Road trip distance?

bikeprof

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 2, 2005
Location
Pagosa Springs, Colorado(YEAH!)
TDI
1996 Passat B4 Variant white, 1996 Town & Country 3.8 LXI
I wonder what the minimum distance for "us"(the TDI'rs) to call the trip a ROAD TRIP?

1. Does it have to be fun?
2. What IS the magic number of mileage to call it a trip?
3. Are we driving to "Break in" the new TDI?
4. Do we have to get away from the "significant other" to call it a "road trip", or do they have to come to call it, a "road trip"?
5. Does overnight mean a "road trip"?
6. Is the making of memories entitle us to the "road trip" label?
7. NO breakdowns, means a good "road trip"?
8. Driving a TDI exclusively IS necessary for the label of a "road trip"?
9. Navigating in the USA, is it the only geographic area for it to be a
"road trip"?

Others at your request..., fill in the blanks:

Could this become a "sticky"? :eek:
 

bikeprof

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 2, 2005
Location
Pagosa Springs, Colorado(YEAH!)
TDI
1996 Passat B4 Variant white, 1996 Town & Country 3.8 LXI
Thanks Rammstein, I now feel "worthy" ! :cool:

I like to drive my TDI B4 Variant, so driving to an overnight destination is not necessary to have a good trip for me.
Always! it is a good trip when I get back and all that I have left behind was ZOOT; no parts...:), no matter to where I have gone :D .
 

burpod

teh stallionz!!1
Joined
Nov 27, 2004
Location
cape cod, ma
TDI
82 rabbit vnt ahu, 98 jetta vnt ahu, 05 parts car, 88 scirocco.. :/
1800 miles and no sleep. some bad weather conditions permitted. starting out the trip at 6pm under "less than ideal conditions"...35 hr minium drive
 

bikeprof

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 2, 2005
Location
Pagosa Springs, Colorado(YEAH!)
TDI
1996 Passat B4 Variant white, 1996 Town & Country 3.8 LXI
burpod: I am with thermographer, YOU WIN!

I remember those days when I could go (drive) all night! :D

I went to TAOS a couple days/nights ago, the moon was smiling at the road and also keeping me in sight. From home in Pagosa, I drove 84 south towards Santa Fe , cut off at Tierra Amarilla,NM on 64 east towards Taos. THAT is a Beautiful drive at night with the full moon! :) very romantic with the Aspens and the valleys full of virgin snow and on occasion, a howl or two(wolves). Elk is abundant and even wild BISON(buffalo) can be seen! DO NOT HIT ANY OF THESE! please :( , there are NO services anywhere to call for assistance. You'll be S.O.L (simply out of luck) and it gets COLD there!

This road reminds me a lot of the old Alfred Hitchcock movies, where there was a lot of developement in the script but the last... was left to the imagination. What If the wolves are hungry, I break down... and then :eek: !

So there! A great day trip with memories that I can take with me...
 

thermographer

Veteran Member
Joined
May 1, 2004
Location
Maryville, Tennessee
TDI
Jetta GL, 2004 Wheat/Beige with Automatic Tiptronic, ESP
whitedog said:
Like your first 100,000 wasn't one long road trip. :p
wasn't all in a row, I did stop to sleep. Peabody dreams on a Motel 6 budget!

Road trip is a state of mind. There is nothing like it.
Armed with MS Streets & Trips, a Rand Mcnally as backup, cup of Micky D's coffee in the cup holder cooling down to drinkable temperature, XM remote control in the right hand (don't have to shift), cruse control set, and Interstate (insert your favorate number) out in front of you.. it's just poetic. Man, I miss the road.
 

bikeprof

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 2, 2005
Location
Pagosa Springs, Colorado(YEAH!)
TDI
1996 Passat B4 Variant white, 1996 Town & Country 3.8 LXI
Another shot(drive) to the horrible TX state :p

Visiting the mom since she is going on her mid winter vacation...

1.000 miles in one tank because I was going faster than normal :( ,very STRONG crosswinds on the way down "just" in front of this cold front that has the nation stopped in its tracks.
Barreling sideways to the wind :eek: , and feeling(a lot) the push of the big trucks as they passed my "QUASI-aerodynamic", shoe box... :eek: !

Hmmmm, so far:
VW-1
repairs-0

Ha! another GREAT road trip!
 

reflextdi

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 27, 2003
Location
Rockford IL
TDI
2003 Jetta GL TDI - reflex silver
thermographer said:
Road trip is a state of mind. There is nothing like it.
Armed with MS Streets & Trips, a Rand Mcnally as backup, cup of Micky D's coffee in the cup holder cooling down to drinkable temperature, XM remote control in the right hand (don't have to shift), cruse control set, and Interstate (insert your favorate number) out in front of you.. it's just poetic. Man, I miss the road.
Well put - I prefer the "Blue Highways" but don't always have the time for it. Still, it's a state of mind.

To be an official road trip I'd say it has to be more than one tank of fuel. Overnights are optional but preferred...
 

Tom Servo

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 9, 2000
Location
LA (Lower Alabama)
TDI
2005 Gol TDI, blue and falling apart
There is nothing better than an overnight trip, especially one that is for no other reason than to just go. Can't do those much anymore.

A road trip for me is anything out of state. It's not usual for me to put 300 miles on in a few days with the folks on the weekends. Ya gotta go at least 30 miles to get good Mexican or 100 to get a good steak around here. :(

Then again, I'm the kind guy who'll do 500+ miles to get his hands on Cherry RC Cola and a few battery cans of Jolt...

...I once drove to New Orleans for a po-boy...

...when I was in college I once drove to Iowa, just to get a grocery bag full of snow (came home, made snowballs, had snowball fight in 60 degree weather)...

...once drove to Minneapolis just to visit the Mall of America. Alone. Even tho I didn't need to shop for anything.

...I regularly went to Nashville (from B'ham) to shop for music...

...I used to drive to Montgomery (from B'ham) to see movies...

...drove to Toronto once just to say I'd been to Canada, eh. Those border people are a nosy bunch!
 
Last edited:

bikeprof

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 2, 2005
Location
Pagosa Springs, Colorado(YEAH!)
TDI
1996 Passat B4 Variant white, 1996 Town & Country 3.8 LXI
ZACH: Beautiful! :D !

THAT is what a road trip mind is :cool: .

"THE" go for enjoying the ROAD; of enjoying being out where silence of the HUM(road hum) is "the" music to the soul(in this case), and where I/WE have the total say so about how to "cruise" and what to see :) .

Getting out for the sake of self sanity, :rolleyes: eh?

NICE!

We need more stories of the road..., they are fun to read:) .
PS. have you read my GELLING incident :p ?

PSS. You can make Pagosa Springs in about 25ish hours for the GTG that I am having here in APRIL(13,14,15th).
THAT would be a NICE road trip; at the end, tuners to play with your car :eek:, therefore...:D !
 

namiejr

Member
Joined
Dec 18, 2006
Location
Michigan
TDI
98 Beetle TDI
Tom Servo said:
There is nothing better than an overnight trip, especially one that is for no other reason than to just go. Can't do those much anymore.

A road trip for me is anything out of state. It's not usual for me to put 300 miles on in a few days with the folks on the weekends. Ya gotta go at least 30 miles to get good Mexican or 100 to get a good steak around here. :(

Then again, I'm the kind guy who'll do 500+ miles to get his hands on Cherry RC Cola and a few battery cans of Jolt...

...I once drove to New Orleans for a po-boy...

...when I was in college I once drove to Iowa, just to get a grocery bag full of snow (came home, made snowballs, had snowball fight in 60 degree weather)...

...once drove to Minneapolis just to visit the Mall of America. Alone. Even tho I didn't need to shop for anything.

...I regularly went to Nashville (from B'ham) to shop for music...

...I used to drive to Montgomery (from B'ham) to see movies...

...drove to Toronto once just to say I'd been to Canada, eh. Those border people are a nosy bunch!
In college, we use to drive to Hell, Michigan. When people ask where we went, we'd say "To Hell and Back!".
 

Tom Servo

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 9, 2000
Location
LA (Lower Alabama)
TDI
2005 Gol TDI, blue and falling apart
To Hell you say?

bikeprof said:
We need more stories of the road..., they are fun to read:) .
PS. have you read my GELLING incident :p ?

PSS. You can make Pagosa Springs in about 25ish hours for the GTG that I am having here in APRIL(13,14,15th).
THAT would be a NICE road trip; at the end, tuners to play with your car :eek:, therefore...:D !
Don't tempt me, don't tempt me, don't tempt me! :p

I've been all around Pagosa Springs, so it would be someplace new. When I had that urge - that calling of the road - I always tried to go someplace new, even if was just in the next county. It's getting to where, even though I just moved, I'm having to go further and further out to find new places. There just isn't much to see in Mississippi.

And DO tell about the gelling incident. I'm about to go to the store in freezing weather. It's always a fear of mine to get stuck in East Nowheresville, gelled, freezing and with no cell service.

namiejr said:
In college, we use to drive to Hell, Michigan. When people ask where we went, we'd say "To Hell and Back!".
Sweet. I've always wanted to go to Hell. On my map there's a place called "Dam Site Inn"; I'd love to have my picture taken at a Dam Site Inn Hell.
 

Bill DeWitt

Member
Joined
Apr 9, 2006
Location
South Central Mo
TDI
2006 TDI, Plat. Grey Pack. #2
Road trips

Last September we got our '06 Jetta and were visiting in K. C. Got hungry for a steak, went to Montana Mike's in western Kansas. From there
we needed a sack of peaches from Oregon and a bag of Washington apples. On the way home we stopped in Three Forks, Mt. for 5 loaves of bread at the Wheat Montana Bakery & Deli. To top it off at the Hayes House in Council Grove, Ks. we had prime rib. Oh yeah the Jetta (got carried away) it got broke in and we average 48.5 mpg. As you can see we like to travel.

Would any one like to carvan to Old Mexico? Say from Nogales, Az. to Mazatlan, Durango, Torreon and Monterrey then back to the States?
Last week I contacted a tour guide from El Paso and he suggested to contact the Green Angels in Old Mexico. We might could drive with them or a few hours in front for security. Your thoughts?
Bill DeWitt
West Plains, Mo.
 

bikeprof

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 2, 2005
Location
Pagosa Springs, Colorado(YEAH!)
TDI
1996 Passat B4 Variant white, 1996 Town & Country 3.8 LXI
Mr Bill :eek: !

Since you like to take "road trips", here is one for you...

Come to the GTG in Pagosa during the 13,14,15th of APRIL.

ALL the top tuners will be here(Chipping/injectors/VAG-COM, etc), also TDI racing(VW RALLY Golf/Oliver), a couple VENDORS and good LOCAL beer.
Super HOT springs and VERY nice mountains with clean air to add to all that :D .

WHATCHA say? I gave you plenty of notice...:cool: .

Check Mountain/Southern States GTG's for info.

John
 

scurvy

Good Ol' Boy
Joined
Feb 21, 2006
Location
Chicago IL USA
TDI
2006 Golf
Ah, the heady days of college.

A couple buddies and I decided to go to the beach one day. In late fall. At 10pm. Pointed my trusty Volvo south by southeast from Atlanta. Exactly four hours later I pulled the e-brake and we piled out and over the boardwalk over the dunes on Tybee Island and proceeded to get soaking wet in the very-f'in-cold Atlantic Ocean. Ten minutes later, back on the road. We got back just in time to change clothes and walk to our 8am morning classes.

Nice.

My wife and I have also decided on a moment's notice to go visit my brother and his wife in Atlanta, let our always-happy-to-go-for-a-ride greyhound jump into the back of the Golf and taken off at noon on a Saturday. It's weird to be able to make that trip without stopping for fuel. I can only imagine what kind of stupid road trips I would've taken in college if I had this kind of range in a vehicle then.

scurvy
 
Last edited:

Tom Servo

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 9, 2000
Location
LA (Lower Alabama)
TDI
2005 Gol TDI, blue and falling apart
college is a time to sow one's wild oates. or eat them.

Hey scurvy - I did the exact same thing when I was in college. How weird is that???

Instead of getting hazed to death (literally) like so many of my classmates, I was too busy exploring all of creation on my own. Maybe that's why I didn't do to well in school. :eek:
 

OzarkTDI

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 26, 2006
Location
lake of the ozarks
TDI
'06.7 NB TDI
Old Mexico?

Greetings Bill

Wife and I'd be interested in driving to Merida, North coast of the Yucatan, we have friends there who will put 4 of us up for little or no cost. Mayan ruins, cenote diving or just plain lounging by the beach front is also an acceptable past time. Our biggest concern was being able to find fuel readily.

Our friends, also lake dwellers drove the trip in their Honda O in less than 30 hours with a layover for sleep and more fuel stops. Does the passport issue apply if travelling by land? I know it does if arr/dep by air. We do not have passports yet.

April is out, we have tix for Talledega and it will be the longest RT to date. RT's around here really are an everyday occurance with 6,200 miles since new 12-16.

Bob
 

bikeprof

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 2, 2005
Location
Pagosa Springs, Colorado(YEAH!)
TDI
1996 Passat B4 Variant white, 1996 Town & Country 3.8 LXI
Bob: Getting passports is a HAVE TO! You can go into MEX. until the Mexican customs(~35miles) and then you will be turned back.

DIESEL is so available there it is quite funny! It may be a little lower than here on cetane but it is EVERYWHERE! and with the range of the TDI, "no worries", OK?

GET a PASSPORT! You will not regret that! take plenty of SMALLER Peso bills to hand out in case of a police officer "wants to talk" to you(bribe pesos...), you should be OK.
Also, don't be arrogant with the locals, you'll have a way better time :D !
 

Tom Servo

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 9, 2000
Location
LA (Lower Alabama)
TDI
2005 Gol TDI, blue and falling apart
I don't think you need a passport until January 2008 for ground travel, but getting a passport will definitely save you some headaches. The last time I went into Canada, I got guff from both sides because I didn't have one, and this was in 2005.

An old co-worker of mine from Mexico City once told me that Pemex sells diesel almost everywhere; I think I've seen on here that it's usually 50 cetane! :eek:
 

Jack_Berry

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 14, 2006
Location
Racine Wis
TDI
02 jetta sedan
1976 rick and i went out so he could get some smokes. started on the northwest side of chgo. went to mad city via mke for pizza. went west to the big river and north for b'fast. turned right and cruised across 8 to 41 and came south. don't remember the mileage just a great 24 hours of cruising in his new 240 dl.
st louis for a 24 hr race. mid ohio for several 24 hr races. nelson ledges for several 24 hr races and mosport for, yes,a couple 24 hr races. quick jaunts to detroit for a gp or three and 3 trips to rd atlanta. approx 60 trips to rd am don't count as they were only 2.5 hrs in lth. forgot the new england trip and visit at lime rock park for imsa on memorial day monday and the drivers school the following week with the wife in her black 84 gli 5 spd.
upcoming 10 day drive and see to cour d lene id to see the sis in laws house on the river and back to racine via fargo for a tour of the cnh steiger tractor factory in july.
 
Last edited:

mcgovc

New member
Joined
Mar 30, 2007
Location
East Lansing, Michigan
TDI
2001 Jetta TDI
Just about a month ago I drove my '01 TDI with a car full of buddys and a full car topper 1,100 miles to Panama City beach. (With all this weight and drag from the topper I still managed to average around 46 mpg!) I drove the entire way with only a couple stops for food and gas. Once in sunny Florida my TDI felt peppy and quick. Needless to say I put this to good use and made a few ricer kids mad. On the way back up to Michigan it was thee same old story... "lets drive straight thru" (worst idea ever) Somewhere near Ft. Wayne, Indiana I began to fall asleep at the wheel. So we pulled off and took a 20 minute cat nap in the Jetta. Crossing back into Michigan the Jetta ran over 147,000 miles on the odometer. Making it back with no problem, the Jetta easily makes the overall 2,500 mile journey. Next year.. I think I 'll go somewhere further away.
 

mcgovc

New member
Joined
Mar 30, 2007
Location
East Lansing, Michigan
TDI
2001 Jetta TDI
scurvy said:
Ah, the heady days of college.

A couple buddies and I decided to go to the beach one day. In late fall. At 10pm. Pointed my trusty Volvo south by southeast from Atlanta. Exactly four hours later I pulled the e-brake and we piled out and over the boardwalk over the dunes on Tybee Island and proceeded to get soaking wet in the very-f'in-cold Atlantic Ocean. Ten minutes later, back on the road. We got back just in time to change clothes and walk to our 8am morning classes.

Nice.

My wife and I have also decided on a moment's notice to go visit my brother and his wife in Atlanta, let our always-happy-to-go-for-a-ride greyhound jump into the back of the Golf and taken off at noon on a Saturday. It's weird to be able to make that trip without stopping for fuel. I can only imagine what kind of stupid road trips I would've taken in college if I had this kind of range in a vehicle then.

scurvy

I am currently in college and I drive a '01 Jetta TDI... In your post you stated, "I can only imagine the road trips I would've taken in college if I had this kind of range in a vehicle then" Well you are absolutley right. It seems that at minimum my friends and I will take some random stupid road trip.. and always at the drop of a pen. Its refreshing to hear that I am not the only one who has gone thru this stage.. but my God, its just so fun!
 

4JimmyVee

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 17, 2005
Location
Thornhill Ont Cda
TDI
1999.5 Silver
Two years ago From Thornhill Ont to the Ferry to Magdalan Islands on the north shore of Prince Edward Island 2470km (25:30 Hrs). Most of the drive was on 2 lane road so no super hwy, I missed the ferry by 10 minutes and had to stay at the Hilltop hotel for $70 let me just stay don't stay at this hotel. By the way this was the week that fuel cost went from $0.80 Ltr to $1.30. By the way the picture you see Icon is my car waiting for the ferry.
 
Last edited:

bikeprof

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 2, 2005
Location
Pagosa Springs, Colorado(YEAH!)
TDI
1996 Passat B4 Variant white, 1996 Town & Country 3.8 LXI
JimmyVee: Nice to hear that you have been up to the Newfoundland area...

I am planning a trip up there next year, I want to hear more of this one trip(or others similar) and stuff you can recommend.

Be :cool: , summer is coming :D !

B4 Variant w/many miles...and a "couple" of MODS.
hmmm, an "experienced" car.
 
Joined
Jul 4, 2007
Location
COLORADO
TDI
2001 TDI JETTA
Beautiful Road Trip

7/2/2007 I started at 5 am. and filled up at the local Bio-Diesel pump in Colorado Springs. The 250 mile to Rifle,Co. began.
My 2001 Jetta TDI is at 135,000 miles. Performing like new. An hour later arriving on I-70 and gaining altitude. A little ways up the highway before the Eisenhower Tunnel at 11,000 feet with hardly anyone on the road at 6 am. without downshifting in 5th gear and up hill my speed was at 95 mph. Of course letting off the pedal a mile before the Tunnel.
Later after leaving 100 degree Rifle,Co. I decided to take the longer but scenic roaute back to Colorado Spring by Independence Pass(12,000). Having lived in Colorado 11 years I would say driving on that pass was the most beautiful drive even taken.
To cut this long winded story short with all the speed and altitude when I arrived back home with doing nearly 500 miles I had burned just over a half tank.:)
So what makes a great road trip is a car that is fast and fuel efficient.
 

cptmox

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 15, 2001
Location
Villa Park, IL.
TDI
01 Jetta GLS, Silver 5-spd
Road trip minimum criteria = however far you can go on one bladder.

Road trip max = no such thing.

Perfect road trip = From Chicago in the dead of winter to any place warm.
 
Top