Opinions Needed: Sell it or drive x-country - Page 5 - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

Skid Row Joe · #61 04-01-2011, 02:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by leathermang

Are you available to make the trip with him...?????
LOTS of Spirit of adventure available...!!!!
You could write a book about it afterwards...

X 2
This, I gotta see!

I doubt he's up for any trip in all frankness.

heh!

Skid Row Joe · #62 04-01-2011, 02:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ashedd

It sounds much easier to just sell it to me

SEE POST #12

JB3 · #63 04-01-2011, 09:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ashedd

It sounds much easier to just sell it to me

How? He's on the other side of the country and the car is sitting in disrepair and probably horribly dirty from the harsh winter. Either way, he has to go out there to get it ready to sell, or have someone do that for him, both of which will cost him money probably. Then he has to have someone show it for him, again, a problem with him being on the other side of the country.

If he tries to sell it remote as is, he will take a huge hit on the value of the car, probably more than the bother of going and getting it.

The OP has stated that he has a return, already paid for flight he has to use, so getting there is done already. Plus he's owned the car for years with this apparently minor cooling problem, yes, something bad could happen, but from whats been said from the OP, seems unlikely to me. The gamble is worth it IMO.

All he's doing is crossing the continental US, not entering the car in the Dakar rally! If it runs for 6 hours without overheating, chances are it will run for 100 hours without overheating as it is right now, and he can take it easy through the rockies, or do highway 40 as a less mountainous route

Some of you guys are acting like this is the most preposterous thing that has ever been suggested.

Would not even have been a question for me, id just jump in and drive it.

leathermang · #64 04-01-2011, 10:01 AM

I got caught in the mid 1970's on a less than two year old 74 Harley Superglide at some town in West Texas.. do not remember if it was Del Rio, Marathon or Alpine.. on a SUNDAY.. needing only a GENERIC BOLT and NUT...not a Harley nut and bolt.. NOTHING was open.. had to wait till Monday to get it.... ( I also learned about red locktite at that store )... There are long stretches of this country where help is a long way away... some where help from law enforcement is a long way away or absent...
I think the ' points value ' being put on the safety of his actual physical being with regards to the potential risks is being greatly undervalued.
Remember when someone has an accident and we get on and say " Cars can be replaced... Glad you or your family was not Hurt ".????? We say that because it is true... Risk to HIM should be weighed in at a greater value than potential loss of money or car either one... ( Sorta makes me look like a ' liberal' to some of you fireeaters I am sure.... )
A couple of random examples of crazy things which can happen when on the road...

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/01/eric-zentner-dead-dies-hit-and-run_n_843469.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ennis_Cosby

JB3 · #65 04-01-2011, 10:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by leathermang

I got caught in the mid 1970's on a less than two year old 74 Harley Superglide at some town in West Texas.. do not remember if it was Del Rio, Marathon or Alpine.. on a SUNDAY.. needing only a GENERIC BOLT and NUT...not a Harley nut and bolt.. NOTHING was open.. had to wait till Monday to get it.... ( I also learned about red locktite at that store )... There are long stretches of this country where help is a long way away... some where help from law enforcement is a long way away or absent...
I think the ' points value ' being put on the safety of his actual physical being with regards to the potential risks is being greatly undervalued.
Remember when someone has an accident and we get on and say " Cars can be replaced... Glad you or your family was not Hurt ".????? We say that because it is true... Risk to HIM should be weighed in at a greater value than potential loss of money or car either one... ( Sorta makes me look like a ' liberal' to some of you fireeaters I am sure.... )

Yeah, but its 2011.

There are multi hundred mile stretches with no towns, sure, but for 90% of his run, the country is well populated and festooned with places to buy stuff, often available 24 hours, 7 days a week. He could plan his route during the week, and around 24 hour super walmart locations, certainly easily through the midwest, where he can buy basic nuts and bolts, and the tools to use them.

Plus, its not like we're talking about some 16 year old girl with no knowledge of the car, the OP is a guy who has owned the car for what, 5-6 years? He knows its quirks and he plans to sleep in it anyway. Being stranded overnight for want of a bolt just means an extra day on the road trip. If I were him and truly worried about fixable things breaking, id strap a bike to the roof for emergency parts runs, but I wouldn't overly worry about his safety, its unlikely he will be coaxed into a van and abducted, he might be hit, as you say, but you take that chance any time you walk next to a street anyway.

He could be shot in LA, but by then, he's almost made it to his destination. I figure the other most likely place he could be shot on the trip is NYC, which he will leave behind first thing

JHZR2 · #66 04-01-2011, 10:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skid Row Joe

I disagree. "Going to get the car," could end up costing over $2K. Having it shipped less than $1K. There's no contest between the two numbers, to say nothing about the loss of time working earning MONEY, instead of a wing and a prayer of a $2K+ debacle on the road.

I agree on the time factor IF unpaid/uncompensated for the time taken. If he has leave available and can leave enough time to do it right, I still would.

If there is a cooling issue, I'd get it fixed before a trip of course. That would be done as soon as I got into town. But this would be a necessity if the car was being kept, regardless of transportation mode.

Having just Done this recently, one can show up with a suitcase of tools, buy some supplies for the trip, and head out. You can be smart about it and take more traveled roads. Nobody has to get stuck on a backroad in west Texas. On our trip, we found autozones and advance auto parts all along the way. Stopped at one in some middle of nowhere NM town in the evening of a weekend to get winshield chip filler. No big deal.

My bigger concern is that if $1k vs $2k is a major concern, one should not own a car. Auto ownership is a luxury not a right, and if one can't absorb $1k in costs in case of emergency, then one should not own a vehicle, particularly one like an mb diesel which while ultra long-lived and reliable when maintained, high miles and lack of maintenance can get really expensive. If $1k is a concern, a late model used chevy should be the vehicle of choice. Not saying to frivolously spend money or take undue risk. Just saying that if set up right, and if things that need to be done have been before the trip (eg fix the cooling issue), there is no reason to be THAT concerned.

Of course the OP needs some reasonable mechanical and diagnosis capability, and the ability to take care of small things if they pop up. I'd of course also try to change all fluids before the trip...

vstech · #67 04-01-2011, 11:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skid Row Joe

SEE POST #12

or post 11...

leathermang · #68 04-01-2011, 11:33 AM

I agree times have changed... at that time we had " Blue Laws " in Texas which kept many businesses from being open on Sunday...
I am alerting the Chamber of Commerce of Nowhere, NM as to the slurs you have cast upon their fine town.
Now, there may be a Google Earth feature which will let one map a course all downhill to the base of the Rocky Mountains from NYC...

300TDT 1987 · #69 04-01-2011, 01:38 PM

My fishing buddy sent me this photo on my benz. You can see our drift boat proudly displayed on top of it. We have caught some great trout in that thing.

You can still see the remaining damage from getting rear ended.

You can see the initial damage in this thread: Help! Got Rear Ended?!?

Sorry couldn't resist adding another picture of the boat. No that is not me but I was behind the camera and helped hand land that behemoth.

Skid Row Joe · #70 04-01-2011, 01:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vstech

or post 11...

.....or post #21

babymog · #71 04-01-2011, 06:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by leathermang

I got caught in the mid 1970's on a less than two year old 74 Harley Superglide at some town in West Texas..

You rode a Harley during the dark and dismal AMF years and consider this a risky trip?

One thing that has changed a great deal (seriosly now), is the cell and GPS availability. If I'm driving through Frizbee Oregon and need a quart of ATF, I can pull up on my Droid the nearest auto-parts store or gas-station, check their hours, call for availability, even charge it to my credit card and have them leave it outside the back door and map the route with traffic, weather, and Satellite/terrain.

Seems like we were much more adventurous a quarter-century or so ago.

300TDT 1987 · #72 04-12-2011, 03:31 AM

I got my plane ticket back east!

I’ve got a flexible schedule but I plan on doing the driving part from May 4th - May 9th or until I make it to San Fran

WANRING: WORKING DOCUMENT BELOW!

After I shovel her out of the snow, I will:

PM:

1. Pull battery, try and charge it (battery was 1 year old when she was last driven 6 months ago), replace old oil.
2. Check oil, coolant, tranny, brake and hydraulic fluids, brake fluid; air filter, belt and find any rodent dwellings

3. Get her started. (Should I glow her a couple of time's before trying?)
4. Oil change after how many miles?
5. Replace the viscous fluid in my fan clutch, overheating issue temporarily solved.
6. Fix anything obvious, I’ll have 2 ½ days with her in the Catskills with access to a garage with air tools.
7. Do I need to check for any rubber issues in the front/rear linkages?
8. Are there any area’s that I should apply grease too because she has been dormant?

Stuff I’m Bringing:

1. Extra Belt
2. Hoses/clamps: coolant, fuel and vacuum. (What sizes?)
3. Fluid Extractor
4. Fuses
5. Coolant
6. Oil: Engine, Hydraulic
7. AAA membership
8. Filters: Fuel x2, Oil x2, Small Fuel Filter x2, air x1
9. Jerry can of diesel
10. Jack and axle holders
11. Tools
12. Camping gear
13. Mountain bike up top: (Is this going to kill my MPG?)
14. A whole lot of audio books on my android phone, helps for navigation and finding auto parts stores too

Test Drives:

1. I will drive her down to NYC, 2 ½ hours, have a friends garage available in NYC.
2. Next day drive 2 hours to CT and have her for two days of fishing and fixing anything that pops up.
3. Drive back to NYC, 2 hours, have another 1-2 days, friends garage available.

The Real Deal:
1. Get on I-80 and head west until it ends in San Fran.

Random Questions:
1. What is the best fuel economy speed for a 300TDT, 70mph?
2. I have the TDT's manual CD's back east but I'm not dragging my huge laptop with me. Is there any way to put the CD's on the cloud(?) and access them from my android phone when I'm on the road?

What have I forgotten?

Thanks for your input. I will be updating this post with your wise suggestions and use it as my to do list.

toomany MBZ · #73 04-12-2011, 07:09 AM

Mileage low 20's, maybe less.

vstech · #74 04-12-2011, 07:23 AM

20's? NFW!
best speed for best mileage is likely around 65, that puts the engine right in it's sweet spot of 2500 or so RPM. higher if downhill is ok, lower if up hill etc... draft trucks when you can safely.

I'd change #4 to DRAIN oil immediately upon arrival, and replace the filter, fill with cheapo delo or rotella 15/40 and drive around a bit. and drain that and replace filter and install MOBIL1/ROTELLA synthetic 5/40 for the trip.

JHZR2 · #75 04-12-2011, 08:49 AM

Agree on the oil bit... Unless you know that the oil was brand new when you parked it. Still nice to dump twice to get any moisture out.

You're bringing a lot more stuff than I did for our trip, and IMO there is less to worry about on the I80 trip. I'd nix the jerry can of diesel and stop at truck stops to check the car a bit more often - topping fuel at those points. I'd brink hose repIr tape or similar stuff and a gallon of coolant plus two of water.

I'd place an order with Phil and get it dropshipped to one of the garages you're going to be at. I'd replace the AF and fuel filters at initial checkout. Just bring fuel filter spares.

If you're buying hoses, and have access to a garage, I'd just swap them. Do t wait for an issue to arise. Start taking things out of the equation.

Don't forget wheel chocks. Cooler. I'd buy a spare voltage regulator just to hold on to.

Seems like you're riding heavy with an MTB, camping gear, etc. Don't see the need unless you are keen on stopping places to do those things.