Key West, FL --> Prudhoe Bay, AK. What Vehicle?

[Eye of the Tiger]

Or you can ride a Ninja 250 on street tires.



Now that Festiva is sounding really good.

[MX793]

Or you can ride a Ninja 250 on street tires.



Now that Festiva is sounding really good.

That looks stable.

[Soup DeVille]

You don't NEED a 4X4 or Raptor to drive on a gravel road, but a Raptor will devour a rough, pock-marked gravel road at 75 mph without any drama whereas a sports car, well, won't.  They're supposedly also pretty capable on pavement, though I doubt any match for a sports car.

Lots of cars keep their composure well on rough gravel; a Raptor would be a cool vehicle, no doubt; but its capabilities are in ground clearance and suspension travel- specifically off road stuff.

Not a bad choice, and certainly a vehicle that will more than likely get you there with little drama; it just doesn't make the other 5100 miles of the journey that appealing.

[Soup DeVille]

Or you can ride a Ninja 250 on street tires.



Now that Festiva is sounding really good.

Between that and the Festiva?

I don't know man, its a toss up. 

[MX793]

Lots of cars keep their composure well on rough gravel; a Raptor would be a cool vehicle, no doubt; but its capabilities are in ground clearance and suspension travel- specifically off road stuff.

Not a bad choice, and certainly a vehicle that will more than likely get you there with little drama; it just doesn't make the other 5100 miles of the journey that appealing.

I guess it depends on how rough of a road we're really talking about.  If we're talking compacted, crushed stone, then it's not so bad.  A fair portion of my "gravel road" experience is on roads that are much rougher than a gravel driveway.  The kind that will tear the oil pan off an SUV at speeds over 45 mph.

[Soup DeVille]

I guess it depends on how rough of a road we're really talking about.  If we're talking compacted, crushed stone, then it's not so bad.  A fair portion of my "gravel road" experience is on roads that are much rougher than a gravel driveway.  The kind that will tear the oil pan off an SUV at speeds over 45 mph.

It's made for heavy trucks. Heavy trucks suck ass on anything softer than well compacted gravel. The pictures and the videos Ive found show it not to be too bad.

[CJ]

Give me a Range Rover.

[Soup DeVille]

Can I give you a suggestion? When you get to Canada, don't go through Alberta. Go just a couple hundred miles west and go through BC.  The scenery and the roads are far superior and a shit ton of fun.

I thought about this and it made a lot of sense to me. I also realized that I live in neither Key West (not flamboyant enough) nor in Deadhorse (not badass enough), so I'd actually have to get there and back as well. I also realized it would be stupid to drive all that way and not see the west coast again. So,

http://goo.gl/maps/YcIbP

The route looks more like 12,000 miles from doorstep to doorstep. This would definitely not be something I'd willingly do in either a Festiva or on a Ninja.

[SVT666]

That's a bit crazy.  Just head over to the Oroville, WA border crossing, drop by my house and we'll go boating.  Then continue on up to Alaska.

[Soup DeVille]

That's a bit crazy.  Just head over to the Oroville, WA border crossing, drop by my house and we'll go boating.  Then continue on up to Alaska.

http://goo.gl/maps/tz7rP

Better?

[SVT666]

Perfect.  When is the trip?

[Soup DeVille]

Still in the possible/planning stage at this point...

[Rupert]

Google Maps is telling me I can't drive from Tierra del Fuego, Argentina to Prudhoe Bay, AK.  WTF?

IIRC, there's a ferry you have to take around some jungle in the Panama area.

[Rupert]

I like full size Broncos. I like the Raptor.

However, if one is under the impression that these are required in order to drive on a gravel road, then one might reconsider taking a trip like this at all.

I'd rather take the chance of becoming stuck, stranded and frozen than subject myself to 5000 miles in either vehicle if it would mean passing up the opportunity to make such an epic trip in an equally epic sports car.

You can get a family sedan up some sketchy shit if you have a little skill and patience. I.e., as you say, given the length of the trip that's not decently well-maintained gravel (is paved), it makes very little sense to sacrifice a good drive for some minor convenience at the end. Anything tough enough for the first 5000 miles is tough enough for the last 400.

[Rupert]

You don't NEED a 4X4 or Raptor to drive on a gravel road, but a Raptor will devour a rough, pock-marked gravel road at 75 mph without any drama whereas a sports car, well, won't.  They're supposedly also pretty capable on pavement, though I doubt any match for a sports car.

I would rather drive a Subaru on 90% of the unpaved roads in the lower 48. Maybe 85% now that road maintenance is the first thing cut from budgets. AK surely has a higher proportion of the worse roads, but the Dalton is a pretty major road.

[Rupert]

Which is to say, an old 911 is really the best idea. If you're a paranoid/overprepared sort, a Carrera 4.

[Morris Minor]

I'm quite sure theres a tire store  somewhere in the US thats closer; be a bit silly to carry four spares the whole trip.

Maybe switch to a set of all terrains in Fairbanks.

[Eye of the Tiger]

All the cooling fins will clog up with mud.

[Soup DeVille]

All the cooling fins will clog up with mud.

Was never a problem with the Beetles. 

[JWC]

Was never a problem with the Beetles. 

Actually a Baja Bug would be my choice for such a trip.

[Eye of the Tiger]

Was never a problem with the Beetles.

I dunno. Seems like.it.might be an issue with the engine hanging back there.

[JWC]

I dunno. Seems like.it.might be an issue with the engine hanging back there.

Kubelwagen was nothing but a rebodied people's car.

[SVT666]

You can get a family sedan up some sketchy shit if you have a little skill and patience. I.e., as you say, given the length of the trip that's not decently well-maintained gravel (is paved), it makes very little sense to sacrifice a good drive for some minor convenience at the end. Anything tough enough for the first 5000 miles is tough enough for the last 400.

Come on man, you know better than anyone here the punishment a gravel/dirt road will dish out. 400 miles (800 miles round trip) of it can literally shake cars apart.  The question is how well maintained this gravel road is. If it's got washboard and pot holes everywhere that 400 miles could take 4 days to cover.  The shaking could loosen suspension pieces and the rocks could puncture tires in something not built for that. 

[Morris Minor]

Come on man, you know better than anyone here the punishment a gravel/dirt road will dish out. 400 miles (800 miles round trip) of it can literally shake cars apart.  The question is how well maintained this gravel road is. If it's got washboard and pot holes everywhere that 400 miles could take 4 days to cover.  The shaking could loosen suspension pieces and the rocks could puncture tires in something not built for that. 

From the reading I've done it's pretty messed up. Read a blog by a lady who did it in a minivan. She had three tires punctured - locals told her to use 10-ply all terrains

[Lebowski]

Give me a Range Rover.

+1.

Large comfortable SUV, Range Rover, GL450, Land Cruiser etc would be my choice. 

[SVT666]

From the reading I've done it's pretty messed up. Read a blog by a lady who did it in a minivan. She had three tires punctured - locals told her to use 10-ply all terrains

If that's the case, get a Raptor, Explorer, 4Runner, Grand Cherokee, Expedition, or Tahoe.  Fuck the Range Rover, it will break down.

[JWC]

I helped prep an F250 for a trip to Alaska about ten years ago. We replaced all his tires, ordered another spare wheel and installed two new spare tires to match the four new ones on the ground. He also took spare belt and a few other items--coil, plug etc.

One thing he didn't take was new radiator hoses. He was stuck for a couple of days when a rock put a hole in the lower radiator hose. I don't remember him blowing a tire on the first trip, just the hose.

[Madman]

The map: http://goo.gl/ebkB3y
5,500 miles.

The sting in the tail is the Dalton Highway from Fairbanks to Prudhoe Bay: 400 miles of tire destroying crappy gravel road.

What vehicle would you choose?

Boeing 747.


/thread

[Eye of the Tiger]

I helped prep an F250 for a trip to Alaska about ten years ago. We replaced all his tires, ordered another spare wheel and installed two new spare tires to match the four new ones on the ground. He also took spare belt and a few other items--coil, plug etc.

One thing he didn't take was new radiator hoses. He was stuck for a couple of days when a rock put a hole in the lower radiator hose. I don't remember him blowing a tire on the first trip, just the hose.

Self amalgamating tape, or even duct tape... Srsly.

[Soup DeVille]

From the reading I've done it's pretty messed up. Read a blog by a lady who did it in a minivan. She had three tires punctured - locals told her to use 10-ply all terrains

But still; a lady did it in a minivan.