skeptic

Short version:

Bought my '81 4-spd in '94.
Left it with my dad in Oregon when I moved to Florida in 2000.
Monday I got in the car with my son (almost 5 years old) and we drove 3,400 miles across the country, arriving at home in South Florida last night (4 long days).

OHSIXX

You must have a real solid car. :)

AGVI

:iagree:

Corz

is that a cactus? if so what is it doing in south florida?

nice vette btw :cheers:

Jasonty

Geezz... You have more guts then me... I got my Vette back in 2000, got stationed overseas for 2 years, then finally decided to bring it down to TX. There was no way in hell I was gonna drive it down here... The car was sitting 3 years prior to when I got it. When I finally got it trucked down here and saw it, I was amazed at how much stuff went wrong with it just sitting for all those years. I started it up, and it immediately redlined. Popped the hood and found the throttle return springs sitting next to the carb, not attached. Beats me! Also, all 4 of my calipers were leaking. But hey, congrats. Glad your Vette survived the drive, and glad to see a happy couple reunited.... :auto:

verskel

3400 miles is very impressive ! :yesnod:

Well, now you can enjoy her on a daily basis.......btw- what's the deal with the cactus ?!? :jester

skeptic

A few more details... About a year before I moved here I took it to a "high performance" shop where in addition to being ripped off, doubled charged for their re-work, and having them re-use gaskets which are now beginning to leak (long story starting with them saying the cam was fine, what I brought it in for, and ending with them replacing the cam because lobes were going flat), they went over the car with a fine tooth comb. The engine probably runs better than new, suspension is in great shape (much of it new), new tires, brakes are good other than the non-functioning e-brake.. Believe it or not, I kept track of all my gas receipts and calculated 18.25mpg overall for the 3,400 mile trek. :thumbs: FAR better than I would have expected. The ride itself is solid.

During the last 4 years my father has been taking care of it. Driving it on occasion... Seems he became quite attached to it, was getting ready to replace the stereo and had planned to replace the interior in a few months. Apparently he was going to do it last summer, but was in an accident (not car related) and is just now recovered to where he could start working on it. Had I known I would have waited a few more months to get it. :)

Anyway, the A/C doesn't work (slow leak and old style R12), the power steering leaks (slow leak), the interior needs a bunch of work, and see my other thread for my starter issues. There are a few other little things, but it's 23 years old, what can I expect?

How many people can honestly claim to have driven cross country in a classic Corvette?
:party:


Edit for the cactus questions: Ok, the cactus is easy to care for. We are getting ready to move to North Carolina this summer and we tore out all the old plants (for at least the third time) and replaced it with cactus for a nice clean maintenance free area. My wife says they are fine with little or no water, but also do just fine during our summer daily downpours... What do I know? They look better than the stuff she had there before, and better than the jungle that was there when we moved in.


[Modified by skeptic, 11:04 PM 4/30/2004]

Desertdawg

So, did you have a great big smile on your face the whole way?????

Pauld

Your car sounds in great shape, I would love to attempt a road trip like that in my '81. Bet you are glad to have the car back now. :cheers: