Next Thursday I begin my drive from San Diego to the Grand Tetons for a
week long family reunion. I would love to take the roadster and my 14
year old son is lobbying strongly for this. We will be caravaning with
my parents and my older sister. My younger sister will be flying out
from Boston with a young daughter to chauffeur my parents. I have to
either rent a car to accomodate myself and three children, or drive my
roadster and borrow my parents 83 Volvo for the other two (driving age
but not old enough to drive a rental) or just borrow the Volvo for all four.
Younger sister and her husband (a mechanic who will be driving from
Boston with their other daughter) don't approve of my roadster plan on
the grounds that when it breaks down it will spoil the trip for everyone
else in the caravan. Brother-in-law also feels the Volvo is not up to
the trip and roadster will be too hot (temps seem to be running in the
90's and up) and too uncomfortable for such a long trip. If I don't
take the roadster, then my 14 year old and I will have to make the
return trip to San Diego and then rush back out and up to Shasta for the
rally. If we take the roadster we could have a fairly liesurely drive
from the Tetons to Shasta while the other two returned home in the Volvo.
Roadster is running well as a daily driver and stays cool (engine that
is). It has taken the grapevine and Cajon pass without getting hot. Do
I risk the desert in the summer? (Feedback from Arizona and Nevada
residents?) Do I risk being labled the selfish brother (parents don't
know why either the Datsun or the Volvo shouldn't make the trip)?
I'm looking for feedback:
Rental for 4?
Volvo for 4?
Datsun for 2 + Volvo for 2?
So far the vote is:
sister & brother-in-law for rental for 4
14 year old son for Datsun for 2 + whatever (he'll ride with
grandparents when the going gets too hot)
God I want to drive the Datsun (but I need to know how to reduce the
exhaust heat on the floor just below my right heel)
girlfriend for rental for 4 (we took the roadster to Joshua Tree a year
ago and had electrical problems, since resolved, so she has seen me when
things go wrong)
Anybody?
Bill
San Diego
70 1600 (13,000 three main rebuild)
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