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Not to rub it in but for the last few weeks it was in the high 70s and low 80s which is unusually high for this time of year. Now that we are here it will be highs of 60 to 70, but that's ok, those are our favorite temperatures.
I did get 27 mpg on the last leg of the journey. I think the car is getting more broken in and we were going just a little slower, and a lot fewer traffic jams. That's with 2 adults, one 12 pound dog, but a trunk full of stuff and half the back seat full, so similar.
Your Gennie did really well too for a fairly large car. That mileage matches the 328 and this car is a lot heavier, bigger and has more power.
Total driving time with stops about 25 hours (10 hours the 1st and 2nd day, 5 the 3rd). The first 3 hours of driving are the hardest, partly because the drive from Toronto to Detroit is very boring, but after 3 hours you just get used to driving all day. MacDonalds is a good place to stop, they have seniors coffees for about 65 cents. I don't recommend the food, but a granola bar with a coffee makes a good break every 2 hours or so.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
I don't do much traveling anymore, but I would never stop every two hours.
I once did southern NJ to just about an hour south of Bangor Maine without stopping (that 4cyl Altima company car did darn near 500 miles out of a tank!).
2025 Ram 1500 Laramie 4x4 / 2023 Mercedes EQE 350 4Matic
Left home at 9:00 pm, driving straight through to Hilton Head... my first stop: Pulled into a service station in South Carolina at 2:40 AM.... 5 hrs, 40 minutes and 420 miles later... (on fumes, I think...).
It helps, when they are sleeping....
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Made stops in:
NJ - bathroom
DE - bathrrom
MD - fuel
NC - bathroom
SC - fuel
GA - bathrrom.
Pretty much ate while driving.
2013 LX 570 2016 LS 460
2013 Mustang GT, 2001 GMC Yukon Denali
The Elantra I had saw the inside of the dealerships service department twice. Once when it was brand new getting prepped and once 6 or 7 years later with over 130K on the clock for an issue I discovered was still under warranty. I dropped it off on a Sunday night and the next i heard from the service department was around noon the next day stating that the car was fixed and I could come to pick it up.
No issues what so ever with getting then to do the warranty work even though I never serviced it there.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
tic and kyfdx. I admire your driving for so many hours without stopping...I also admire your bladder control.
Actually, we often went 3 hours without a stop, but we decided beforehand this wasn't a race against time. The breaks were more to stretch and take a walk so we wouldn't seize up, and also the poor dog needed to get out of the car once in awhile. I highly recommend taking short breaks every few hours...it makes the drive a lot more pleasant.
One thing I did comment on after the trip though. We were in 3 big traffic jams where it took an hour before the traffic started moving again. I was so glad we made enough stops that we never really had to get to a washroom when we were stuck in traffic....that could be a problem. I would hate to get out of the traffic jam and then try to get back on the highway.
3 major gripes about some drivers. On this trip I decided not to get upset about driving, just roll with what happens, and it really is the way to do a long trip. But, 3 things I do not like to see on highways are;
1) I am in the passing lane and one guy ahead is going too slow and is holding up a string of cars. Sometimes they just don't know to go back to the right lane or in some cases they never move over to a right lane.
2) is related. That is when I am in the left lane behind a string of cars and the guy behind me gets very impatient. He does two things, rides on my rear bumper (I just leave more space between me and the car in front), or he tries speeding around to the right and squeezes in front of me and the car ahead of me. I used to cut them off but now I just let them in.
3) Happens on the on ramp. I am speeding up to enter and a car or truck goes by just before I enter. The guy entering behind me now can move out before me, because the vehicle on the highway is now beside me. This doesn't allow me to get on until the guy behind me passes me. That's just being stupid.
Honorable mention goes to the idiot who does number 4). That is the guy who comes onto the highway on an on ramp and instead of trying to get on early or when there's a space goes as far as he can on the on ramp and then just curves in. They use the on ramp as a way to get ahead as much as possible. Also related is the guy who gets on the off lane and then goes onto the on lane so he can work his way ahead....I saw a few of those too.
The trip took 25 hours driving non aggressively. I really think driving like a maniac might have saved 1 hour at most, and it would have made the trip very unpleasant. Let the idiots do what they do and just laugh at them....
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
Hey! No one wished anyone a happy Saturnalia! Let me be the first.
Driver - nice touch. "washroom." A nice reminder of you Canadianess....
What route did you get into Florida. If you went near Tallahassee I'd have told you to wave at some friends...
60s to 70s is fine. If I can swim outdoors in December that is a major plus. That won't wuite do it. I believe December may be teh only month I never swam outdoors in though I'm shaky on remember if January qualifies as well.
Recovering from a nice Christmas Day spent entirely at home and then yesterday up at my brother's. Got in at 1 AM. :sick:
Now that's funny.
2025 Forester Limited, 2024 Subaru Legacy Sport
Nooooo..... but I'll also confess that I certainly don't have a bottle of water and a large coffee before hitting the road either.
For a while I was routinely driving from south NJ (Philly area) to Richmond VA without stopping.
2025 Ram 1500 Laramie 4x4 / 2023 Mercedes EQE 350 4Matic
No issues what so ever with getting then to do the warranty work even though I never serviced it there.
My '05 XG350 was a throw away with less than 42K miles on it.
As everyone here knows, I didn’t have a Hyundai dealership like the one you used.
jmonroe
'15 Genesis V8 with Ultimate Package and '18 Legacy Limited 6 cyl
Isn't that going out of your way? Seems like going through Buffalo would be quicker from Tronto.
Maybe I missed something where you went to Detroit for a reason.
Any way, too bad they discontinued that fast ferry over to Rochester. It would save you lots of time.
Which side of Tampa Bay did you come down? Did you stay on I-75 or did you use I-275 at the split?
Next time swing through Albany and pick me up.
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
Let me explain.
A woman that lives across the street shows me her brand new 2012 Sonata and says smiling, “I noticed that you have had a few Hyundai’s over the years so I figured you must be satisfied with them so I bought this one last week”. I asked where she bought it, pretty much knowing that she went to the local store. Sure enough that’s where she bought it. I said it’s a nice car but good luck dealing with that place if you have a major problem that requires warranty work. She asks why and I told her. Her jaw just drops. She said, “gee, if I knew that I would have bought a different car. Why didn’t you say something”? What was I supposed to do, take out an ad in the newspaper? :sick:
She now sees the Subie in the driveway and asks, “is that your car? I’ve seen it there for a few weeks now but I thought it was someone visiting”. I guess at this time of the year that isn’t such a bad assumption. I said, “see, you should have asked about that”. I told her that she could always take her car to the Hyundai dealer across town for service even though I knew that was not convenient and she wasn’t going to do that. She just shakes her head and says, “DAMN IT, I wish I knew about that”.
I’m pretty convinced that my problem stemmed from the dealer but Hyundai was no help in this either. There is an old Cadillac dealer in the Burgh that has a slogan that they always use. I’ve heard this line since I was a kid. I think I can use dealers names here so here it is ”Cadillac makes the car, Rohrich makes the difference”.
Like I said, I’ve heard this slogan since I was a kid. While I know the importance of this, I just never thought my dealer could be THAT bad. I also never thought that Hyundai could be that bad either.
OK, I let that one slip through my fingers but it probably won’t happen again in my neighborhood. There is now another mouth spreading the word.
jmonroe
'15 Genesis V8 with Ultimate Package and '18 Legacy Limited 6 cyl
Sometimes the words come out without thinking. Like asking for a serviette instead of a napkin. I just get a funny look, which makes sense if you never heard the term used before. Come to think of it I guess the term here is "restroom" which isn't really the main purpose of the room.
We did get near Tallahassee on the way down and I heard the song Tallahassie Lassie by Freddie Cannon on 50s on 5. I waved to some people as we passed Tallahassee but they thought I was doing something else.
Temp for the next few days will be mid 60s and heading up to 70 for about a week after that. Today it is 18 degrees with snow flurries back home, so no complaints about mid 60s.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
Yes, we would have preferred going through Buffalo and then cutting off part of the triangle going down to Pittsburg, instead of going by way of Detroit. The evening before we left they said the roads were slightly slippery and there could be an inch of snow in the Niagara Falls/Buffalo area, so we went with plan B which takes us through Detroit. It adds about a half hour to our overall time according to Google.
Yes, I remember the ferrie but that didn't last too long. Waiting for a ferrie and that ride across Lake Ontario would not be too pleasant at this time of year. I'd rather drive it.
That's exactly what we did, at the 275 split we continue down 75 for a little less than an hour. We are on the east side of Tampa Bay just a block east of I 75.
I think you are near Largo which is across the Bay and a little North of us. That's a great area too, but this area is strictly residential, not as much of a tourist area. A large percentage of people live here all year round.
We'll try to swing through Albany next time and see if we can bring you down.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
I thought you were warned about that.
HEY MODS he’s doing it.
jmonroe
'15 Genesis V8 with Ultimate Package and '18 Legacy Limited 6 cyl
Now, if you want to take the scenic route home, a couple of things you should check out in the Tallahassee area - Wakulla Srings. This is now a State Park. Used to be the biggest privately owned wildlife preserve. Very Southern and really nice. Take the glass bottom boat tour and meet the amazing Henry the fish. Apalachicola and St. George Island. You will be amazed that Florida can have that much water area that hasn't been totally screwed up. Heck, in Apalachicola you can go the museum honoring the man who invented the ice making machine. At the time he was trying to invent air conditioning.
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2015 Kia Soul, 2021 Subaru Forester (kirstie_h), 2024 GMC Sierra 1500 (mr. kirstie_h)
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That does sound nice. One of the nicest things to see in Florida are the state parks.
Apalachicola, St George Island, Henry the Fish, and the man who invented the ice making machine all sound really fascinating. You should write tour books, you always come up with some good places to go.
They have a series of 3 books you can get here, places to go on a tank of gas from Tampa. Your attractions sound better than the ones they listed.
I think it will be difficult to stop on the way back this year because we only planned to be here for 2 months and have to be back by Feb 28th the latest. But I will keep those spots in mind one year when we can do some sight seeing on the way back.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
Sorry, I got carried away. 70 degree weather isn't all that great, you have to have the air conditioner going in the car all the time when you are not used to it.
There, does that help?
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
Sitting by the pool...that's going to make JM feel really bad. It is too cool here for going in the pool. Did they have Pina Colattas right by the pool? That's the life.
It is just nice to be able to walk the dog or just go out for a walk and not freeze my butt off.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
MODERATOR /ADMINISTRATOR
Find me at kirstie_h@edmunds.com - or send a private message by clicking on my name.
2015 Kia Soul, 2021 Subaru Forester (kirstie_h), 2024 GMC Sierra 1500 (mr. kirstie_h)
Review your vehicle
There, does that help?
That does it I want a dues reduction.
jmonroe
'15 Genesis V8 with Ultimate Package and '18 Legacy Limited 6 cyl
I responded to an adv I saw from a local dealer. The adv is available on the dealer's website as well as appearing on on some other local websites.
Here's a link to the adv that is currently appearing: link
My question: What is the price of the 2012 Town and Country?
If you said "starting at $20,900" you'd be incorrect. I called and spoke to the Internet Sales Manager who thought that the $20,900 was awfully aggressive. He conferred with management, and got back to me to say that the $20,900 price does not include a balloon payment. The Internet Sales Manager agreed that the adv is misleading, as it mislead him as well. Even in the fine print at the end of the page, there is no mention of the Town and Country offer requiring a balloon payment.
So is the adv misleading? Or, is this accepted practice these days to not make any mention whatsoever to a required balloon payment? (Maybe these 2 questions are not mutually exclusive.)
In my Email to the dealer, I asked that Management contact me in order to explain why they would place such a misleading adv. Only the Internet Sales Manager responded to apologize for the confusion, leading me to wonder if this is common practice these days.
What say you sales people????
Thanks for listening & Happy Holidays!
Tell them you have a cashiers check in your pocket for $20,990 and you'd like the title (Certificate Of Origin) and the keys and that you'll do your own DMV work. That should get him telling all the missing pieces of the numbers game.
2013 Mustang GT, 2001 GMC Yukon Denali
Where were those?
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Does this dealer have a poor reputation??
Speaking of those 400+ mile driving segments without stopping, my family is well trained. Expect the first stop to be when we need to fill up.
I set that expectation, but it's not a firm rule.
If you need a stop, it's ok.
Where were those?
The 1st one was about 3/4s of the way thru Atlanta. We didn't take the by-pass but I doubt that would have been any better.
The 2nd was South of Macon. The road is under construction and it narrows to 2 lanes from 3 lanes. Stay in the left lane as the right lane disappears and cars have to blend in.
3rd was on I-75 just North of Brandon. That was during the heavy rain and there were a few fender benders.
The first two slowed us down about an hour each, the last one about 30 minutes.
Like i say, we travelled a little more than we thought we would on the good days, so we only tood an hour to 2 hours longer on what could be a 22.5 hour trip...but with little stress and quite a few breaks.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
Thanks for answering. I expected one to have been in Cincinnati just due to the heavy volume and a two-lane constriction at the Brent Spence Bridge.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Thats me, first stop is when we need gas. Now with the wifes Sonata with an 18 gallon tank and 34 MPG thats a long drive.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
now? I'm the old fart that makes sure to know when the next rest stop is coming along!
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Ha ha those kind of tricks have been common practice for as long as there have been cars. They do it because they know that it's human nature to want something for nothing and experience tells them that such an ad brings in the clueless who they can then bamboozle into paying more.
Ask yourself this: why would you want to do business with a dealer who was already lying to you before you even walked in the door? :lemon:
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
Any of you guys in the area ever do business with Jeep dealers?
Makes that story of the $2000 BMW brake job sound less and less like a myth.
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
No problem until we were most of the way through Atlanta. But, remember that was Christmas day in the early afternoon and traffic was light all that day....a great day to travel.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
Not much traffic, no trooper presence to speak of, and people are cranking along.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
90 Bronco with snow plow
2013 Mustang GT, 2001 GMC Yukon Denali
Plus you just assured yourself of no snow this winter !!
2013 LX 570 2016 LS 460
Looks to be very rust free for such an old truck. I envy you guys down south.
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
Hey, are you related to Old Farmer?
That's where he lives.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
Way to go Mako. Those Broncos are pretty cool.
If your looking for some extra work we need our drive ploughed out (up North) every once in awhile.
The Bronco looks like a lot of fun. Will you be using the plough?
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
I was amazed at the number of older cars in mint condition...the further South you go the more you see.
I saw an El Camino that was in excellent condition. Remember those?
And I saw this Cadillac that I thought would look good today even though it is a 2001.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
Body is good. Drives fine. Even has a CD. I had the guy put a new inspection sticker on it before he delivered it. I'll do the DMV work after the new year.
The reason I got it was, back in 1973 we had 60 degree temps on New Years Day and 2 weeks later we had 3 feet of snow. This year looks to be a repeat.
2013 Mustang GT, 2001 GMC Yukon Denali
That's what I bought it for. I'm sure there's a learning curve to it, but with all the tractors and heavy equipment I've driven it should be fairly easy to learn.
I forgot to even see if it had A/C. Sure easy to overlook when it's 38 degrees outside. I'll know more about it tomorrow. It was getting to be twilight when we were done with cash and title signing. The owner looked longingly at it as he was leaving. He said it was like parting with an old friend as he had owned it for over 10 years and plowed many driveways and parking lots.
2013 Mustang GT, 2001 GMC Yukon Denali
Almost anything that old in these parts comes with the rust package included.
I think Richard got so comfy in Florida that he has forgotten us....
2013 Mustang GT, 2001 GMC Yukon Denali