carls

My best friend and I are planning a long driving trip in my RX-8, from Austin to Big Bed, Phoenix, Las Vegas, UT, CO and so on.

Does anyone have any advice for me regarding the car before I head out on the journey?

Should I invest in a mini spare tire?

How much oil should I bring?

Anything else I need to consider?

We've been on long drives, but never with the RX-8, so I'm looking for specific things about the car, especially longs drives in hot weather states like TX, AZ and NV.

Thanks!

-Carl

Outlaws eXtreme

2 Quarts if you want to drive aggressively... but bring a quart in case.

If you still have warranty, Mazda will tow your car for ya, no need for spare.. unless you plan to be in the middle of nowhere.

You should expect better gas mileage on the open road Rev it up...

RotrDoc

I do lots of long-distance, high-speed driving on I-10, but not through the wide, open spaces.

Carry one quart of your favorite 5W-20 oil since you might want to add a cup or so someplace where your selection is limited.

Keep your radar ears on. That highway is awfully frustrating at 65 or 70 in the 8. The Texas HP are righteous and generous guys, but they do have a job to do, and they can't let you blow past at 120 and get away with it.

I really like the front bra (Mazda calls it a "mask"). Saves lots of bug and stone hits.

And the usual, tires, A/C checks, coolant, etc.

Enjoy!! This is a great car for long-distance cruising with a bit of an edge.

RotrDoc

P.S.:

I do carry the spare (I also wear both a belt and suspenders), but the little air compressor does a great job on slow leaks; it'll bring a tire up in less than 10 minutes.

Nubo

I carry the spare full-time. Worth the tradeoff in trunk space to me. I especially wouldn't want to be in the middle of nowhere with a ripped tire.

Whether or not carrying oil is important to you is a personal preference. Almost any gas station will carry some oil that will do the job. One quart of 10w30 isn't going to make the car blow up. Personally I like to always use the same oil so I carry a quart in the passthrough along with some towels. Haven't needed to use it yet. Longest trip so far was 1400 miles.

Go48

Just make sure you practice this:Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

You will find yourself saying that and not knowing why. :D

Nemesis8

iTrader: (3)

2 - Quarts of Oil
1 - Bag of Dark Chocalate Milky Way Bars
Lots of CD's if you don't have an iPod hooked into the PIE.

I drove 1200 one way to Sevenstock last year - then 1200 back home. No problems at all and no spare tire.

carls

Thanks for all the quick replies and suggestions!

2 quarts of oil sounds like the plan.

I have a 60GB iPod connected via a Neo iOn, loaded with 12,000 songs, so we're set with music.

My friend thinks we need the spare. I think we need the JL sub.

staticlag

Lol, thats what my friends say...

The Sub!

Plus ice chest filled with favourite beverage
:p

Q-chan

iTrader: (1)

Enjoy the trip.....

And watch out for narrow streets..... the broad smile woun't fit anymore! :D

VooDoo

1) Enjoy the ride (get a map or GPS if you don't have Nav.).

2) No

3) 2 quarts oil 5W-20

4) Engine Coolant, First Aid kit, emergency clothes/food. Make damn sure your cell phone charger works (trust me on that one).

5) iPod

DrRockin99

I would get a mask personally , bugs and rock chips will kill the front end , just two trips of 800 miles and I have rock chips everywhere .

carls

I generally like the look of the car without the mark better, but for a long drive like this, I like the advice of getting one. So I'm picking one up tomorrow.

VooDoo, good suggestion about the first aid kit and GPS.

I'm very psyched about this trip. It'll be a blast.

Thanks!

-Carl

dazygirl415

I took a road trip in my 8 2 months after I got it and it was a riot. I loved every minute of it and can't wait to do it again. I hope you have a good trip!!!

VooDoo

** Excellent idea **

SD-8

I might invest in a grill cover for the lower opening in the front of the car. When I drove from Dallas to Phoenix this past Feb, I got a ton of tumbleweed stuck in that part of the car while driving through NM.

But have fun, that is a long trip. Are you guys camping out everywhere or staying at motel/hotels?

Make sure you hit some of the National parks in Southern UT, canyonland, Zion. They are awesome and not as popular or crowded as Grandcanyon or Yellowstone.

carls

I was considering grill covers for the font openings. I'm looking at the Racing Beat AC and oil cooler screens:

http://www.racingbeat.com/resultset....r=screen%20set

We plan on hitting many national parks during the trip. We're both big into that kind of thing. We plan on finding the methuselah tree, too.

We're going to stay in hotels during the trip.

-Carl

Blue87Sport

Be sure to bring to bring a toothbrush and dental floss as you'll be grinning the whole way. :D :D :D <- You'll look like this.

On a more practical note, you might want to bring some glass cleaner wipes to keep the windows clean and something to scrub off the inevitable bug carcasses that you'll accumulate.

Lastly, Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks are not to be missed. Have a great time and come back to post pictures of the 8 in front beautiful scenery. It would make for great wallpaper shots.

redjetpack

most important thing to do is realize how much better the rest of the US is than west texas..... holy crap, im from AZ and i think texas is desolate.

should you find yourself staying a night or so in central AZ, look up the Camp Verde Fire department. ask for Rusty, ill show you a few "interesting" places around here..... and we can take the 8s out ina convoy, very very satisfying.

or i guess if you wanted to do that you could just shoot me a PM and ill give you a phone number and we could hit sedona or jerome in a convoy of rx8s and my bro's rx7.

flip

I wish i had a mask/bra or something during my drive from Chicago to Vegas... just from driving from the New Mexico/Arizona border to Vegas i got a few chips... ... but heck, it was fun! :D

truemagellen

forget the BRA/mask...will do much more damage than good

if you can get a clear bra go for it...but lot easier and cheaper to just replace the front bumper people...going for cheap on the forum all the time

carls

I've got windex, an abosrber, lots of quarters, quick detailer and towels already planned.

Zion and Bryce are on the list for sure. I plan on taking lots of pictures on this trip, and I'll make them available on my website, possibly even during the drive, as I'll have my laptop with me, and I can upload them from where ever I am.

I've lived in Austin for the past 10 years now, and I like it here. It's very different than the rest of Texas, thankfully. I moved from Chicago. I've seen much of the US, but there's a lot out there I haven't seen yet, so I'm looking forward to seeing more on this trip.

redjetpack, my mom lives in Scottsdale, and we will be there for 1 night for sure. It looks like you're about an hour+ north of there, so we should try to get together. I'll PM you for more details.