Trip Question

[kerian159]

I've read a bunch of the travel posts and it has inspired my wife and I to drive our bus out west (from florida) this sept. for our 10th wedding anniversery and I was wondering how many miles in a day do you usually drive without being uncomfortable? My plan is to "meander" out to the grand canyon and then up to Utah and then head home, I will have 16 days in total to do this trip. Yes before you ask the bus is going through a very detailed checklist to make sure it's ready for this kind of trip . Quick details on the bus: 1976 Westy 2.0 liter Solid Lifter, Dual Baby Del's, Automatic Transmission (currently no external oil/transmission cooler but it will have at least the oil cooler before the trip).
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1976 Type II Westy P22

"Growing older, but not up!"

[richparker]

My wife is usually good for about 400 miles or right around 8 hours on an extended road trip. Denver is 345 miles from us and she has no problem with that drive in one day. Anything over that and she gets a bit antsy.

I look forward to reading about your adventure. There are plenty of us here on thesamba that will be willing to help if something arises during your trip. Don't be afraid to ask. Good luck!
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’71 Westy build
Adventure thread
’65 Deluxe Build
’63 Deluxe Build

[kerian159]

Thanks and don't worry The Samba is a link on the main screen of the phone. Hopefully I won't need any assistance but at very minimum it'll be place to post pics.
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1976 Type II Westy P22

"Growing older, but not up!"

[babysnakes]

I can take about 1-1 1/2 hours before I need to get out and stretch. I have lower back, hip and knee problems so I need to get out and move a bit. 25 years ago I could spend all day behind the wheel of a bus.

[grandpa pete]

I usually run about 680 to 700 miles a day ;

in one of theese

4 days from St. Pete to L A....a little town called Junction Texas is about half way .
Take the Route 17 truck bypass in Phoenix AZ and the Anderson Loop in San Antonio TX to miss downtown traffic .

On a serious note ; there are sections of I -10 through Texas ( 869 miles ) where gas stations are few and far apart . Start looking for fuel when you get 1/3 tank . Pilot truck stops sell a small book that lists every truck stop in the US . could come in handy if your looking for free truck stop camping....showers $8 and you can.. " shower with a friend "
NEVER park between the BIG RIGS !!!!
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63 two fold rag
66 sedan delivery Type 6

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=569619&highlight=sedan+delivery

[Abscate]

Long trip protocol

2 hours, break
2 hours, lunch

2 hours, break
2 hours, early dinner

Relax.

Make up time in evening if needed.

You will cover 400 miles a day in an easily sustainable, comfortable plan which won't be upset by weather, traffic or other contingencies.

Remember your copilot is just as car-weary as you, so swapping drivers is not a cure for making more miles safely,
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.ssS!

[Tom Powell]

[hazetguy]

be prepared for your bus to run like crap at higher elevations.
don't be hampered by the "but we need to get there" syndrome. what is comfortable for others might not work for you.

allowing two days for repairs/breakdowns, and two hours per day? that thinking would drive me insane. i guess i was fortunate in all of my travels. i almost never had any issues that could not be repaired quickly (a broken fan belt comes to mind). the problems that were more significant (blown up bearings in a reduction box) did not even really keep me down for more than a couple hours. i can count the number of times i needed to be down for more than 24 hours, and i can count them on one hand, and have several fingers remaining uncounted. sitting here trying to think of major problems that arose for me, and i can't think of any. i made sure everything was in good condition prior to leaving and carried a plethora of spare parts just in case (wound up just taking up space in the end). of course my busses were also my daily transport, so they always had to be in tip-top running condition. granted things will happen, but setting out on a long trip with questionable equipment is asking for problems.
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thebucket: I invested in hoodride, now DBD won't return my call?
hazetguy: invested?
thebucket: Yeah Haze, its where people put money into a company in hopes of a return on their money

[kerian159]

What there are higher elevations than 312 feet?
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1976 Type II Westy P22

"Growing older, but not up!"

[BayCreamPuff]

In the unlikely event that you need to get your bus serviced while on the road. Road Haus is a great resource.

http://www.roadhaus.com/shops.php
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Cream Puff
'79 CA Stock FI Deluxe Campmobile

Earl Grey
'87 GoWesty 2.2 Westfalia

Marsha Mellow
'00 Eurovan VR6 Full Camper

[kerian159]

Has been bookmarked
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1976 Type II Westy P22

"Growing older, but not up!"

[Tom Powell]

[babysnakes]

While the point of breakdowns is on the topic. Travel with a good tool kit. I travel with two boxes, one with tools and one with parts. Parts box has points, cap, rotor and condenser. Valve cover gaskets and spare throttle cable. If you are using an electric fuel pump, pack one of those too.

[Wildthings]

Push it long and hard going across the lowlands so that you have maximum time once you reach the west. You should easily be able to make 600 miles a day and 800 if you are pretty tolerant of sitting. Running a lap or two around a rest area every hour or two can give you a reset if you are the athletic type. My wife loves to drive after dark, so me will sometimes get a lot of mile between sundown and sun up, trading out driving and stopping for 2 hour naps as the need arises.

My wife and I have done 1250 miles in just over 24 hours which included a short sleep stop in the afternoon to allow the sun to sink before we dropped down into the Sonora and my wife and one daughter once put just under 3000 miles on the clock in not much more than 2 1/2 days.

[Abscate]

You have to decide if you are traveling on a destination basis (I want to get to point X) or a trip basis - maximizing opportunity to see America on the way while still staying on a schedule.

If you don't choose the opportunity route, you are missing some of the amazing parts and people of America, IMHO - and thats from an east coast liberal.
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.ssS!

[GoBigEmma]

I'm quite impressed by the amount of miles you guys do in a day, 800? Wow!

I guess it depends on what roads you drive (we usually avoid interstates and go for the windy old country roads instead), but 400 is a stretch for us, and if we wanna spend some time in a place and not just rush by, then it's more like 200 on a driving day. And after 5 days of consecutive driving days we get really tired of them and appreciate a day without movement.
Of course it all depends on your time frame and length of trip, but my general tip would be to take it slow and maybe visit less, that way you'll have lots more fun and less stress if something goes wrong.

Sven
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1975 Bus "Big Emma", 1.8 FI, Hydraulic lifters
Interrupting our Pan-American Roadtrip for post-flood repairs: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=657738
Follow the trip on our blog: http://www.gobigemma.com

[richparker]

[captincanuck]

[chabanais]

In my Bus I will drive no more than 500 to 600 miles in a day. That is at 60-65 mph.

It depends on your Bus' mechanical condition and your seats. I have some very nice recovered Subaru Legacy seats that are heated and super comfortable.

I could drive my Bus further, but don't want to rush too much.
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"I spud therefore I yam."

[Globespotter]

Depends if you are going Interstate or more back roads. I usually go a max of 600 miles in a day. I find I can go longer time wise on back roads because they are more interesting, but the miles don't rack up as fast. Interstates can tire you out - more boring and harder work to drive a bus on the interstate than back roads. Given a choice, I'd take more time and drive slower and enjoy the trip.
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1977 Westfalia - October 2015 - Current
1971 Super Beetle - May 2012 - Current
1979 Westfalia - 1986-1991
1971 Super Beetle - 1977-1980

1971 SB Survivor Story: https://globespotter.com/
Road Trip Thread: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=511800&highlight=
My 77 Westy Thread: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=647114&highlight=

http://vw-mplate.com/mcode.php?lang=EN&id=30990
https://vw-type2-id.xyz/mplate/72067382