What do you bring with you on an old car road trip?

[Matt Harwood]

And by what do you bring, I'm asking about replacement parts and other items in case of a break down. I'm going to be driving my '29 down to the CLC National Meet in a week, and was wondering what I should be bringing with me. Tools, fluids, water, cleaning supplies, of course. What else?

Most importantly, I'm trying to find spare ignition parts, including points, condenser, coil, cap and rotor--any suggestions on where to find such things? Are there modern replacements that will work?

How about a spare fan belt?

What else would you more experienced tourers recommend? I dread being stranded.

Thanks!

[ply33]

I always have the following in the car: A small tool kit with about the same selection of tools that came in the original tool kit delivered with the car. It also contains some spare light bulbs, fuses, bailing wire and waterless hand cleaner and clean wipes.

Looking up on the web, I guess the meet you are going to is in Dublin, OH. And you are in Cleveland, OH. Google maps claims that is about 140 miles away from you.

I checked because what I add to the kit in the car depends on the distance I'm going. If it is over 150 or 200 miles then I usually put a pretty complete mechanical tool kit in the car. If its under 100 miles I simply rely on my cell phone and AAA+ card. Your distance is in between those two.

With respect to spare parts, on shorter trips (less than 500 miles) I don't bother carrying much. If you've do tune ups on a regular basis your points, condenser, rotor, etc. should be good. And your under hood inspection at that time should tell you the condition of your hoses and belts, etc. If they needed replacement, you should have done it then. Not at the side of the road later.

I guess this is a pretty carefree attitude. But I haven't had much trouble on the road. And the little I've had has been either trivial (minor adjustments) or so major that a tow truck was needed anyway.

[MCHinson]

You have about covered the basics already.... I also make sure I have my AAA card and a cell phone.

[Steve_Mack_CT]

Yep +1 to what Matt Hinson just said.

The only other comment I will make is from my days in the Model A world - those guys like to tour and a lot of them put on the miles. But I have seen guys literally fill the trunks and area under the back seat with extra starters, generators, distributor and carb among other things. I think that could be overkill and add a lot of unnecessary weight. Of course sometimes they have the advantage of being able to "assign" spares as all engines are basically the same. You won't have that advantage so by all means bring something that may be oddball or tough to get on the road. (Captain Obvious as Mr. Coco likes to say sometimes..)

I think an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. You just did a lot of sorting on that car, which is a great start. I would just go over it again in terms of checking typical things like you would in Springtime. For the 150 mile distance I would drive straight through. On a longer run, maybe incorporate a check under the hood about halfway to prevent any surprises.

Oh, and bring snacks....

[Guest Al Brass]

Murphy's Law, whatever you take, you won't have the thing you need. Zip ties and RTV are modern items that are very useful.

Al

[trimacar]

Remember the basics. Two things make your car go, gasoline supply and electrical spark.

Screwdriver and a file or sandpaper for points. Extra coil. Make sure generator is A1 condition. Spare belt to keep it genning. That should cover electrical.

If fuel filter on car, have a spare. A spare carb kit is handy, I've taken a carb apart on a tour and sure wish I'd had some spare gaskets. Spare fuel pump is nice. There's your gas.

Big stuff, bearings, etc. leave at home, and get it towed home or fixed on road if an issue, 140 miles isn't far, and as so truthfully mentioned, no matter how much you take (short of a spare chassis towed behind car), you won't have what you need....

[keiser31]

Remember the basics. Two things make your car go, gasoline supply and electrical spark.

Screwdriver and a file or sandpaper for points. Extra coil. Make sure generator is A1 condition. Spare belt to keep it genning. That should cover electrical.

If fuel filter on car, have a spare. A spare carb kit is handy, I've taken a carb apart on a tour and sure wish I'd had some spare gaskets. Spare fuel pump is nice. There's your gas.

Big stuff, bearings, etc. leave at home, and get it towed home or fixed on road if an issue, 140 miles isn't far, and as so truthfully mentioned, no matter how much you take (short of a spare chassis towed behind car), you won't have what you need....

You said what I was going to say...especially spare coil and fuel pump. The extra fan belt thing is great, too.

[old car fan]

we take a cooler and water,when we get there, and go home,never do we carry parts.

[trimacar]

Reminds me of an older gentleman who'd passed away, and I was visiting the widow (through a mutual friend) to see what it would take to purchase a car she had.

Asked if there were any spare parts that went with the car. "Oh no," she stated, "my husband didn't believe in spare parts, he just fixed whatever broke and went on...."

I've done it that way too, toured with no parts, but a set of points or a fuel pump in the trunk doesn't take up much room, and can mean the difference between a cool beer by the pool, or stuck on the side of the road waiting for a tow truck......

[jdome]

I bring my wife. If the car breaks down she can get out and push me off the road.

[R W Burgess]

Just returned from the AACA Vintage Tour in Pa and NY. Yes, we trailered because with a 40 mph car we didn't want to spend the whole month of July getting there.

Something I always do is run the crap out of the car in question before leaving on the trip. I drive to the post office everyday with it, drive it on hot days, and check out of the fluids for leakages. Even with this, my car developed a fuel leak on the first day of the tour, which I fixed in the parking lot of our designated parking area, got the parts from the local NAPA. They have most anything you might need to gerry rig an old car.

We carry extra jumper cables, oil, and tools in our trailer, which would also fit in the car. Oh, and a drop cloth, don't want to get your threads dirty. In the past, we haven't worried about the charging system, since we never drive the old cars at night. In a jam, after a long day with no generator, we can always recharge a discharged battery every night in the motel. You can always use an extra Wally World battery charger, right?

Good luck on your trip.

Wayne

[Marty Roth]

Mr Coco is on target - most of our cars have big trunks or a big back seat, so if driving cross-country ---

I throw in my tune-up spares - points, condenser, rotor, distributor cap and wires, plus belts, hoses, depending on the car, and if over 1,000 miles or so, starter, generator, water pump, fuel pump, spare carburetor, distributor, RTV, duct tape, bailing wire. I also have a couple of spare tubes besides my spare tire, and a hot patch kit, and a GOOD set of jumper cables.

The AAA card, and cell phone might still be handy, along with a credit card, umbrella, tarp, jump-suit or coveralls, hand cleaner, and an aluminum trolley/floor jack with a set of jack-stands.

Bring along your club rosters in case you need to contact a local member for help or parts, or a reference for a local mechanic along the way.

We've been fortunate not to have a catastrophic failure while touring cross-country.

On the drive from New Orleans to Tucson to start the Founders Tour which was ONE LAP OF ARIZONA, we were almost to Tucson, actually at Tombstone, AZ when we noticed that the steering on the '70 Caddy Convertible wasn't right - turned out that a lower control arm bushing gave up with only 59,000 miles (and 30 years) on the car. A local garage said they could order the parts and have it back to us in a week, and that would have meant driving the whole tour in a modern rental. We opted to do a "half-fast" alignment to save what we could of the front right tire, drive the 1,000 + mile tour, and drive the Caddy bacK to New Orleans after completing a beautiful week throughout Arizona. When we got home, I ordered all of the parts to completely rebuild the front end, got another alignment, and have great memories.

When we drove the red '63 Impala to San Francisco/Milpitas for the founders Tour in 1998?, we enjoyed visiting and singing "Happy Trails" with Roy Rogers and Dale Evans in Victorville, the Hurst Castle, Kings Canyon, Pacific Coast Highway, Lombard Street, Sequoiah, Yosemite, driving the Grapevine, cruising the Vegas Strip top-down on a Saturday night, Zion, Bryce Canyon --

when we were leaving dinner at the lodge of the North Rim of the Grand Canyon - suddenly the brake pedal went to the floor - inspection showed an empty master cylinder and a trickle of fluid where the steel line goes to the right rear backing plate/wheel cylinder. My buddy Charlie snugged up the fitting because I tend to over-do things. I refilled the master cylinder (I carry spare Dot-5 silicone brake fluid, too!), and all was fine - didn't even need to bleed the system. I had followed Charlie from home, and half-way back - many thousands of miles on this trip. When we pulled out the next morning, he casually suggested that I take the lead position, and it wasn't until lunch in Flagstaff, back out of the hills that he retook the lead. I asked if he just didn't want me behind him in case the brake fluid leaked again, and he just smiled. We continued to Sedona, Albuquerque, and on to New Orleans - that Impala Toured more than 100,000 miles after we restored it, and that was the only hiccup, other than a clogged fuel filter on our way to Dearborn in 1996, a flat tire which was repaired at Harold Coker's shop in Chattanooga on our way to the Scranton Founders Tour, and another flat tire witin 30 miles of home while returning from the Founders Tour that Doug Drake put on in Rochester, NY.

Edited August 3, 2011 by Marty Roth
spelling (see edit history)

[old car fan]

No doubt cell phone ,but do really think 80 years ago they did this?We just took a maiden voyage in a 1925 ,will pop tires,so a fire extinguisher ready, took off.Cool ride.Once we know the faults ,we fix them

[J3Studio]

Interesting and useful discussion. I do agree with the "if you bring a ton of stuff, the thing that breaks will be the one thing you didn't bring" crowd.

For long trips with my (much newer than most in this thread) car, I bring a couple of multi-tools (one that tends more toward screwdrivers and one that tends more toward knives). A couple of appropriately sized wrenches and a wide (lord help me) Torx array go a long way toward fixing some issues. A set of fuses, motor oil, a serpentine belt, and a good portable air compressor complete the list.

I'll be honest, though: most of my issues have either been solved with the AAA card or quick help over the internet.

[old car fan]

point.take care of your cars they will take care of you,just like the old days

Edited August 4, 2011 by old car fan (see edit history)

[Bleach]

I may be a noob here but I'm no noob to automobiles. I think it's a bit paranoid to carry spares and whatnot if the vehicle is in good running order and has been looked after. I mean to say I was driving cars that were only running carburetors, points and a belt or two as were my parents and grandparents were before me. If anything we all made sure the spare tire wasn't flat and maybe had a monkey wrench and a couple of screwdrivers. If we were going to take a long trip, we made sure the fluids were topped off, the tires in good shape and maybe see if the filters were new. As for daily driving, we tried to make sure that the oil level was OK at fill ups.

Just like old car fan says above, "take care of your cars they will take care of you,just like the old days" except it shouldn't matter if it's then or now.

[Steve Braverman]

A good friend and antique car driver always says, "If you can drive it around the block, you can drive it around the world."

I always carry a cell phone and some basic tools. I used to carry a fuel pump. Most everything ignition related for my Franklin is Delco and available at any decent parts store (got points at Pep Boys once).

[Guest Bob Call]

Marty Roth

Where did you get a hot patch kit or is it vintage like your cars?

[Mark Huston]

My main concern driving any distance in my 1929 Studebaker President is not so much parts, as having the correct tool. I always carry as many tools as I can along with my AAA card, extra oil, water, gas, and a fire extinguisher.

This past April, I drove my 1929 Studebaker a nearly 500 miles to attend a car meet. During a tour on the last day of the meet the car started running really rough and I limped back to the meet hotel. The Studebaker has a dual coil-dual point Delco ignition system. One of the coils had gone bad. I had the tools I needed to fix the problem and NAPA had a coil in stock (they thought the coil was only for a 6 volt 1960s Volkswagen Beetle).

A number of years ago I was not in the habit of carrying a fire extinguisher in my antique cars. One day I was driving the Studebaker on a tour along a country road in the middle of summer when the driver of the car behind me started flashing his lights at me and beeping his horn. I finally pulled over onto the shoulder of the road – which was knee high with dried out grass. The other driver ran up to me yelling that my car was on fire. I did not see the smoke that was coming out from under my car – which was now catching the grass under the car on fire. I got my family out of the car and the other driver used his fire extinguisher to put out the fire. If the other driver had not had a fire extinguisher I would not have been able to do anything other than to watch the car burn up while setting the country side on fire.

Lesson learned that day – carry a fire extinguisher – it is cheep insurance.

[Marty Roth]

Bob Call asked where did I get a Hot Patch Kit --

Actually I bought a carton of boxes of hot patch kits right here on the "Buy and Sell" of the AACA FORUM". The stuff is out there, and it is old - probably as old as I am, buy I still get out of bed each day, and likely the hot patch is still viable too.

[Matt Harwood]

Just as a follow up, I returned from the CLC National Meet in Columbus yesterday, and the '29 Cadillac performed flawlessly for nearly 400 miles. We hammered down the interstate on Thursday running 55-60 MPH most of the way, which shows 35 MPH on the speedo with the overdrive engaged. The engine seemed pretty happy in that range, and the ride was impressively smooth. There were some shakes above that speed (perhaps loose kingpins), so we took it easy. The engine never missed a beat, temperatures stayed around 160 all the way, and it never showed any sign of distress.

Down there, the car started every time, trundled around the show without issue, and never came close to overheating or being cranky. On the way home, we were hit with monsoon-grade rain that had most cars pulling off under bridges, but we pushed through, dropping our speed and taking it easy. Once again, the Cadillac didn't miss a beat, but I discovered that it leaks rather badly from the windshield seal behind the dash--another item that needs attending.

I couldn't be happier with how it behaved. Gladly I didn't need any of the extras, but the tips here were extremely helpful. I now have a fully packed kit of supplies that should get me wherever I'm going. Thanks!