What to do / take on a long trip with an old car?

[White Lincoln]

We are going on a long trip and taking the Cougar. I wanted to know what I should do to the car and what I should take. I used to take a full tool kit when we drove 800 miles to Vegas, quart of oil, serpentine belt and a good spare tire.

Now that the car is MUCH MUCH older than when we used to take it for long trips, is there anything else I should include? I have AAA for towing up to 200 miles. I also thought I would take an extra fuel pump and my Snap-On scanner, just in case.

I already checked all the basic fluides, tire pressure, etc for the trip and the car is running great except for a rattle under the car that I can't find.

Any thoughts on what else might be important to do or take?

 

[Kenz]

I've had the alternator die and leave me SOL multiple times. Mostly when I was younger and driving less maintained cars. Might be a good idea to have a lithium jump pack with you incase that happens. Between It and the battery the the car will run long enough to hopefully get you to a parts store.

 

[KevinVarnes]

We road trip in "old" cars all the time. In the end there is only so much you can plan for and carry in terms of parts and tools. You can psyche yourself out into thinking you need to take every nut and bolt. If there anything that might be failure prone and nearly impossible to find on the road (thinking 89-93 SC crank position sensor) or tools (old Ford TFI module wrench) then grab that. I prefer to take a car that is regularly driven so you know its quirks and you have confidence in it.

In addition to your stuff I might add coolant/water, various sizes of hose clamps, and maybe a coil of heater hose.

Whenever I do a full inspection on a car, one of the most common things I see is a deflated/underinflated spare tire. Nothing worse then going to change a flat and realizing your spare is flat too.

 

[1997ThunderbirdLXV6]

I always carry a bottle of coolant. Came in very handy when my heater core failed.

 

[White Lincoln]

Excellent suggestions! I was going to take a gallon of water (we are no longer getting freezing nights or days here), but taking an extra hose or two is very sound.

This is my daily driver and as I had mentioned in a past post, I was driving home with the wife and the distributor blew up. Get the F#$% out! How weird is that? The spare is on my list to check as well as the current tires. I have new Michelen's on the car, so I should be good there.

As for the altenator, yep, was going to check that today. I don't know if my gauge is wacky or the altenator has a bad regulator, but the gauge wiggles at idle, back and forth, back and forth.

Anything else you think of, let me know! I appreciate the feedback. Thanks guys (and gals?)!

 

[Zep5.0]

AAA is a great idea. I've never used them, but my wife and son signed up this winter as a package deal for cheap.

As far as what to take, a small tool kit with a bit of everything is good. I didn't know if I would take any parts. Most of what you can change on the road will be available in parts stores. What you can't get at the parts store, I'd be surprised if you were lucky enough to decide to take it along. If I brought an alternator, I would surely need a starter instead and vice versa.

Most important is to bring some "oh crap" cash to get you back on the road of you need to pay someone to fix it

 

[XR7-4.6]

I like to keep it bare bones, a small hydraulic jack is a good thing to have, a 3/8 socket set, socket wrench and breaker bar, a few quarts of oil, a jumpstarter, a portable aircompressor(which might be one with your junpstarter if you’re fancy), a bottle of tire slime and flashlights. All stuff that mostly fits in a duffel bag.

FWIW anything can happen to one of these can happen to something brand new too, I would t get hung up on age. If you daily drive it now without issues it’s LESS likely to do it when you’re on the highway

I always carry a bottle of coolant. Came in very handy when my heater core failed.

In an emergency pinch bottled/tap water will get you where you need to go where you can better fix the problem and drain it out.

 

[Trunk Monkey]

Take a quart or two of oil and of course a funnel to put it in. Check the oil level at every fuel stop.

Check the serpentine belt and throw a spare in the car. Familiarize yourself with the routing and carry a breaker bar to adjust the tensioner if you need to replace it.

 

[Green T]

Bulbs & Fuses. I like to keep extra in the car at all times. As mentioned, you cant go wrong with a jump box/ inflater. Also, phone charging cables and maybe a lighter splitter depending on how many phones you are going to have.

A good flashlight.

 

[theterminator93]

I must be the only moron on the roads to have taken a 27-year old car with 240,000 miles on a 1200 mile 2-day road trip without a thought for spare anything!

 

[1997ThunderbirdLXV6]

I must be the only moron on the roads to have taken a 27-year old car with 240,000 miles on a 1200 mile 2-day road trip without a thought for spare anything!

This!

I mean my tools live in my trunk, plus the aforementioned coolant, but other than that it's a lot of knocking on wood.

I will say that on long drives, I always have my OBD2 Bluetooth plug connected. That way, I can monitor engine/transmission temperature, torque converter lockup, intake temperature, voltage... It gives me peace of mind.

 

[White Lincoln]

AAA is a great idea. I've never used them, but my wife and son signed up this winter as a package deal for cheap.

As far as what to take, a small tool kit with a bit of everything is good. I didn't know if I would take any parts. Most of what you can change on the road will be available in parts stores. What you can't get at the parts store, I'd be surprised if you were lucky enough to decide to take it along. If I brought an alternator, I would surely need a starter instead and vice versa.

Most important is to bring some "oh crap" cash to get you back on the road of you need to pay someone to fix it

Oh crap cash is great idea, did no think of that, being a plastic man these days. I did buy a lotto ticket tonight for $10.

I like to keep it bare bones, a small hydraulic jack is a good thing to have, a 3/8 socket set, socket wrench and breaker bar, a few quarts of oil, a jumpstarter, a portable aircompressor(which might be one with your junpstarter if you’re fancy), a bottle of tire slime and flashlights. All stuff that mostly fits in a duffel bag.

FWIW anything can happen to one of these can happen to something brand new too, I would t get hung up on age. If you daily drive it now without issues it’s LESS likely to do it when you’re on the highway

In an emergency pinch bottled/tap water will get you where you need to go where you can better fix the problem and drain it out.

Check on the jack and check on the emergency kit too and I need a bigger light to take with me. I did mention taking a gallon water bottle. No small air compressor though, but a can of goo would work. Check on the age, I have about everything new on this car; water pump, radiator, fuel filter, oil was just changed and I used a K&N oil filter.

I must be the only moron on the roads to have taken a 27-year old car with 240,000 miles on a 1200 mile 2-day road trip without a thought for spare anything!

You ARE MY HERO!

This!

I mean my tools live in my trunk, plus the aforementioned coolant, but other than that it's a lot of knocking on wood.

I will say that on long drives, I always have my OBD2 Bluetooth plug connected. That way, I can monitor engine/transmission temperature, torque converter lockup, intake temperature, voltage... It gives me peace of mind.

My car is OBD1. But I mentioned I would take my snap-on code reader.

Bulbs & Fuses. I like to keep extra in the car at all times. As mentioned, you cant go wrong with a jump box/ inflater. Also, phone charging cables and maybe a lighter splitter depending on how many phones you are going to have.

A good flashlight.

I had to laugh at some of the car shows where the guy buys a jump start and gets pissed on the show, calls the device a POS and threws it in the woods.

I think I'll get me one of those just for the experience....

 

[Grog6]

I've driven all my dd cars to the beach over the years; change the oil, check the tires, and go.
my shortest commute was 25 miles, usually was 60. 1200 miles of vacation driving is a break for my cars.

 

[MadMikeyL]

Here is what I take on road trips;
1) I have a basic 200ish piece mechanic tool kit, comes in a molded case, and has sockets, wrenches, screwdriver, Allen keys, etc.
2) Fully charged battery impact with 19mm socket for lug nuts, small hydraulic jack, and a full size spare. If I run over something in the road or get a flat, I don’t want to be screwing around with that space saver jack, or trying to drive 1000 miles home at 50mph on a donut.
3) Fully charged drop light
4) Zip ties, wire cutter/crimper tool, a spool of 14gauge wire, electrical tape, and some misc electrical connectors and ring terminals.
5) I have a tool called a Power Probe, which is like a test light and volt meter in one, plus you have the ability to put power and ground to things to test them. For most roadside electrical failures, they can be diagnosed pretty quickly with it.
6) Fully charged jump box.

That’s pretty much it. As far as bringing spare parts, I tend not to bother. The only exception to this are things that A) are not readily available, and B) are easy enough to change. For example, in the 90XR7, I have a DIS module and IRCM in the glove box at all times. Either of those could leave me stranded, are impossible to find a replacement at an auto parts store, and could be replaced on the side of the road in less time than it takes to wait for a tow truck. Bringing a spare belt is probably a good idea. Usually when I change the belt, I throw the old one in the trunk as a backup just in case. Fluids can be bought anywhere, so unless you know your car will need it, leave it. Bulbs aren’t going to leave you stranded. You aren’t going to change a distributor on the side of the road, so no sense bringing it.

Overall though, Brandon’s YOLO method is totally reasonable. Most people get freaked out about a road trip, but they think nothing of driving 3000+ miles without ever opening the hood. They just do it over the course of a few months instead of a few days. If the car is a DD, you’re probably fine. Add to that you have AAA, and you’re definitely fine. Add to that some basic things that you’re willing to do/change on the side of the road just to avoid the inconvenience of a tow, and you’re in a better position than 90% of the people on the road driving newer cars that they’ve never even checked the tire pressure.

 

[Kurt K]

MadMikeyL has a pretty good take on things.

A little late to the conversation, but with a personal goal to put over 5000 miles on my SC this year (usually between 500-1000), I've been thinking about this. SCs do add to the challenge as even less parts are available at the local auto parts store. I will be bringing a spare DIS module, crank sensor, cam sensor and SC belt (mine is not standard length and always needs to be ordered anyway). Then I will add a bottle jack, and a bag of tools and a battery jump pack (needed this several years ago when my battery completely died in the middle of traffic as we rolled into Pigeon Forge and one of the guys in the group had one that got me to the hotel). That's essentially what I plan to have with me on this year's Hot Rod Power Tour, but since others will be traveling with me, if I forget something it isn't a huge deal. I also plan a solo 3000 ish mile trip and I'll have to double check my spare parts.

 

[Grog6]

Traffic thru gatlinburg/pigeon forge sux. I rode back thru there on a bike, in a monsoon; bumper to bumper all the way to i-40,lol.