For those of you who sometimes drive on longer road trips, or who might like to do so, what is your vehicle of choice for those road trips? This could be a vehicle you already have, or maybe just your dream road trip vehicle…. Either way, what do you consider the perfect vehicle for the road trips that you might do?
Do you prioritize seat comfort, fuel economy, cargo room, reliability, towing capacity, a suspension and tires that can stand up to a Michigan pothole, or something else? 😀
I have spent many years touring the USA in bands, and do a reasonable amount of trips to eastern washington for fishing. Based on these experiences my favorite car for all road trips is a minivan, the sienna is the best in my book. Comfy, reasonable performance and gas mileage, room for gear/kids/dogs/bags, no problems parking in cities (key for bands), AWD when you need it, and a BANGING 3 cd disc changer. Ok just kidding on the last point. Cops don’t fuck with mini vans as much, but a big modded touring style panel van will catch their eye.
I’ve toured in bigger and smaller cars, and while they all have benefits, this minivan is the best all-around option.
Starting in 2021 my wife and I have driven from Massachusetts to Colorado twice and once to Big Sky Montana. We take my car, 2014 Subaru WRX because it gets decent mileage, with the rear seats flat it fits a huge cooler, plastic bin for food and cooking utensils (waffle iron, coffee maker), skis, clothing boot bags etc., it's comfortable with a great sound system and most importantly Subaru all-wheel drive is the single best snow system and doin a lot of 2 lane driving means a lot of 2 lane passing and I want serious power and speed when facing on coming traffic.
Cargo room and comfort. A luxury trim level pickup or large SUV. You are high in the seat and have a commanding view of the road. The right tires and suspension can give you a very smooth and comfortable ride. You can bring as much with you as you like, or bring as much back. Whichever is the purpose for the trip. The Ford Blue Cruise driver assist technology is pretty awesome, but I prefer to keep my hands on the wheel and adjust speed and following distance on a moment-by-moment basis. Driving is a full contact sport for me.
Our Chrysler Pacifica is a dream on long trips. Quiet, powerful, economical and versatile seating and storage. I wouldn't trade it.
Being on the, what's the phrase 🤔, lower end of the economic scale, mileage is a big deal to me. Our Kia Niro plug-in hybrid gets mid-fifties + driven gently on the open road. Still 40+ mpg at 75 to 80 mph into a headwind. Love the $30 fill-ups.
Wish it had somewhat better seats.
In November I did a round trip CO-Philly over 12 days: 6 days driving, 6 days in Philly for the National Dog Show, ‘22 Outback. Very comfortable seating, mid-30s MPG with Blizzack snow tires. For my needs the Outback is perfect for comfort and mileage. Also very good in winter with AWD. I also have had SiriusXM for 11 years and love it. I have another round trip planned for CO-Syracuse in April for yet another big dog show, plus I grew up in Syracuse haven’t been back in 25 years.
This is not as easy as a question as it sounds. Probably aren’t many on here that rent cars more than me and I’ve been in them all.
Strange my recommendations are ones I’d never own personally, but for road trips and traveling I personally like these and they are something that blends in and doesn’t stick out.
If I don’t have to worry about weather, I like Toyota Camrys. Comfortable seats, easy to use controls and good features, good gas mileage, adequate power. Blends in well.
If weather is a concern, one of my favorites is a Subaru Outback for all the reasons mentioned above. At one time they made Outback sedans but now I believe they’re only wagons or labeled CUVs or even some people group with with SUVs.
nicespice's car. As long as I get to sleep in it with her.
^ not sure she’d invite you buy Muddy would in his car.
1950's milk truck is my preferred vehicle of choice. If your not using the music, it ain't creepy
^ how many strippers would you have duct taped in the back?
Depends on the trip, the length and purpose.
For driving from Palm Beach to Key West, around 4 hours or so of at least partially nice scenic roads, a sporty convertible sedan is nice. A real sports or muscle car can be fun, but if there's traffic it can get tedious and uncomfortable. For a long, cross country type haul, you can't beat a large truck in my opinion. Crew Cab, Dually, Diesel.
I prioritize comfort and reliability on longer stints, but will sacrifice both for fun on shorter rides. Towing, cargo space, and the like again are are really purpose dependent. If I'm bringing the boat to the keys for a fishing trip, I kinda need to be able to tow it. If I don't need the boat, wtf do I need towing for. Some idea with cargo, an little back with enough for the weekend in a hotel can fit in anything, but If I'm going camping or tailgating, I probably have gear to tote. Fuel economy doesn't really factor much into it for me.
I suppose ideal would be some kind of Grand Touring car that would be a bit out of my price range. Or something a little larger where I can be driven, but again that's not in my budget.
@rickthelion not a single mention of wildebeest in your reply?!?
@drew and @ATACdawg 👍 it’s hard to argue with the practicality of a minivan!
@skibum 👍 is your WRX a manual?
@gamma 👍 one thing I love about many pickups is the thick sidewall tires they’re sometimes equipped with, which are great for tackling really shitty roads. I just wish I didn’t regularly have to maneuver and park in frustratingly small parking lots…
@gsteph 👍 those are some damn good MPGs!
@mogul @shailynn 👍 I figured the Outback might get some mentions!
@Icey skibum has road-tripped in a WRX! But my knees aren’t the best, so seat height is a factor for me. I love a good sports car, though, especially with a smooth shifting 6sp manual… 😀
@Dolfan 👍 I just wish I encountered fewer cramped parking areas than I do. Every time I think seriously about a larger truck, I’m reminded of how often I run into parking issues already… ☹️
my favorite would be an older BMW station wagon with a straight 6 and stick and all wheel drive. I did have an '89 BMW 325 2Door that was so nice to drive but it didn't have enough interior room to sleep in.
Lol. This is how I can pick out the true die hards from the guys who are still cool but aren't the "meet me in the car" types.
My only requirement is folding rear seats. Tinted windows also help but aren't required. I've fucked in a front seat with the girl's head bouncing off the windshield in broad daylight, so it is what it is. But yeah better would be laying down below eye level with enough space to spread out. Hell, when I went to New York a while back the rental had a tinted front window. It was terrible weather so it was 50/50 at night if I was gonna make it lol.
Ahh the SUV and the mini van, nothing finer to drive when you come smoking down Teton pass at 50 m.p.h. in the snow.
I'm usually covering a lot of ground in these rentals I go good on gas and comfort (I'm sleeping in it a lot of nights, I can't afford to really do what I do staying at the Marriot every night) I hate the new camry's that just came out, my backs hate them but the gen right before that from the last few years was amazing. Comfortable, great on gas, handles great. Altimas and Malibus are also really comfortable.
@Jascoi 👍
@wallanon 😂😂😂 I met a guy once that had some full size van from the 70s, the kind where you could remove the rear bench seats. Well, he had taken out those rear seats, put a bed back there, and added curtains to all the side windows and the rear window! I couldn’t tell you how or if that bed ever got used, but every time I think about that dude, I feel compelled to listen to the song “Chevy Van” in his honor!
@skibum I’m not too familiar with the WRX, but is yours a manual, or are all of them manuals?
@Muddy do you travel for work or leisure? No need to answer if you’d rather not say… But you might appreciate the van story above!
^The WRX is essentially the only manual left that's worth buying and about 85% of all sold are manuals, although that may change since 2 of the higher trims only come with a cvt. Fast, fun, reliable. I have owned 2 cars, both WRXs since 2002 driving close to a half-million miles in them. My current one is 99% original (1 wheel bearing and a starter) as it approaches 175k and is still using the original lights, all of them. My last one went 250k on the original clutch.
This rick prioritizes a great autopilot and frickin’ Tesla is tops here. But not a cybertruck because all cybertruck drivers are giant douches.
Anyhoo…back to the autopilot feature. Without a good autopilot you cannot implement a good rick mode. rick mode is, logically enough, trained on the driving patterns of an intoxicated rick.
Without rick mode it is impossible to do any two-fisted drinking while enjoying your drunk driving. I mean really…you could drink with one hand and steer with the other, but isn’t it more fun to have a gin rickey in one hand and a bottle of Jack in the other?
The other upside of the rick mode is that it is trained to avoid cubs and apelings. But other hairless apes are bouncin’ off the hood while this rick enjoys himself! ROAR!!!