I’m not great at road trips, I’ve done one or two, but I never seem good at planning them out! And I rarely use my own car for road trips, normally I hire a car, or allow someone else to drive. Here Blake gives his guide to plan the perfect road trip.
Using a practical road trip guide will assist you quickly and easily plan your next road trip. The first thing you will want to do is, simply, plan ahead! This is a car road trip and depending where you are going, it can be a long one. Make sure you have all necessary materials for the trip.
Your Last Time Car Checking Tips
Before you leave, give your car a good checking over to make sure it’ll last the distance. Give it a service if you know what you’re doing, or take it to your mechanic if you don’t. Make sure your insurance and roadside assistance are paid up.
Grab Your Gear
Cash Keep a small cash reserve of a couple of hundred dollars, especially if your trip will take you far into the country. There’s nothing more awkward than pumping 80 liters of petrol into your car only to find out the service station’s credit card machine is on the blink or, worse yet, that they don’t even have one.
Maps Know where you’re going and how you’ll get there. If possible, check your local traffic services for any accidents, disruptions or roadwork. The idea is to get out onto the open road, not spend four hours creeping along in first gear. GPS units are fantastic, but a paper map will never complain about flat batteries or poor signal. Chuck one in the glove box as a Plan B.
Music Create A Mix Tape, CD Or A New iPod playlist.
It has the dual purpose of entertaining you and commemorating your epic journey. There are some who prefer the radio, but if you’re doing a proper road trip chances are you’ll be leaving your normal radio station behind, and trying to retune a radio while driving sucks. When you’re one of those types who don’t listen to music at all.
Maintaining Your Car Tips
Maintaining your car in excellent shape, keeping it maintained on a consistent basis and keeping the best you can at home will boost the life of your vehicle and help save bills in repairs and fuel at the end. Your exhaust is a crucial part of your car, despite the fact that it can be overlooked as a main concern area to keep repaired; maintaining your exhaust system and catalytic converter can be a good money-saver.
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- Have your vehicle looked after by a repair service, at a certified and respected garage.
- Consistently make use of unleaded fuel with a catalytic converter – only one tank of leaded fuel can fully disable a CAT!
- Stay clear of not having good enough fuel.
- ‘Grounding out’ your vehicle can sweep the catalytic converter and in some cases crack the ceramic monolith (a facet essential to alteration).
- Under no circumstances jump-start a vehicle that includes a CAT mounted. As an alternative, utilize jump lead
Plan your trip around where you will be and decide on a place to stay ahead of time. If you follow a road trip planning guide then you should be able to save money by planning ahead based on where you will and will not be. Making a short list (10-20) of places you would want to visit can help.
Road Trip
Let’s Take A Look At The Best Ways To Survive A Road Trip.
Create a Master Plan
Thorough planning is one essential ingredient for the recipe of a wonderful family road trip. Although it might seem very thrilling to dump everything in a car and enjoy the roads, the challenges are many. The map is the key to survive it, and it is important to trace your route before you travel. Spending some time after family dinners can be ideal to chalk out a sensible plan. It’s extremely important to engage your children and take their help. While you’re planning, it is wise to consider several important aspects such as the budget, stopovers, car conditions and the weather forecasts.
The Distance Check
Reality checks are essential if you’re planning a road trip with your family. Even when you can happily drive non-stop on your own, don’t assume the same for your little children. Little ones can become really cranky and give you a tough time while traveling. Constantly nagging and questioning about the remaining journey time is must experience on a family road trip. Being realistic about the duration is important for you so you can keep your children entertained along the way.
