Long distance driving/traveling with vintage cars

[alsancle]

1 hour ago, Michaewh said:

Question:  I understand that a "restomod" would not be following the true intent of this topic, but are there mods that are reasonable for things like safety?  For example, if the color is right, is it acceptable to upgrade bulbs to led lights for reliability/safety? (Any leads/links on the best ways to do this with a 6V system?). My 1920 car did have tail/brake lights fitted in 1974 (removable), which I intend to keep in use. Also, what about seat belts?  Are lap belts worth fitting?  In todays modern standards, would I be unreasonably putting my 8-year old at risk by taking him on a longer trips with me?  I generally know what I will be doing on these, but appreciate any of your input/perspectives...  THANK YOU

 

1.  I think running a prewar car in the dark should be done as little as possible.  But I don't see anything wrong with upgrading the bulbs.  I have a set of E&Js on one of my cars and bought the halogen conversion since they give off about 3 candles worth of light stock.

 

2.  Jay Leno uses magentic mirrors and remote taillight signals on some of of his cars.   Not bad ideas.

 

3.   Seat belts are a holy war here.   My position is a backyard mechanic putting them in a car not designed for them is more likely to be hurt worse than less in an accident.

 

4.   I drove thousands of miles as a small child in prewar cars as a kid.   There are much greater risks to children then riding in an old car driven by a responsible adult.

Edited April 28, 2021 by alsancle (see edit history)

[hidden_hunter]

1 hour ago, Michaewh said:

Also, what about seat belts?  Are lap belts worth fitting?  In todays modern standards, would I be unreasonably putting my 8-year old at risk by taking him on a longer trips with me?  I generally know what I will be doing on these, but appreciate any of your input/perspectives...  THANK YOU

 It's a bit of a religious topic that generally ends with "it depends" - some say they're better than nothing other say that they're less safe because of the way the body is constructed

 

Personally for me I'd say the environment you're driving in is more important from a safety point of view than anything you can do to the car (they're never going to be that safe) - e.g. driving in a rural area is going to be safer than taking it through downtown

[TTR]

Another great day drive today up in the SoCal mountains, with several extra treats.

 

First of all, I was joined by couple younger (in their late twenties) vintage car enthusiasts driving one of theirs Alfa-Romeo Spider (think movie “Graduate”).

We started little before sunrise driving from Riverside to LaCanada-Flintridge and got on Angeles Crest Highway about an hour later and that’s when the real fun began, especially once we got above low lying cloud cover at about 2500-3000 ft. elevation.

Once we got to Mt. Baldy Observatory turn out, I asked one of the young guys to take the helm of the Roadster and I rode as a passenger in the Spider following ii to see and video record how she behaves and looks gunning around through those twists & turns up there (Treat #1).

I also asked them both to take it back down few miles, while I stayed on an overlook spot where I could observe the car from a distance of several miles and twisty sections of the road below me.

I then asked them to do it again with the other guy driving (Treat #2, also for the second guy who had never driven her before).

 

Then little later, after a brief snack break at the Newcomb’s Ranch, I asked the guy with more experience to drive mine behind the Spider, while I again sat as a passenger in latter to observe and video record the Roadster following us (Treat #3).

 

Eventually, when we were almost back home, I noticed a larger early 1930’s car on the freeway ahead of us, so I sped up and passed to see what it is. Looked like a 1932(?) Lincoln Coupe. Its driver and I exchanged smiles and waves (Treat #4).

 

When we finally got off the freeway, I decided to swing by to see if one of my favorite restaurants (Pakistani cuisine) was open for lunch. It was, so I treated the guys for an excellent meal (Treat #5).

 

Now, sitting in our garden, watching birds, butterflies, lizards, etc toiling in it, while I’m just chilling with some ice cream, good wheat beer, well aged Tequila and a tasty cigar (Treat #6).

 

Other than the Spider having developed some driveline vibration along the way (probably due to a failing transmission mount ?), all and all, a great day with 180+ miles of pure vintage driving pleasures.
Life feels pretty darn great right now.

Tomorrow, back to work, i.e. checking timing on 4 camshafts, 2 distributors and fine tuning 6 DCN’s in a vintage V12 Ferrari and maybe continue fabricating some sheet metal trunk floor sections for a ‘56 Imperial. 

Edited May 31, 2021 by TTR (see edit history)

[TTR]

Another great (vintage) drive this morning with my Roadster.

Left home little after 5 am, heading to Palm Springs and had I opted for the use of conveyor belts (= Freeways/Interstates), the drive (if it could even be called such) would’ve been less than 60 miles and taken about an hour. 

 

Instead, chose the scenic route (again) up and over the mountains, where I made couple of brief stops before arriving around 9 am and another 115 miles added to odometer. 

Will probably return same way in a day or two.

 

[TTR]

Damn, those best laid plans apparently do not always work out.

Not only was our visit in Palm Springs cut short due to something unexpected, but I decided to make lemonade out of it and prepared to come home via same way as mentioned in my previous and headed southeast on Hwy 111 to Palm Desert only to find out that the 74 was closed due to some (wilderness ?) fire.

Had to turn around and take those dreadful conveyor belts instead. ☹️

Fortunately the traffic was moving along well enough.

200 miles all in between today & yesterday.

Edited June 14, 2021 by TTR (see edit history)

[PhilAndrews]

I will admit, I have a distinct amount of jealousy for the roads and scenery you can just hop out and go drive on over there in SoCal.

I'm still in the long-term shakedown phase with my Pontiac, but as a relatively modern vehicle (post-war design for some of it!) it's remarkably capable. The more it's driven, the fewer things go wrong. 

I've covered over 1800 miles in it now since the end of last year, with the longest being a 130 mile round trip into the city of New Orleans (would've been further but the gearbox decided it was unhappy selecting 2nd, instead favoring 1, 3 and 4 often with an attempt at providing whiplash- worn hydraulic valve assembly).

Granted, it's got a few things that aren't original- mostly because it had them when I bought it and they work, first being a 60's alternator and 12V bulbs. I rewired the car to the factory design but with heavier duty cabling, still sporting 35 Watt sealed beam headlights which work perfectly well for driving in the dark. LED brake/turn signals because the lights are low and small compared to modern cars and they've already proven to be more visible so as a plug-in option they're great. 

 

I want to go explore a little further afield, I trust the car well enough to just hop in and drive. Just, there's not many places very nearby that I can get to without being hustled along by traffic wanting to do 70+ miles per hour, which the car will do, but I don't like doing.

I think that so far that's been the limiting factor in where I've gone in the car, but as you say, every fuel stop is a conversation (at 10-11 mpg at highway speeds it's a regular occurrence- last fuel up here was 3.19/gal which is starting to become expensive) and yet that's half of the fun.

Frank and Jean loaded Billy into the back in 1951 when it was new and drove places at the weekend, and Frank* drove it every day for work. No reason that cannot be done today...!

 

Phil

 

 

*Names changed to protect the innocent

Edited June 15, 2021 by PhilAndrews (see edit history)

[TTR]

Thanks Phil, for sharing your experiences. 

1800 miles in 6 months !?! And with a darn cool car too !

Wow, that's better than I've managed so far, although I couldn't get started until February due to previously mention tire "shortage".

 

Keep on making road adventures and share them here, please. (I checked out some of your website blogs a bit.... 👍)

Oh, and remember to take plenty of pictures (You know what they say, "Pictures or it didn't happen" 😉)

[PhilAndrews]

10 minutes ago, TTR said:

Thanks Phil, for sharing your experiences. 

1800 miles in 6 months !?! And with a darn cool car too !

Wow, that's better than I've managed so far, although I couldn't get started until February due to previously mention tire "shortage".

 

Keep on making road adventures and share them here, please. (I checked out some of your website blogs a bit.... 👍)

Oh, and remember to take plenty of pictures (You know what they say, "Pictures or it didn't happen" 😉)

Most of that local, but tonight I went for an aimless drive. 

Around here, there's a lot of sky. No hills to speak of. Boats. 

I popped the hood, checked the vitals, eyeballed the tires, got in and just drove. Nothing like crossplies on fresh blacktop!

 

Phil

[TTR]

13 hours ago, PhilAndrews said:

Around here,... No hills to speak of... 

Well, next time you wander to West Coast you're welcome to join me for any or many of the numerous scenic routes through hills and mountains around here, as we have plenty to keep you busy (full-time ?) for weeks or longer.

With population of tens of millions in this area, I just find it sad that not many vintage car enthusiasts(?) take advantage of them more often. 

13 hours ago, PhilAndrews said:

Nothing like crossplies on fresh blacktop!

Agreed.

While some of my (vintage) cars have or had few mechanical (and cosmetic) "upgrades", I don't really care to have Radials on postwar (American) cars of the '60s/'70s that didn't come with them, as they take away authentic, "period correct" driving sensations of that era.

Edited June 16, 2021 by TTR (see edit history)

[TTR]

On 4/27/2021 at 3:10 PM, Michaewh said:

Question:  I understand that a "restomod" would not be following the true intent of this topic, but are there mods that are reasonable for things like safety?  For example, if the color is right, is it acceptable to upgrade bulbs to led lights for reliability/safety? (Any leads/links on the best ways to do this with a 6V system?). My 1920 car did have tail/brake lights fitted in 1974 (removable), which I intend to keep in use. Also, what about seat belts?  Are lap belts worth fitting?  In todays modern standards, would I be unreasonably putting my 8-year old at risk by taking him on a longer trips with me?  I generally know what I will be doing on these, but appreciate any of your input/perspectives...  THANK YOU

"Safety" should always be top priority when driving/operating any car, modern or vintage, and that includes being very mindful of the driven vehicle's abilities/capabilities/characteristics on the road/street/traffic at given speeds, etc, especially in a case of (always present) potential "accident" or other road hazard and one should never forget that most other (modern) vehicle drivers/operators don't have a clue of these, even of their own vehicle, let alone some "old relic" inconveniencing their busy and so much more important activities of life .

 

As for seat belts or any other additional safety features in vintage cars that didn't come with such, it's a personal choice, but along with aforementioned mindfulness in driving, should also include some critical/practical thinking afforded to application/installation.

Just because there's seat belts, even if 3- or 4-point system, added to vehicle not originally designed with them in mind, they may not be mounted with optimal or even practical (read safe) manner or position.

 

For example, my Roadster does have lap belts (vintage aircraft style), but they're not going to provide much, if any, effective protection in any collision, but they do seem to offer some (false ?) comfort to me or anyone riding along.

Switching to modern 3- or 4-point system would probably help overall effectiveness (in minor collision), but not that much unless other structural improvements were also implemented.

 

And while I've made it pretty clear that I enjoy "spirited" driving, it's only with cars intended for it and I don't really like doing it if I have a passenger(s) and/or if I'm not on a road complementary for such activity.

I don't get off on doing burnouts, street racing or other show-off nonsense, which often seem to provide tendencies leading to premature component failures and/or hurting bystanders, etc. 

 

Edited June 17, 2021 by TTR (see edit history)

[TTR]

While I usually don’t drive or use my vintage cars for mundane workday tasks, I had to run a 50+ mile errand this morning and decided to do it with the Roadster. 
And even when majority of it was on conveyor belts, it was still fairly pleasant experience or should I say, much more so than with anything made within last 50 years. 

 

Edited June 22, 2021 by TTR (see edit history)

[TTR]

With weather still being relatively cool and mild, I'm making preliminary plans for another (vintage car) day drive up on ACH this weekend and wondered if anyone else here might have interest in joining me and perhaps 1-2 other cars for few hours of motoring leisures and pleasures on a iconic and scenic route.

I don’t wish to publicize details openly, but any interested fellow driving enthusiast with flexible or open schedule for this weekend can send me a private message to discuss them. 
I’d prefer to see participation with older (50+ year old) cars and extra points (+ breakfast or lunch on me) for a driver bringing something pre-war.

No judging, no awards. Just camaraderie and (vintage) driving for the fun of it.

 

P.S. Should the unexpected happen, i.e. too many interested parties, it would also be nice to know if anyone might be interested/willing to postpone their participation to a later, yet to be determined, date, which will likely be in September or later, after the weather cools off again.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited June 25, 2021 by TTR (see edit history)

[Ben Bruce aka First Born]

7 hours ago, TTR said:

With weather still being relatively cool and mild, I'm making preliminary plans for another (vintage car) day drive up on ACH this weekend and wondered if anyone else here might have interest in joining me and perhaps 1-2 other cars for few hours of motoring leisures and pleasures on a iconic and scenic route.

I don’t wish to publicize details openly, but any interested fellow driving enthusiast with flexible or open schedule for this weekend can send me a private message to discuss them. 
I’d prefer to see participation with older (50+ year old) cars and extra points (+ breakfast or lunch on me) for a driver bringing something pre-war.

No judging, no awards. Just camaraderie and (vintage) driving for the fun of it.

 

P.S. Should the unexpected happen, i.e. too many interested parties, it would also be nice to know if anyone might be interested/willing to postpone their participation to a later, yet to be determined, date, which will likely be in September or later, after the weather cools off again.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Me!  Me!  Wait for me. 

 

 I wish. Enjoy.

 

 

  Ben

[TTR]

On 6/25/2021 at 2:14 PM, Ben Bruce aka First Born said:

 

Me!  Me!  Wait for me. 

 

 I wish. Enjoy.

 

 

  Ben

Thanks Ben, your ever present enthusiasm is always appreciated. 👍

 

Too bad you weren’t able to join me as this wonderful little outing included some characteristically unusual additions for me. 

First of all, I decided to get an early(?) start by jumping into my trusted Roadster already Friday afternoon and take a 60+ mile ride with it on conveyor belts to Burbank, CA to check out the “World Famous” Cruise Night at Bob’s Big Boy Restaurant that I’ve heard of taking place there every Friday but never taken time to attend. 

 

I got to Burbank late afternoon (after +/-1.5 hr conveyor ride), checked into the room my wife had made reservations for me while I was already en route, took a quick shower and drove out to Bob’s only couple of blocks away.

 

I guess I got lucky, since once I pulled in to the parking lot, I noticed an (only one) open spot, which turned out to be about one of the best you could hope for at this venue and place was already quite busy (around 5 pm) but not quite “hopping” yet. That started after 6 or 6:30 and was still going on when I departed around 8:30.

 

While most of cars coming in & out during the evening were “modified” (i.e. customs, hot rods, muscle car “resto-mods”, etc.) there were quite few “stock” restoration examples.
One particular I found interesting due to its history was a ‘64(?) Buick STW that the lady owners parents had bought new. She and her husband had it sympathetically restored about 10 years ago, but one could easily see it had never been abused or neglected prior to that.

 

Another interesting thing I hadn’t thought about was that perhaps due to its location, many, if not most of the participants/spectators I spoke with appeared to work for or be a part of the entertainment/media industries. There were several somewhat familiar faces I saw and few I spoke with appeared almost (pleasantly ?) surprised that I either didn’t recognize them or if I did, didn’t let that influence our exchanges.

Just car enthusiasts talking cars.

 

Then yesterday (Saturday) I woke up at 5 am and soon after headed out to nearby LaCanada-Flintridge area (15 or so minute conveyor belt ride from Burbank) to apparently quite popular “Cars and Coffee” gathering right next to the intersection of 2 & 210 Freeways and just couple of miles from the west end of ACH, which was the ultimate reason for this 

Same thing, a lot of (maybe +/-100*) cars (& some were same as at Bob’s the night before) with fair amount of variety, though hot rods, muscle and sports cars being most popular types present.

 

* Their pre-pandemic attendance supposedly used to regularly reach 200-300 cars.

 

Well, another 2-3 hours flew by before I realized I really need to get going before the nearby ACH get super crowded, hindering any changes of “spirited” driving or gets too warm for comfort, especially at the eastern end or drive home on 138 & I-15 later in the day.

 

The most exiting part of the trip (the ACH drive) was over before Noon and I reached my favorite Pakistani cuisine restaurant before 1 pm, had a great lunch, made it to home around 2 pm with almost 200 miles added to the odometer and that much closer to next set of tires.

P.S. Other than you Ben, no one else apparently expressed interest, including any number of the participants at aforementioned events I invited to join me for an exiting drive, even if just for an hour or two and part of the way.

I would've though at least one of those numerous guys with Shelby Cobras (both fakes and real ones) had expressed some interest, but alas... 🙄

 

 

 

Edited June 27, 2021 by TTR (see edit history)

[Ben Bruce aka First Born]

TTR,  I am retired, so would be out weekly if caretaking did not take so much time.  While this part of Texas is no where as scenic as some of what is accessible to you,  it is over 100 miles to any thing more crowed. 

 

  Ben

[TTR]

Ben, I checked out some images from your neck of the woods and it looks like a quite tranquil with some scenic back roads for leisurely drives and next time I cruise through that part of the world, I’ll make sure to slow down, say hello in person and let you show me the best sights. 
 

And I’m also extending an invitation for same if or WHEN you venture to these parts.
 

Oh, and bring a good appetite for variety of great cuisines.
Friends don’t let friends eat junk food or national chain garbage, at least not around here or when I'm hosting.

Last nights dinner was a great sushi in our favorite local place for such.

Other than few takeouts during pandemic we hadn’t ate there for nearly year and half.
It was nice to see mostly same staff, which offered us a very warm welcome and still remembered all our favorite dishes and drinks.
The owner apparently was so happy to see us again that she insisted our dinner was on her.

Edited June 28, 2021 by TTR (see edit history)

[JACK M]

ACH ?

 

[ply33]

1 hour ago, JACK M said:

ACH ?

 

Angeles Crest Highway. California Highway 2. It runs along the high country in the San Gabriel Mountains (Angeles National Forest) from La Cañada/Flintridge to Wrightwood. California 2 also runs into downtown Los Angeles but that has a different name.

 

A favorite of motorcyclists, etc. as it is long and winding. As a hiker, both convenient and annoying. Convenient because it gets you to a number of trail heads. Annoying because many of the trails are on the ridge parallel to the highway and in most places you can hear the noise of the motorcycles winding out their engines, which carries for miles, regardless of how far you are from the trail head.

Edited June 28, 2021 by ply33 (see edit history)

[TTR]

3 hours ago, ply33 said:

Angeles Crest Highway. California Highway 2. 

 

A favorite of motorcyclists, etc. as it is long and winding. As a hiker, both convenient and annoying. Convenient because it gets you to a number of trail heads. Annoying because many of the trails are on the ridge parallel to the highway and in most places you can hear the noise of the motorcycles winding out their engines, which carries for miles, regardless of how far you are from the trail head.

Also popular among bicyclists and spirited (car) driving enthusiasts, including yours truly, although I rarely see anything truly cool, 50+ years old vehicles up there.  

As a hiker myself also, I’ve found some trails off ACH where one rarely, if ever hear the sounds of spirited driving/riding from the road, but occasionally encounter extremely annoying hikers blaring out their “iTunes”(?) or something through some portable loud speaker(s).
 

[JACK M]

Thank you for this info.

I was thinking Atlantic Coast hwy. or the likes, but would be Pacific Coast Highway (PCH}

I don't hang out in the LA area much other than changing planes on occasion.

I do drive near there on my way to Palm Springs once in awhile. But more often take the inland rt.

[TTR]

22 minutes ago, JACK M said:

Thank you for this info.

I was thinking Atlantic Coast hwy. or the likes, but would be Pacific Coast Highway (PCH}

I don't hang out in the LA area much other than changing planes on occasion.

I do drive near there on my way to Palm Springs once in awhile. But more often take the inland rt.

While Los Angeles and it's namesake/surrounding County has a few neat, scenic off-suburbia routes for driving pleasures, Orange County has very little to offer, but the "Inland Empire", i.e. Riverside & San Bernardino Counties have tons and with year round access to most of them I just find it sad that among SoCal's 30M+ population, not many local vintage car owners seem to take advantage of them more.

 

 

 

 

[ply33]

44 minutes ago, TTR said:

While Los Angeles and it's namesake/surrounding County has a few neat, scenic off-suburbia routes for driving pleasures, Orange County has very little to offer, but the "Inland Empire", i.e. Riverside & San Bernardino Counties have tons and with year round access to most of them I just find it sad that among SoCal's 30M+ population, not many local vintage car owners seem to take advantage of them more.

Yeah. Orange County basically has Ortega Highway, Santiago Canyon Road and Live Oak Canyon Road and nothing else. At least nothing else I am aware of.

 

There are lots of nice roads in the hills and mountains of San Diego County but from where I am in south Orange County those are only accessible via Ortega Highway or, as you call it, the conveyor belt (freeway).

[TTR]

9 minutes ago, ply33 said:

Yeah. Orange County basically has Ortega Highway, Santiago Canyon Road and Live Oak Canyon Road and nothing else. At least nothing else I am aware of.

 

There are lots of nice roads in the hills and mountains of San Diego County but from where I am in south Orange County those are only accessible via Ortega Highway or, as you call it, the conveyor belt (freeway).

Yes, my apologies to those further south.

There are some quite nice, leisure drive roads in San Diego County also, including 67, 76, 78, 79, Sunrise Hwy, etc, but for a day drive they are just little too far for me. 

OTOH, I/we have done those by making the trips for overnight or two and even combined some with attendance of a performances at "The Old Globe".

[TTR]

Little more than two weeks until Monterey Car events.

Who’s going and what are you driving to get (& while) there ?

I’ll likely take the Roadster (again), but might drive up there (& back) with a couple of 50+ year old Italian stallions.
You know, sort of like providing them a sense of roadside assistance safety. 😉

Honk & wave if you see me (or us), although we’re likely taking mostly scenic back/rural roads with little or no other traffic.

Expecting to rack up another 1000+ miles on that trip.

 

P.S. Hoping to do a small, +/-100 mile day, or more specifically early morning, drive tomorrow as the temps have been reasonably cool in last few mornings. 

Edited July 24, 2021 by TTR (see edit history)

[Ben Bruce aka First Born]

Envious!   I would like to see the map of how one gets from San Diego [ you do live there, don't you] to Monterey on back roads. Should be fun. Enjoy.

 

  Ben

[TTR]

2 hours ago, Ben Bruce aka First Born said:

Envious!   I would like to see the map of how one gets from San Diego [ you do live there, don't you] to Monterey on back roads. Should be fun. Enjoy.

 

  Ben

Ben, 

I’m located in Riverside, CA.
While the distance between here and Monterey is only about 375 miles and could easily be covered in 6-7 hrs using “conveyor belts” (but what’s the fun in that ?), I prefer more enjoyable, leisurely (vintage) drives using scenic back roads and secondary by- or highways, which there are plenty to choose from, but often require two days and 400-500 miles of travel each way (and there’s nothing wrong with that in my world).

I often also stop for an overnight stay at some friends home(s) along the way.

Edited July 24, 2021 by TTR (see edit history)

[Ben Bruce aka First Born]

AhHa.  I understand from Riverside.  Don't know why I thought you are in San Diego.

 

  Thanks

  Ben

[TTR]

6 minutes ago, Ben Bruce aka First Born said:

AhHa.  I understand from Riverside.  Don't know why I thought you are in San Diego.

 

  Thanks

  Ben

No idea either, but also, not a big deal.

 

Interestingly enough perhaps, but just couple of weeks ago I sold and shipped a vintage car part to someone in Witchta Falls, TX and briefly wondered if you and this person know each other. 🤔

[Ben Bruce aka First Born]

We may. I know a few guys.

 

  Ben

[ply33]

5 hours ago, Ben Bruce aka First Born said:

Envious!   I would like to see the map of how one gets from San Diego [ you do live there, don't you] to Monterey on back roads. Should be fun. Enjoy.

 

  Ben

Probably possible though I haven’t actually checked. . . Without checking maps, I think there are a fair number of back roads along the same corridor that I-15 uses between San Diego and Riverside. I know I can get from the Riverside area to around Escondido by reasonably back roads but haven’t actually tried from Escondido to San Diego. From Riverside, old US 66 will get you over the Cajon Pass to CA 138 where you can go west to pick up some back roads through Lake Elizabeth, Lake Hughes, then to Gorman on the Old Post Road and get into Frazier Park via Ralphs Ranch Road. West through Lake of the Woods and Pine Mountain Club onto Hudson Ranch Road to CA33/CA166. Either north on 33 to maybe CA 198 and then pick your way up the Salinas Valley. Or west on 166 to pick up some way along the coast until you get north/west of SLO where you then go up CA 1 to the Monterey Peninsula.

 

A number of years ago I led a small group of old cars from San Jose, CA to Tucson, AZ for a car show. We made the entire distance without a single foot of freeway driving. Options are a bit limited in places, for example there is only one non-freeway route that I am aware of across the Colorado River which happens to be at Parker. (There is a non-freeway bridge in Yuma but, near as I can tell, on the California side you will need to be on a freeway for a while to access that bridge. And then east from Yuma presents some issues.)

 

Figuring out long distance routes that avoid the freeway is probably easier in the middle and eastern parts of the country but here in the west it can be a fun challenge to figure out those routes and I am often studying maps to figure out the possibilities.

[TTR]

4 minutes ago, ply33 said:

Probably possible though I haven’t actually checked. . . Without checking maps, I think there are a fair number of back roads along the same corridor that I-15 uses between San Diego and Riverside. I know I can get from the Riverside area to around Escondido by reasonably back roads but haven’t actually tried from Escondido to San Diego. From Riverside, old US 66 will get you over the Cajon Pass to CA 138 where you can go west to pick up some back roads through Lake Elizabeth, Lake Hughes, then to Gorman on the Old Post Road and get into Frazier Park via Ralphs Ranch Road. West through Lake of the Woods and Pine Mountain Club onto Hudson Ranch Road to CA33/CA166. Either north on 33 to maybe CA 198 and then pick your way up the Salinas Valley. Or west on 166 to pick up some way along the coast until you get north/west of SLO where you then go up CA 1 to the Monterey Peninsula.

 

Figuring out long distance routes that avoid the freeway is probably easier in the middle and eastern parts of the country but here in the west it can be a fun challenge to figure out those routes and I am often studying maps to figure out the possibilities.

Having used all of those routes at various times for leisure (vintage car) travel over the years/decades I’m fairly familiar with them.

 

Studying and figuring out which to use is important part of the fun of such travel, sort of like the reference to journey itself being as (or more) important as/than the destination.

[TTR]

21 hours ago, TTR said:

I’ll likely take the Roadster (again), but… 

 

… Hoping to do a small, +/-100 mile day, or more specifically early morning, drive tomorrow as the temps have been reasonably cool in last few mornings. 

Heading out and up to Big Bear in few minutes and will meet some friends living up there for a brunch.. 
 

Anyone else heading for a drive ?

Edited July 25, 2021 by TTR (see edit history)

[Ben Bruce aka First Born]

13 minutes ago, TTR said:

Heading out and up to Big Bear in few minutes and will meet some friends living up there for a brunch.. 
 

Anyone else heading for a drive ?

 

  You are an early bird as am I.  I enjoy seeing the sun coming up through the windshield.  Enjoy.

 

  Ben

[TTR]

Well, my trip up to the mountains turned out little longer than I initially expected and extended the mileage on the odometer another +/-175 miles.

After taking the back road (Hwy 38), i.e. the long way to Big Bear, I got a friends place around 9 am yesterday, chewed some fat about old cars for an hour or so and headed out (in my Roadster) to get something little to eat at one of the local places. 
After this we decided to go for a drive around the lake and on some of the other scenic roads in the area.

Since we took my Roadster, I used the opportunity and invited him to drive it, which he seemed glad to accept.

 

At one point, on a twisty section of the road on the North shore, suddenly a deer jumped straight across the road, right in front of us and barely missed the grille and front tires. Had my friend been driving just a mile or two an hour faster, it would’ve caused an impact.

 

After about couple of hours enjoying the ride as a passenger in my own car, I felt thirsty enough for an “Eldorado” so he steered us to a nice little place with a patio overlooking the lake. 
Later we went back to his house, chewed more fat (mostly about vintage cars, of course) while enjoying couple of adult beverages (him an IPA beer, whiskey for me) and cigars on his front patio.

 

Then, in early evening, back to town (although now in his SUV) for a nice steak dinner, back to the house for more fat chewing and tall stories (mostly about vintage cars again) accompanied by more adult beverages and cigars.

We called it quits around 9 pm and retired for the night. 
 

This morning, as always, I got up  early and  since it had been raining all night (& still was), I decided to set the top up before heading back home. Got on the road around 8am and chose the same way as I had come with, mainly due to it likely having a lot less traffic and especially because of the rain. 
 
I’d been driving for about half an hour and was maybe a mile or two east of Barton Flats, when yet another almost surreal incident suddenly happened.
The road was winding through some fairly thick forest when I noticed a group of maybe 10-15 young ladies perhaps high school or college age, about 100+ feet off the road, presumably hiking (in the rain) and they all just stopped on their tracks, some of them pointing toward me (or perhaps more specifically, my Roadster) and suddenly they all appeared to burst into some excitement, jumping, shaking, smiling, waving, hollering/screaming/whistling, etc when I drove by. 
It was one of those once-in-a-lifetime moments I wish some had been there to capture it on video. 

 

There were also several stretches on that rainy and wet highway that I wish I could’ve been able to see the “rooster tails” my non-fendered tires were creating at 50-60 mph. 

 

Yesterday morning:

 

This morning:

Edited July 26, 2021 by TTR (see edit history)

[JFranklin]

On 7/25/2021 at 5:16 AM, TTR said:

Heading out and up to Big Bear in few minutes and will meet some friends living up there for a brunch.. 
 

Anyone else heading for a drive ?

I have driven my Model A Ford from the ocean to Big Bear Lake a few times in the past, it really was gulping for something (carb adjust?) up in the high country. How did your car perform up there?

Edited July 26, 2021 by JFranklin (see edit history)

[TTR]

12 hours ago, JFranklin said:

I have driven my Model A Ford from the ocean to Big Bear Lake a few times in the past, it really was gulping for something (carb adjust?) up in the high country. How did your car perform up there?

Over the years & decades I’ve driven this car at various elevations* and sometimes (but not always), she seems to exhibit signs of running a bit rich in thinner air, especially when getting above 5,000 - 6,000 or so ft. 
I’ve also noticed barometric pressures, humidity and temperatures or various combinations of those affecting her at times a little, but never enough to do or worry much about it.

 

* On our honeymoon trip (chronicled earlier on this thread), we got to above 10,000 ft. and she was loading up quite heavily, but still manageable and since it was going to be only temporary, I didn’t do anything about it, just kept cruising.

Edited July 27, 2021 by TTR (see edit history)

[TTR]

First, I apologize for a long absence of meaningful contributions to this (my own) thread.

 

Even with the pandemic related concerns, I/we have managed to accomplish fair amount of vintage driving/travel since my last posts here, but mostly I’ve been busy working on client cars, enjoying other pleasures in life and just haven’t had a chance/time to collect my thoughts enough for extensive travel reports.

 

As I’ve mentioned elsewhere, my Roadster engine, after 30+ years of good service, decided to suffer a top end failure toward the end of 2021, which lead to a complete engine rebuild and it, along with several other “while-you’re-there” mechanical overhauls (=clutch, transmission, steering gear, etc), took nearly 8 months to get her back on the road again, toward the end of July, 2022.

 

The good news is that since her aforementioned overhauls/rebuilding, finished only six months ago, she has managed to provide over 4500 miles of driving/traveling pleasures, including our (Mrs. TTR & my) 3000+ mile, 3.5 week, 3 (Western) State wide adventure and we just got back from another, almost 800 mile, 5-day vintage road trip through Las Vegas area & Death Valley. 
I’ve also taken hundreds, if not more, roadside photos at countless, scenic locations, not to mention hours of onboard video footage captured at some of the most bit**in’ roads I/we have encountered in past 6 months.

I’ll try to make time for more detailed/expanded descriptions of above trips soon, but in the meantime, if anyone else has travel adventures/stories in their vintage cars and wishes to share them here, I for one would love read about them. 

 

Edited January 27, 2023 by TTR (see edit history)

[R Walling]

 When I buy a "new car", I bring it into the garage and check/rebuild everything.

 That way, when I drive it, there is nothing that can go wrong.

 I own 13 older cars, and every one of them could go cross country if I desired.

                                                          

[Aussi John 1]

John Mereness, If the jack is too tall for a deflated tire, drive the car up onto the spare and then put the jack under.

[Aussi John 1]

My 29 Studebaker President, has travelled over 30 thousand miles in the last 20 years. It has been from Sydney where I live, to South Australia twice, Toowoomba in Queensland and many trips to the Western plains of NSW.