Long distance road trip.. Help

[ex1z7]

Right so.. I'll be on my way in a week or so down to Toronto from Thunder Bay (the route I'm taking is 1500~km, should take 20 hours of driving with the conditions..) And then driving a different car back up.. I want to ask a few things before I embark on my journey that I think Beyond can help me with.

The car I'm going down with is a 1999 Subaru Forester, standard. It's a higher-mileage vehicle (220km~) and the seals in the engine were just replaced at Subaru here in town.. And the car I'm bringing back is my 2002 Ford Focus, also standard, with 74k, and is in solid shape as anything in need of repair was recently done before it was driven down to Toronto.

We just got a foot of snow or so, and I suspect we'll get more, but the roads might be clear.. I want to ask a few questions for both conditions, but first...

On my way down, I'm going with my girlfriend (who wont be helping with driving), I'm stopping in Sudbury (mapquest says 13 hours from here, it's more like 9 or 10)
(Estimated Time: 13 hours, 8 minutes Distance: 619.12 miles) I wanted to know, is there anything I should be doing to make sure I'm staying as alert as I can, any standard time between driving that I should stop, grab a drink, etc? I want to make sure I get there completely safe..

I'll leave early morning so I can avoid as much night driving as possible, I almost hit a deer the last time I went on a road trip (13hrs total driving, to Wisconsin/Minnesota etc.) And this will be my furthest and longest drive yet.

Anything I should make sure to get checked / check before I go re: the car? Tire pressure? Oil? Fluid levels?

Anything I should bring "just in case" ? Blankets, few changes of clothes, jerry can..? What would you all suggest throwing in the back of the Subaru, that can be thrown in the trunk of the Focus.. Shovel..salt..?

I also haven't done a lot of winter driving, so this will all be a pretty big challenge for me (I'm an Australian driver
:clap: ), anything I should keep in my mind when going down..? I don't intend on going anything more then 10 over if the roads are clear, and the speed limit at night, as deer / patches of whatever are harder to see..

I'll be heading down around the weekend of the 18th/19th, my total trip, says Mapquest, is..
Total Estimated Time: 20 hours, 23 minutes Distance: 958.11 miles, (1542km), I'm stopping 10 hours in, then going another 7 hours from Sudbury.. The 7 I'm not worried about at all, it's getting to Sudbury I'm mildly concerned about, just in terms of staying alert.. On my way back from Minnesota (after a concert) I had a 5 hour drive from 2am till 7:30am that was just brutal.. I don't want to be in that situation again.. (I tried stopping at a hotel, my buddy and myself only had cash, Canadian cash at that, and no hotels would let us stay with it.)

So yeah, Sorry the post is so long.. but I want to try to cover all my bases.. I just want to have a safe trip and get there and back fine.. Anything else I should know, I'd appreciate the input greatly.

Thanks for taking the time to read :)

[Vietsta]

i would bring a jerry can with gas,couple change of cloths, food?, lots of water. an emargenacy(sp)kit like a shovel, warm blanket and etc. but with the newer cars i think you should be aight, no problems as long as you keep your rpm low and drive at a stedy speed. good luck with your trip:thumbsup:

[Annoyingrob]

If you've been driving the car around town for a while, it has probably accumulated over 1500km of driving in the last month. Has anything needed attention lately? Your car will probably be fine. I would check the tire pressure before you leave though, it can really affect your milage. It's good to check that your oil level is good too.

On road trips in the winter, I like to carry a small shovel, a sleeping bag, and a long lasting candle with me (and lighter!). I also carry something to get me out of slippery situations (I carry some small metal grates, but kitty litter works too). I always carry a litre of oil with me.

And bring a cellphone.

[ex1z7]

The Subaru with new seals has about 100km on it after the repairs were done, the Focus however needs nothing but maybe some washer fluid =).

So I pretty much have my bases covered with my current list of idea's and precautions? =)


Thanks :D

[Mitsu3000gt]

I would suggest an alignment (if you have any reason to believe it may not be perfect) as a really long drive will do a number on your tires if they aren't alligned.