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      11-28-2010, 06:06 PM   #1
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Driving a long distance, any advice.

Ok, so the dealer in Phoenix made me an offer I couldn't refuse.
So the 2007 SGM M Coupe is mine, with only 4700 miles on it...

My good buddy and I are going to fly out early on Sat and drive it back to
Seattle, just a wee 1600 mile drive up I-5

I was thinking I might tape up the front bumper like we did with my fathers E39 M5 when we picked it up on the other side of the mountains. But any other recommendations ?

Thanks guys,

James
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      11-28-2010, 06:10 PM   #2
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Secretariat View Post
Ok, so the dealer in Phoenix made me an offer I couldn't refuse.
So the 2007 SGM M Coupe is mine, with only 4700 miles...

My good buddy and I are going to fly out early on Sat and drive it back to
Seattle.

I was thinking I might tape up the front bumper like we did with my fathers E39 M5 when we picked it up on the other side of the mountains. But any other recommendations ?

Thanks guys,

James



Be Careful!! I picked up my 07 MC from Scottsdale back in April of last year and drove it all the way back to MN. I was going to take the north route through the mountains, however they had 2 feet of snow, so we switched to the southern route and hit every bit of crap as possible... Snow in Arizona, Hail in Texas, and rain all the way up to MN... God it sucked....


Have you taken a look at shipping companies? By the time it was all said and done with the cost of hotels, food, gas, and keeping the GF happy it would have been cheaper to ship it.

Just my two cents
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      11-28-2010, 06:10 PM   #3
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youre going to enjoy the car and the drive for a bit but for 4700 miles i would suggest some audiobooks and load up on npr fresh air interviews on itunes. also i would personally carry a pistol but thats just me
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      11-28-2010, 06:11 PM   #4
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oh and also.. bring a nice travel pillow or something to shove behind the small of your back.. Lumbar support for long trips in the MC is horrible.
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      11-28-2010, 06:30 PM   #5
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I would have it shipped since it's almost winter already. Have you drove the car?
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      11-28-2010, 06:36 PM   #6
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I have test driven quite a few. Well over here on the westcoast the roads barring the mountain passes are pretty clear and dry. Any members in Oregon and Cali can you confirm this ?

We would be gettting on I-5 and just running that north. Might jump on PCH...not sure. Don't really want to ship as I can get plane tickets for 100 bucks. We would come in on sat morning and drive straight home. No hotels or whatnot.
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      11-28-2010, 06:39 PM   #7
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Oh I wasn't clear, we are going to be driving 1600 miles and the car has 4700 miles on it


Quote:
Originally Posted by jra View Post
youre going to enjoy the car and the drive for a bit but for 4700 miles i would suggest some audiobooks and load up on npr fresh air interviews on itunes. also i would personally carry a pistol but thats just me
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      11-28-2010, 07:17 PM   #8
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1600 miles is a pretty long way to drive without stopping for a hotel. The cabin is tight and you can't really lean the seats back to nap at a rest stop. The side bolsters and rough ride make the car somewhat fatiguing to drive for excessive distances. You're also going to be tired from flying in, spending a few hours with the paperwork at the dealership, etc. If it were me I would ship it to save the miles on the car, as well as avoid the potential for damage.

Last time I drove through Arizona someone had left a trash bag with some sort of solid object in the middle of the exit ramp, which I didn't have any choice but to try and split between the tires in hopes that I had the ground clearance to avoid it. Turned out that I didn't, and whatever was in the trash bag broke a plastic panel on the bottom of the car.

If you're set on making it into a trip, I'd go all out and see the sights on the way. To have a pleasant trip you'll want to plan about 3 days. For one that you'll enjoy talking about later but ready for it to be over, plan for 2 days. You aren't going to be able to see anything if you try and make it in a straight shot, and honestly it's dangerous. I've driven across the country many times in both of my Z4s, and while you can safely drive faster, they are also more fatiguing and require more concentration. As the passenger you will have a difficult time getting sleep. I highly recommend you do not attempt a 1600 mile drive in one straight shot without a night in a hotel.

I don't know if the aux jack was optional or standard in 2007, but find out if the car has one and bring an mp3 player and cable. Get a few 5 Hour Energy shots and avoid Red Bull.
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      11-28-2010, 07:53 PM   #9
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Well I am not going alone. My college buddy is coming so we will trade off.
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      11-28-2010, 07:57 PM   #10
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Congrats, I'm glad you found one.
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      11-28-2010, 08:01 PM   #11
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Sweet... congrats! Yet another Left Coast MC

2007+ has the aux input.

Enjoy the ride, and post up pics whenever you can.
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      11-28-2010, 08:05 PM   #12
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Youll be fine. Some blue tape on the bumper and alot of good music to keep u awake. Ive driven my roadster to and from florida from ny twice since ive owned it. It is perfectly fine to take on long trips.
Try to keep a small cooler in the car with some energy drinks and snacks. Just keep in mind that if u get excessively tired (which you will) just get a hotel for the nite. It aint worth crashing your new car.
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      11-28-2010, 08:07 PM   #13
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I did something very similar, picked mine up in PA and drove straight back to FL.

I think the distance was a little over 1100 miles.

My only advice is don't drink alot of Redbulls or 5 Hour energy, the stuff works but damn I had to stop alot for pee breaks.
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      11-28-2010, 08:09 PM   #14
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Agreed, we will be careful. Also we will take pics along the way. I was pretty weary of trucking it up here but the drive should be a laugh.
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      11-28-2010, 08:11 PM   #15
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Sounds good, thanks for the insight.


Quote:
Originally Posted by HOG4DNR View Post
I did something very similar, picked mine up in PA and drove straight back to FL.

I think the distance was a little over 1100 miles.

My only advice is don't drink alot of Redbulls or 5 Hour energy, the stuff works but damn I had to stop alot for pee breaks.
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      11-28-2010, 08:22 PM   #16
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How about getting a clear bra installed before you leave town? Have the selling dealer farm it out, and pay for it over the phone directly to the installer. These guys have done 3 cars for me at this point, and they're top notch, and great to work with....

http://protectivefilmsolutions.biz
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      11-28-2010, 08:25 PM   #17
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The problem is I cant stand how the clear bras look. Although what do they look like on the Z4 ? Would a heavy application of painters tape be sufficient?
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      11-28-2010, 08:59 PM   #18
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Well my trip was a lot shorter than yours...about 450mi. I flew down Sun morning and was hoping to be out of the dealership in an hour, but it took longer than that to check everything out. When it was all said and done, with getting lunch in our stomach, it was after 2pm before we headed out. I used to drive back from the bay area to Oregon a lot, which is a 600mi trip, but the trip from SoCal to NorCal in the Coupe was a lot more tiring than I remember those trips. Probably because I couldn't really sleep the night before because I was so excited!

I didn't do anything too different for this trip than any other road trip. A few notable silly points from our trip:

1) I was foolish enough to not realize the car had cupholders by the front vents, so we used the netting in the passenger footwell for drinks...boy we felt stupid the next week when we realized there were cup holders!
2) The Navi is not very good, especially as it was setup when I picked mine up in full display mode...once I setup the split screen, everything made so much more sense. I had never seen a Navi that only had text display on the screen and was scratching my head for a while there. Regardless of the setup, the Navi didn't seem to know the best routes...I ignored it most of the time.
3) I felt silly at the gas station because i didn't know which side th fuel filler cap was...and then didn't know how to open it (I kept looking for a button/release somewhere). Finally realized no release is needed and you can reach and open it from the outside. Doh!

The drive itself was quite pleasant, but we regularly drive (or drove) an S2000 w/coilovers and a Mini Cooper S. To me, the cabin was super quiet, roomy, very good visibility (compared to a convertible with the top up), etc. My body is not made to drive 1600mi in one stint, but I assume you're going to try this in two days...?
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      11-28-2010, 09:10 PM   #19
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Yea we are a young pair of cheap idiots so shouldnt be an issue. I mean hell when we were in college we drove to Steamboat from Purdue in a straight shot through an ice storm in Iowa....so this should be a walk in the park.
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      11-28-2010, 09:28 PM   #20
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drove mine home from miami to philly with no sleep. I would NOT bring a gun, many states have different carry laws. One time I got pulled over speeding in georgia, they searched the car so thoroughly, they even looked inside my airbox
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      11-28-2010, 09:36 PM   #21
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Yikes. Well I don't have a gun yet so no problem there.
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      11-28-2010, 09:49 PM   #22
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Did the same for mine. My son and I flew to Texas to pick it up. Around 1200 miles. We took it easy and stopped twice along the way. It made for a very nice trip. The only issue we had was a flat on the run-crap tires. I would also suggest at least a one night stop. While I have made several non-stop trips of 1500+ miles he last trip over a few days was much more fun since we were able to stop and not be in such a rush.

Plus it would really suck for your friend if a mishap were to happen while he was driving. While it may not be his fault the guilt and stres on the relationship would be hard to get rid of. Hotels are really cheap, even nice ones if booked in advance.

Either way have a safe trip.
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