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Your comment about the A/C being sub par at best is a little concerning. My wife and I are about to embark on a 3,304 mile 12 day road trip in our 2019 Grand Sport Convertible M7 (map below). I don't expect A/C will be an issue in the part of the country (and altitude), but I did find it somewhat concerning.
Some of the trip highlights:
San Francisco Start
Lassen National Park
Crater National Park (Rim Road)
Crater of the Moon National Park
Grand Teton National Park
Yellowstone National Park (Grand Loop)
Glacier National Park (Going-to-the-Sun-Road)
Pacific Coast Highway from Seattle all the way home (San Francisco)
I will be producing a Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, etc. write up with pictures when the trip is over. The car has 1,915 miles on the clock right now and when the trip is complete will have 5,219 miles.
The map below is not 100% exact, but it is pretty dam close
I would suggest that when you leave Yellowstone N.P. that you drive east on US14/16/20 to Cody, WY, then north Hwy 120, then north on Hwy 296, and then northeast on US212 over Beartooth Pass to Red Lodge, MT and then Hwy 78 north to I-90.
It is really a beautiful drive. on Hwy 296 and US212. US 14 to Cody is an awesome drive, better than taking either US19 or US89 north out of the park heading north to I-90.
The duffel bags were key to our packing. I have a 60 litre and wife had a 90 litre along with my computer bag and my wife brought her pillow from home.
You where able to get 150 liters of bags (+computer bag and a pillow) in the convertible with the top able to come down? Do you have a picture? I assume the 90 liter bag goes from one end to another and the 60 liter bag was on top of the 90 liter bag.
You where able to get 150 liters of bags (+computer bag and a pillow) in the convertible with the top able to come down? Do you have a picture? I assume the 90 liter bag goes from one end to another and the 60 liter bag was on top of the 90 liter bag.
That doesn't seem unreasonable to me.
60L is 2.12 cubic feet and 90 L is 3.18 cubic feet for a total of 5.3 cubic feet.
You where able to get 150 liters of bags (+computer bag and a pillow) in the convertible with the top able to come down? Do you have a picture? I assume the 90 liter bag goes from one end to another and the 60 liter bag was on top of the 90 liter bag.
No pics, but I can replicate if you want on our next trip.. The pillow stayed in the cabin since my wife likes to doze off. The computer bag was really small and basically just held my surface book, the flat mouse, and a notepad.
Duffel bags were end-to end. Hers was a 90 litre Patagonia Black Hole series with approximately 3 toms of stuff in it, mine was a North Face Base Came and was actually a 71 litre, not a 60 litre as I thought in another post.
Two of these: 23" x 13" x 11" side by side fit very well. That leaves the entire space under the partition empty, plus these are "squishy" so there is ample room between them or on the sides to place smaller items. There's no reason you couldn't live out of these indefinitely.
I would suggest that when you leave Yellowstone N.P. that you drive east on US14/16/20 to Cody, WY, then north Hwy 120, then north on Hwy 296, and then northeast on US212 over Beartooth Pass to Red Lodge, MT and then Hwy 78 north to I-90.
It is really a beautiful drive. on Hwy 296 and US212. US 14 to Cody is an awesome drive, better than taking either US19 or US89 north out of the park heading north to I-90.
My trip is June 22 - July 3. As of today that road at the Montana state line is closed, but I see that they normally keep it open after Memorial Day. I will keep a eye out for that when I leave the park and look to add that to the trip. Based on our schedule, if we were to drive the Beartooth Highway, it would be the late afternoon of June 26th. It would add 143 miles of driving from Jackson, WY to Bozeman, MT. That is where we wake up that day and go to sleep. But it looks like it is worth the "detour". That detour might turn into the best part of the trip.
Thanks for the tip. It is tips like that...that make trips like this great.
Last edited by Carlos Thomas; 06-11-2018 at 02:15 PM.
He said end to end. His 18 inch long 71L and her 25.5 inches long 90L, placed end to end, is 43.5 inches.
Her 90L is 14 inches tall and his 71L is 6 inches tall.
Plenty of room in the trunk of a C7 for both.
Exactly, I used the measurements someone posted in an older thread and ordered both duffel's online based on those dimensions. Worked perfectly. Since they are soft-sided, as mschuyler said, they gave enough play to squish my small computer bag in. My wife has a small backpack with her Surface Pro, a mouse, and some other stuff that she just kept in the cabin by her feet. I had some car wash/detailing s
We could have put the partition down and carried more stuff, but that defeats the purpose (to me) of the vert. We ended up having plenty of room for this trip. Any longer of a trip it may have been an issue.
My trip is June 22 - July 3. As of today that road at the Montana state line is closed, but I see that they normally keep it open after Memorial Day. I will keep a eye out for that when I leave the park and look to add that to the trip. Based on our schedule, if we were to drive the Beartooth Highway, it would be the late afternoon of June 26th. It would add 143 miles of driving from Jackson, WY to Bozeman, MT. That is where we wake up that day and go to sleep. But it looks like it is worth the "detour". That detour might turn into the best part of the trip.
Thanks for the tip. It is tips like that...that make trips like this great.
The last trip I made over Beartooth Pass, was in the middle of June. Road was perfectly clear of snow(it had been plowed) but in places, the vertical wall of snow along the road was 8 feet tall. I really enjoyed driving it with a lots of snow on the ground.
It is worth the detour. Really.
Oh, and while you are visiting Old Faithful, have some of the buffalo meat loaf in the café in the Old Faithful Lodge.
I'd like to get a bug screen, custom sized of course for the intake during Summer bug months for highway speed trips.
Joe, get a Novistretch. I know they look kinda lame, but they are cheap, easy on, easy off, and easy cleanup. I only use mine on major trips. The amount of bugs they accumulate is nothing short of awesome, and that means those guys are not going into the radiator or interior, not to mention splatter on your paint. I throw mine in the washer (by itself, of course) and it folds up to next to nothing ready for the next big trip. Gotta hunt mine up for next week's jaunt to the Grand Canyon. I don't even know where it is!
When you unsnap the partition in the trunk, does the DIC flash or register a warning of some sort? Just wondering.
So, @ highway speed in a downpour of rain, the wiiide ZO6 tires you feel NO hydroplane? That would be extremely rare IMO.
Have you checked your front engine cooling radiator for imbedded love bugs? Pics?
I'd like to get a bug screen, custom sized of course for the intake during Summer bug months for highway speed trips.
On the partition, I really don't know because I haven't put it down ever. Probably never will. I haven't checked the radiator because it was raining most of the day yesterday. I only hit the front and mirrors with a quick pressure washer in between rain storms to get the bigger bugs off. Leaving the office a little early today to give her a good bath so I will know then. If they are in there I will take a pic and post it.
On the rain, I really did not feel any hydroplaning, however these 2 storms (one in Georgia on Saturday, the other near Murfreesboro, TN on Sunday) were so bad, the highway pretty much slowed to a crawl. On Saturday, the rain was so hard and the visibility so poor that most folks pulled into the breakdown lane with hazards on and stopped. We did the same and ended up taking the nearby exit ramp to a gas station and grabbed a coffee and sweet tea. Even the semi trucks were in the breakdown lanes. When it got slightly better traffic was 45-55 MPH until it fully cleared. I use the waze app on the screen of my car and about every 10 seconds there was a flood alert or a weather hazard alert. But, nonetheless, the car handled very well in Weather mode and I never felt unsafe. Unlike my 1985 Trans-Am that slid if someone just spit on the road.
Joe, get a Novistretch. I know they look kinda lame, but they are cheap, easy on, easy off, and easy cleanup. I only use mine on major trips. The amount of bugs they accumulate is nothing short of awesome, and that means those guys are not going into the radiator or interior, not to mention splatter on your paint. I throw mine in the washer (by itself, of course) and it folds up to next to nothing ready for the next big trip. Gotta hunt mine up for next week's jaunt to the Grand Canyon. I don't even know where it is!
Novistretch was what they recommended at the NCM when I did the RC8 delivery. They sold them in the gift shop if I remember correctly. I will order one before my next South Florida road trip for sure. Those love bugs are nasty and leave behind big gut splatter.
I would hate to think of how bad they would have been if there wasn't so much rain on my way back home.
When you unsnap the partition in the trunk, does the DIC flash or register a warning of some sort? Just wondering.
So, @ highway speed in a downpour of rain, the wiiide ZO6 tires you feel NO hydroplane? That would be extremely rare IMO.
Have you checked your front engine cooling radiator for imbedded love bugs? Pics?
I'd like to get a bug screen, custom sized of course for the intake during Summer bug months for highway speed trips.
It appears that his Z06 has SuperSports, not Cups. Should have no problem in the rain with the superSports.
My C6 Z06 would hydroplane with the wide OE Goodyear's, but when I installed the Bridgestones, I could drive at 80 MPH on the Interstate in a fairly heavy rain, without any problems. I understand that the SuperSports act quite civil in the rain.
It appears that his Z06 has SuperSports, not Cups. Should have no problem in the rain with the superSports.
My C6 Z06 would hydroplane with the wide OE Goodyear's, but when I installed the Bridgestones, I could drive at 80 MPH on the Interstate in a fairly heavy rain, without any problems. I understand that the SuperSports act quite civil in the rain.
Correct, not cups. It was great in the rain, much better than I would have suspected.
It appears that his Z06 has SuperSports, not Cups. Should have no problem in the rain with the superSports.
My C6 Z06 would hydroplane with the wide OE Goodyear's, but when I installed the Bridgestones, I could drive at 80 MPH on the Interstate in a fairly heavy rain, without any problems. I understand that the SuperSports act quite civil in the rain.
I've never had a vehicle 4-down (with one exception) that didn't hydroplane at speed and become dangerously unstable in the puddled lane areas at highway speeds. I would think that the wider the tires, the worse the stability.
The exception is my 6-tires down, dually motorhome. It's incredibly stable right through the standing ruts of water at highway speed. Same for slick winter surfaces - 6-tires down is very stable.
Last edited by Skid Row Joe; 06-11-2018 at 03:23 PM.
Novistretch was what they recommended at the NCM when I did the RC8 delivery. They sold them in the gift shop if I remember correctly. I will order one before my next South Florida road trip for sure. Those love bugs are nasty and leave behind big gut splatter.
I would hate to think of how bad they would have been if there wasn't so much rain on my way back home.
Since you're not running a front license plate, I'd expect the radiator to be imbedded heavily with love bugs.
I must run a front license plate in Texas, and I suspect that reduces direct incoming hits by insects. I'm still wanting to procure a two side clip on screen(s) for my Stingray.
Every vehicle I've owned the past 27 years has gotten screen placed by me soon after purchasing behind the grilles. It really saves your radiator fins. The C7 unfortunately presents
a challenge in easily placing screen internally behind the grille.
The last trip I made over Beartooth Pass, was in the middle of June. Road was perfectly clear of snow(it had been plowed) but in places, the vertical wall of snow along the road was 8 feet tall. I really enjoyed driving it with a lots of snow on the ground.
It is worth the detour. Really.
Oh, and while you are visiting Old Faithful, have some of the buffalo meat loaf in the café in the Old Faithful Lodge.
Of course, every year is different as to when they get the snow plowed and open the road. Same with the "Going to the Sun" road in Glacier N.P.
06-11-2018, 12:52 PM
Ha! In contrast to my 191 miles in (10) days in my new 2019 GS!
