I am planning a trip around the country in my 1995 MIata in March with my mini dachsund, Bob. I was wondering if any of you had any tips for me. I am already making sure th car is fit and taking along things such as a GPS, CB radio and a laptop. I don't plan to bring a spare tire so I can bring more bags, but I do have AAA and a cell phone as well as my radio. What else should I keep in mind?
Earplugs. The cheap foam ones work great, but if you want to be strictly legal in most states you should get custom fitted ones from an audiologist.
Not sure where you get earplugs for a dog...
Put the top up when it rains. Without a spare, make sure you're never out of reach of a cell tower. Does your radio transmit?
Don't let the dog drive, no matter how much he sits up and begs.
One squirrel and you're over a cliff.
-- Larry
Bags are not a big deal if you have the right kind. In '97 I made a trip from Alaska and around the perimeter of the US (or up to Savannah, GA when I ran out of time) in my '91. No CB or cell phone were used and I might have just embarrassed myself by panicking at least once and screaming for help had I had them. But I would not have driven down the Alaska Highway without at least the standard donut spare. For bags I used a pair of soft bags made to custom fit the rear shelf and that took care of most of the clothes requirements. When dirty laundry could no longer be stuffed into the trunk it was, by default, time to stop at a laundromat.
I drove back to Savannah some years later but in the same car and finished the trip at the north-easternmost point of land in Maine which was my original destination in '97.
Especially earplugs small enough for a mini dachsund. They do make mutt muffs for dogs that size. Very cute, these would have been a nice $69.75 chew toy for my dog.
And made some great pics. :)
Making sure that you have new radials on the wheels may help. So much more protective rubber. Of course, in my 2006, I have no choice. Fix-a-flat is included in the price of the car. :)
Note that there are spacious compartments besides the rear wheels (behind the spare tire and behind a cover at the other side. That side also has the fuel supply pipe, so I would not put anything heavy there.
Put as much as you can in soft bags or small containers to use the trunk space as well as possible. I use one non soft carry on bag to put my shirts in, to prevent them from completely crumpling.
Watch every inch of space. Any item that uses a cubic inch of trunk space, or even more, for some items, should be carefully scrutinized.
On Bozo, I used to take clothes, *small* portable, digital camera, extensive tools (lots of aftermarket stuff on that car), spare lights, fuel filter, jumper cables, GPS, CB, cell phone, spare tire, etc.
Things that can be easily obtained under way if needed should be left at home. For example, I will put only a single bottle of wine in the trunk, easily found, but at least a couple of bottles of Tio Pepe and 30-40 bottles of decent beer. If you travel in Canada, you might find somewhat decent beer at stores, and you could cut down on trunk space there. In fact, I find that quite frequently I do stumble on decent places to get supplies even in the US, and I usually end up back home with a number of the beer bottles I left with.
Tsjuk. Not the spirit. Travel stuff should go in the trunk. You want to project an image of being on a joy drive, not on a safari. Before you know it, you start believing yourself that you are working instead of having fun.
Leon.
I would take more sun screen and teach Bob how to use the GPS so you can have more fun driving.
Bruce Bing '03 LS
Bob taught me.
John, I do seem to remember a "writeup" or bloggie thing you did on that trip. Care to provide the link, I'd like to read it again, just for the enjoyment. It might also be useful in review for the OP... If it wasn't you, forgive me.
Hello from North Georgia,
I have been from Chicagoland to San Diego then back via Atlanta and from Atlanta to San Diego and back in my 90B ("Leggs")
I stored things under the passenger floor mat - people can not see that it is 2~4" higher than the driver one ;-)
I also stored a hard "6-pack" cooler in the driver rear window (bungie cord...)
again - lots of soft luggage in the trunk, shorts and layers of clothing
Remove the driver side trunk cover plate and put long or soft things you might need in there - leave the cover off - the pipes are strong enough - especially with soft bags to cushion the hard bag (been somehow missing on mine since the mid-90's...). There is some room around the jack and behind/within the spare.
consider the spare tire relocation to under the car (NA only...) certainly bring a can of "fix-a-flat" and a spare (charged) phone battery
you might consider the tonneau cover for the passenger side - or other shelter options for your co-driver (large soft travel bag or other "cave" to hide / retreat too)
several hats and lots of sun-screen and sun-glasses
dog travel sickness things and toys, water/food bowls.
Spare 3 gallons of water containers for you and Bob (back window shelf ?)/pax floor board above floor mat? (refill at hotels with ice..) (couple of pouch style with drinking tube ?)
12v to 110 converter for your computer/phone/camera battery chargers (16$ at "big lots" or elsewhere).Pax side drink holder (big lots or automart again) Anti-slide plate or mounting for GPS.
12v splitter/multi outlets (mine is hard wired from the cigar lighter and mounted with velcro in the pax foot well (high on center hump).spare fan belts and plug wires - with minimal tools and enthusiast repair manual, with other things possible if there is a zombie attack ;-)
I would also look into things like "emergency gas" or carrying a spare quart in some doubled container (or fill on the 1/2 full mark)...
spare cash, eyeglasses, prescriptions, contact info, passport...
Get your National Park annual pass before your leave
snacks and plan for the 1st several days, then just targets and directions.
someone mounted a video camera to the roll-bar and took lots of pictures that way...
confirm your cruise control works / install one not (Texas is a whole nuther country)
careful along the southern border - you want to stay above I-10 there...
mdg>I am planning a trip around the country in my 1995 MIata in March with
It is available from the menu at my web site but the direct links to the beginning of the trip is at
snip...
Stay above I-10? What kinda' fun is that. Besides you would miss out on all sorts of potentially interesting experiences if you stay too far north. You just gotta' stay alert at certain times of the day for running migrants on the road -- just like deer and moose and elk in some parts of the country. There are warning signs all over to alert you to the most dangerous crossing areas. Having a passport and several other forms of ID is a good idea since some of the INS folks can be a bit testy at times. If your vehicle's license plate looks nothing like any Mexican state's plates so much the better -- I was scrutinized very closely a couple of times by INS like I was somehow smuggling illegals in my Miata. I found out later that my Alaska plates looked just a bit like the plates from somewhere down south.
Oh, and if you get down to Globe, Arizona you just _have_ to eat at Irene's! Best chili bicolor you are ever likely to find this side of Heaven.
Can you lend him to me? I still get lost when my wife uses it ! :-)
Bruce Bing '03 LS
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