure you stretch your legs every now and then so you don't cramp them.

 

What about using the sunroof? It only opens about 3/4".

 

you should take something with Cruise Control...

just cruising along in top gear is not going to harm any parts of your turbo... it shouldn't be working to much for you, unless you decide to do a blow-by on someone mosying along on the highway...

good luck, i don't envy you...

 

Drive with the sunroof open and rear windows cracked if you want some great ventilation (with no ac) without getting buffetted to death or causing too much drag.

Also, try to find some nice comfy driving gloves, after my 2000 miles in 2 days trip to FL, my hands were freakin KILLING me from hanging onto the steel steering wheel on rough roads.

The radio antenna is great on the EVO - (much better than any of my other previous cars) - you should have no trouble finding stations to keep you awake on the long trip.

the side bolsters will likely poke you and make your sides somewhat sore on the trip unless you are nice and skinny, I don't really have a workaround for that yet. Maybe one of those taxicab style bead seat covers might help a bit by pushing you forward out of the seat a little, don't know...

Dont expect your mileage to get much over 24mpg if you are going to do 80-85 consistently. At that speed your RPMs are high enough that even a light touch of the throttle spins that turbo up and you will suck up the gas with every gentle hill and car pass on your trip...

Be prepared to stop every 3 hours or so for gas. If the roads are rough you'll be glad of the oppurtunity to stop and strech and pee anyway though...

 

I said 85-90 ! Am I going to have to expect some nasty rock chips?

 

if you drive close behind peoplem, then you certainly should. I earned quite a few on my drive to FL, all on the steep area of the hood in front of the engine bay vent.

And if you go 90+ expect 20mpg !!

 

Bwhahahaha...I had a corolla that wheezed going 80+, so I'm gonna enjoy this next trip.

Most importantly, what tire pressure should I do?

 

highest PSI they'll take = less rolling resistence = higher mpg = bumpier ride = sore kidneys.

no pain, no gain man

 

passing power is pretty intense with the EVO, you are about a half second away from max boost at highway speeds. You will boost past people faster than you ever thought possible. Part of the reason you will probably get some pretty sad mpg!

 

I know the feeling , I've toyed it around the freeway before. Going 110 feels like 60mph, for some reason. 5th gear is a huge gap after 4th though.

 

I drove from Lubbock, TX to Virginia Beach, Va. The best mod was Valentine One. It saved my butt a few times and I could keep it at 95-100. I did get a big stone to the windshield that put a chip in it. Luckily my insurance payed to get it filled. Also, I put the back of the sunroof up and got about 22 mpg.

 

HAVE FUN! i just got home a few hours ago from college station. that was a good 3 hour trip. i ususally roll with the windows down...but as stated in previous posts, thats why i dont. i saw some where that 60 mph was the best traveling speed. you get the best mpg. but we all know 60 is sooo damn slow. so i went about about 80. with rpm steadily @ 3500. not good. for me, thats a pretty high rev for such a long period of time. burning much more precious fuel. just be cautious of cops!!!! and since you dont know the area you dont know their hideouts....lucky for me i only saw 2 there and back. good luck!!! its going to be boring!

 

Take a small firm "throw" pillow with you. I drove 12 hours straight and would not have made it without the pillow. Put the pillow on your left leg and the door and your left arm on the pillow. It saved my arm from going numb.

Speedlimit...

 

hehe, get a XM Radio