Any tips for my drive across the country?

[swooopeno]

Where: Phoenix, AZ to Chicago, IL

When: between xmas and new years

Why: Moving... for the weather of course...

What:

So far, we have a 24' moving truck, pulling a car trailer w/ the 4runner on it (I think). Also driving the lexus.

We'll try to do it in 2 days, but we might wear out and just give it 3 days. (~~1800 miles).

Penske says they don't allow and have no liability for cars on the trailer w/ rims over 17". Now, the lexus has 18's, the runner has 17's. The overall dia. (which is their concern) is smaller on the lexus. Because of this written rule, I figured we should trailer the runner instead. This is good in that it will save us some gas $$$, and bad because we have a dog that would have to be in the lexus, and possible bad weather that I much rather drive in the runner. Should I just drive the runner and trailer the lexus and hope nothing happens?

Also... any tips on this length of drive? I've never driven anything like it before. I think we are taking the southern (texas) route to avoid the bad weather. Otherwise... we have no other plans or hotel reservations or anything.

Let's hear it???

 

[Neil]

Hi,
If the weather is clear with no forecast for snow then you could come through NM on I-40 and then catch I-17 to Phoenix from Flagstaff. However, I 40 is often closed from Hwy 285 and I-40 until you get to Albuquerque because of blowing snow and jackkniffed semi's all the way through Tijera's Canyon east of Albuqurque. Also the interstate from Abq through Gallup also gets pretty icy so I would avoid that route and take I-10 through the southern part of the state if the weather is supposed to be bad. None of the roads are impassible in bad weather but the volume of semi's that take I-40 just make it difficult to travel in inclement weather. Also the drive on I-10 may be the most boring because of the desert scenery. But you will avoid most major mountain passes by taking I-10 and that will save you time and money at the gas pump.

 

[pipspeak]

I would give it three days... driving more than 600 miles a day is brutal and bad weather along the way might make it even more brutal. You might feel physically OK after 8 hours but mentally you're exhausted and therefore more prone to have an accident or fall asleep. SF to Portland (about 600 miles) is as far as I drive in a day these days, and I've done some epic trips.

I drove NY to LA once in three days... shared the driving but I would not recommend it at all. Another time I did the coast-to-coast (via Dallas) I took seven days, which was more tolerable but still did me in.

Also, never overestimate your expected average speed. On any long trip that's mostly freeway I never expect to average more than 60 mph. You might think it's freeways all the way so you can average 70 but with a few stops or slow traffic your average can drop to as low as 50mph, adding hours to your time estimate. I always find it extremely hard to keep my average above 60mph on a long trip... about the only time I did it was driving SF to LA non-stop (400 miles), but my bladder was on the verge of exploding by the time I arrived.

And finally, book at least your first night's hotel before you set off. The last thing you want to do after driving for 12 hours is hunt around for somewhere to stay and end up staying at a flea pit where you'll get no rest because there are drug deals going down all night long. I would only attempt a maximum of 600 miles the first day then gauge how well it went and how you feel once you arrive. Then book the second night somewhere based on how far you think you can drive on day 2.

 

[Northof49]

I drove from toronto to south BC in 3.5 days (3 sleeps on the road). It was 3700kms (2300 miles) which was about 660 miles per day, day being about 8-9 hours ofdriving, and another hour of lunch, gas stops and general pissing around. 2300 miles in less than 32 hours driving.

My brother was with me for company, but didn't have a licence at the time, so all the driving was me. Let me tell you, at the end of those days I was BEAT. In bed by 9pm OUT COLD.....It really takes it out of you more than I expected. The weather was good during my trip, but I was driving basically as fast as a Matrix could possibly go the entire time; so concentrating fairly hard. I assume if you cruise controlled 60mph the entire time it would be notably easier on your senses.

Driving a moving truck and trailer, 600+ miles/day would really suck.....no 2 ways around that.

We just hit mom&pop motels the whole way, that way you can stop in whatever crap hole nowhere town when you decide you've had enough. If you want chain hotels, you'll have to either stretch to larger centers, or stop short of your mileage goals.

 

[jharris2]

Plus, don't forget that towing the trailer will slow you down.

I typically plan on an average of 50mph on a long trip, even if the posted limits are 70mph. Your route may be limited by lower speed limits for the truck, too (in Arkansas, cars/pickups can do 70 mph, big trucks 65 mph or less). Being a holiday week and end of the month, the highway patrol will probably be out in force.

Give it 3 days, be careful, and watch out for the other people who are trying t push it too hard.

 

[Northof49]

I always find it extremely hard to keep my average above 60mph on a long trip... about the only time I did it was driving SF to LA non-stop (400 miles), but my bladder was on the verge of exploding by the time I arrived.

So I guess my average of 71-72mph over 2,300 miles including gas and bathroom breaks was pretty solid then?

Man that was a fun trip....that poor Matrix got wrung out literally the entire time and still got damn near 40mpg haha

Could have fun in the moving truck too tho....crank the tunes, lay back and just take in the country. Maybe I'm weird, but I just love being on the road.

 

[HiVel-JR]

Texas takes a day to drive through just on its own, man that is a long drive, went from Birmingham to Tucson and back to Birmingham 10 months later, that was hell!!! You might make it to El Paso on the first day leaving from Phoenix (if you go I-10/20)
Have fun on your trip...

 

[Hank]

You'll probably be going on I-17N, I-40E, I-44E (Turner Turnpike), to I-55N to get to Chicago. I've made 3 round trips from Los Angeles, CA to Chicago, IL in the past and the most recent one was last month. I would suggest having enough change to cover the toll on I-44E (Turner Turnpike). You'll pass 2 toll stations and they were $3.50 a piece for regular cars, but since you're towing, it should be a bit more. There's a few long stretches on that turnpike where there aren't any exit or rest stop for a while, so I would recommend making pit stops at the McDonalds Rest Areas right off the I-44E which are free exits (any other exit will require a toll charge and you'll need the exact change). The cheapest gas prices are at the Truck/Travel Stops. Also watch out for the 18 wheelers on the road as many truckers like to haul ass at 80mph and up. Check into a hotel if you get tired and hope that there's vacancy. On a prior trip, it took me about 3 hours going from town to town to find any vacancy due to some biker convention and strawberry festival. Fortunately, I made it to Vail, Colorado and was glad I stayed there since I got to check out the scenery. Generally 700-800 miles a day should be enough driving unless you're crazy like me and do 2200 miles in 31 hours over a period of 2 days and stopping only for food/gas/restroom, besides a night's rest. As usual, I drove the entire way as I would rather not have my gf piloting my 4R . Finally, watch out for deers/elks as I've encountered a few roadkills myself. Good luck!

 

[MJohnny86]

When my family and I moved from LA back here to Georgia... I had just gotten kicked out of school, drugs and poor behavior basically sums it up, been sober 17 months though thank god for AA... but my dad was so pissed he threw me and my two 100lb labrador retrievers in our Tahoe with two bags of luggage and we made it from Los Angeles to Atlanta in 2 days. Just to put that one out there...but most important thing is to Have a good time and take breaks when needed.

Good Luck and Have Fun...

 

[swooopeno]

Hey.. thanks for all the help! I feel a little better now.

Hank-

As long as weather is not too bad on I40, that's the route I am planning. Any advice for the oklahoma city and tulsa? in Oklahoma city, do I take the first exit to I44, or stay on I40 to I35 to I44?

Same with Tulsa.. just stay on I44?

I would like to miss the busy downtowns as much as possible.

I'm also working on throwing more stuff away so I can get a smaller truck...

Thanks again everyone!

 

[nated05]

Hey, good luck on your move. One thing you may have to look into is weigh stations. I rented a 24'-26' truck from Budget a couple of years ago and was told i had to stop at any open station in Missouri. Not a big deal, just adds extra time. This may be different from state to state im sure the rental place will inform of this if needed.

When you go I-44e and hit ST. louis if you are anywhere near rush hour make sure you take 270 south to 255. This will avoid downtown Stl which is always a mess.

Drive safe.

 

[jharris2]

Hey.. thanks for all the help! I feel a little better now.

Hank-

As long as weather is not too bad on I40, that's the route I am planning. Any advice for the oklahoma city and tulsa? in Oklahoma city, do I take the first exit to I44, or stay on I40 to I35 to I44?

Same with Tulsa.. just stay on I44?

I would like to miss the busy downtowns as much as possible.

I'm also working on throwing more stuff away so I can get a smaller truck...

Thanks again everyone!

My thoughts (used to live in Tulsa) ....

In OKC, I believe I-40 goes near downtown so you're probably better off taking I-44 around the city.

In Tulsa, I-44 does not go through downtown. It's I-244 that goes around the west and the north edges of downtown. BUT, last time I was there, it seemed that there was lots of construction along I-44. So I'd make it a judgment call based on when you're going through the city -- rush hour is not bad compared to other cities.

This may help you, too: http://www.okladot.state.ok.us/public-info/traffic-advisory.htm