kors-jan

I visited the RainX website and they advertise their "Bug and Tar Protective Shield". Its water soluable, so it washes off easily. Just spray it on and it lays down a thin layer of acrylic polymer. Seems like a pretty cool idea. Anyone used it? How well does it work?

lone_wolf025

Personally I'd go a little overboard and have road flares, jumper cables, towing straps, a 1 gallon jug of water (to drink or possibly use to stretch some anti-freeze) and an empty fuel canister for any "Oh sh**!" moments.

Definately do the spare tire bit, make sure everything is in proper working order, and top off all fluids and check to make sure your brakes are in good shape before leaving.

Edit-

And I love the bib idea!

CarAndDriver

Cell phone

coll3735

And you gotta love the electronic air compressor in the trunk, it saved my *** last week.

Huskyfan23

Rain-X products work great. Their sprays are top notch. I personally have never tried their Bug and Tar Protective Shield", but just getting back yesterday from a 1900 mile road trip to Colorado (not in the 8, though) I would have to say it has to make a difference. On the trip, we hit so many bugs I could barely see out the front windshield.

kors-jan

I think I'm going to give the RainX "Bug and Tar Protective Shield" a try and see how it works on our trip. Maybe when we arrive home I will give a report on how effective it was and ease of use? (Seems like a more high-tech application of the Vaseline idea -- and more clean and easy to use?)

Everyone -- Any more ideas and suggestions?

StewC625

kors-jan - where in Colorado are you going to be? I might have some recommended "great drives" to give you. There's tons of killer roads in the central mountains/summit county/Vail/Avon area. We often go to Breckenridge.

One of my favorite drives is Colorado 9 south out of Breckenridge to Fairplay - this takes you up and over a really spectacular pass, then pick up 285 East from Fairplay about 10 miles to Tarryall Road - Rt 77 - VERY twisty fun road.

Take Tarryall south about 30 miles to pick up Colorado 24. From there, you can do a couple of things - turn right/west on 24 and either go to Colo 9 and back to Breckenridge, or go left/East on 24 to Florrisant. Near Florrissant, turn right/west on Blue Mountain Road - Rt 98 and follow that to Rte 59 - turn right - which takes you around Eleven-Mile Canyon Reservoir - beautiful area!

Follow 59 Northwest to Rte 23, and back to 24. Again, at this point, you can go right and return to Colo 9 and Breckenridge or go left and follow Rte 24 to Buena Vista. BV is a great town and fun place to have lunch - there's a drive in burger joint there, that I can't remember the name of but awesome food.

After lunch in BV, head north on 24 to Leadville, CO - highest municipality in the continental US. Go through Leadville on 24 and look for Rte 91 to Climax - this is REALLY amazing - views are awesome and some great switchback action there. Take 91 north, and you'll get to Copper Mountain where you can then pick up I-70 and head back to wherever you are.

Huskyfan23

Holy hell! I actually just got back from driving out to Fort Collins yesterday. I went from Cheshire, CT to Toledo, OH the first day; then to Lincoln, NE the second day; then to Fort Collins the third. Took my sister out there for the summer. She kept the car, and I flew back.

That drive SU<KED!!! I was in her crappy Ford Focus, and there is nothing in this world more boring than Iowa and Nebraska.

Good luck! You should have a much more enjoyable trip in the 8.

416to212

On long road trips cold drinks in the cup holders can get warm. Unless you take the time to insulate the cupholders from the underside, I would recommend a small ice box for cold drinks. Unless you like warm drinks.

Also driving that long will get dust in your interior. I use a micro fiber towel (bought at Target) to wipe off dust from the dash, and glossy black parts. I never need more that a little bit of my hot breath on the part to get it foggy and a wipe of the towel. It produces a shiney surface with no scratches.

Be sure to top off your windshield washer fluid and clean your blades.

Wax your wheels. Doing so will make it easy to wash off or even wipe away brake dust.

I don't do much else beside bring 1 qt of oil and check tire pressure on long trips.

kors-jan

416to212: That's a good idea to take a micro-fiber cloth on the trip. Easy to pack, for sure. I bought new RainX Latitude wiper blades -- they are really great. Highly recommend this new design of blade. Got them off ebay, too, so decent price.

Huskyfan23: Interesting that you just made the trip we are planning -- but in a Ford Focus. Soooo sorry to hear that. Yeah, Iowa and Nebraska can be a bit of a bore at times, but trust me, west Kansas or West Texas are worse! We have made this trip numerous times in the past (never in a 8), so we are hoping for a much more fun drive this time!

mkaresh

I'd definitely seek out some great roads while in CO and up to SD, and plan on averaging mid-teens if you find them.

Sad part of this trip is that you'll mostly be traversing some of the most boring terrain on the planet. You'd almost be better off renting a Taurus for such a route than taking an RX-8.

A couple summers ago I drove my father's RX-8 from VA to MI (I'm also near Detroit) and back. That's a much more entertaining direction to head in. Great roads in southern OH and WV. The RX-8 was totally in it's element.

So the #1 thing I'd do is find the most entertaining roads you can, and not worry about the impact on fuel economy. If you spend a couple hundred more on gas, so what, you'll be doing what the car was designed to do. If possible, I'd take an indirect route from CO to SD if some entertaining roads aren't too far out of the way.

And then you'll have to come home to Michigan.

kors-jan

Yeah, I-80 West through Iowa and Nebraska is a total bore. We've driven that route probably 20+ times over the years. But once we get into Colorado we get off the interstate and head cross country. That's fun. On the way to SD we can also get off the interstate and take some more scenic roads. It's gets better again when we get into northern MN and then especially across the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and then south across the Mackinac Bridge and through Northern Lower Michigan. So, yeah, Iowa and Nebraska are a bore, but much of the trip is good (prayerfully it will be great!)

Jedi54

iTrader: (7)

sorry if you answered this already (i just skimmed thru posts) but do you have a spare tire kit?
Microfiber towels are a MUST for random bug splatter on the car. I usually keep 2 small towels neatly folded in the passenger door compartment. (beneath the handle)

Mazdax605

Just do what these kids did.That should protect the front end,Just kidding I love the Whitewater pearl(If I ever get another RX-8 that will be my color of choice).This thread that I am linking is a great read,and maybe I found through this site,but I don't remember.

http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=2918517&page=1

CarAndDriver

So we have any 8 owners from Iowa or Nebraska that are going to defend that their states are NOT the most boring places in the US?

Huskyfan23

No, believe me, Neb and Iowa truly ARe the most boring places in America. Just imagine a flat land with absolutely nothing to look out, and multiply it by 700 miles. When I drove out to CO a couple of weeks ago, I was so bored I actually felt like falling asleep while driving. Seeing as how I have never in my life fallen asleep in a car, that says a ton of how boring the ride truly was.

mkaresh

After I graduated from college I spent five months driving around the country. I remember being surprised to find that Iowa wasn't too bad, with moderate hills and decent views. Lots of soybeans.

Then I got to Nebraska. Flat flat flat and corn as far as the eye could see. I ended up turning north and going through the sandhills to SD.

The later half of that trip I drove a Celica All-trac Turbo. Took it up Pikes Peak. That was fun. The 8's handling would be up to it, and you can't go but so fast so the engine probably wouldn't be too bad as long as you kept the revs up.

MazdaJeff

Problem with the spare is that it eats into the storage space.

Sounds like a fun drive.

Have a good time and be careful.

Fencig

No defense from me. Iowa, for the most part, is flat, straight and extreemly boring to drive. Next month I'll be putting about 8K on my 8 just to enjoy some fun roads. A nice 2 week road trip through the south, up the coast then back through Colorado towards home. <sigh> Hearing about Kors-jan's trip is making me wish I could start out tomorrow.

kors-jan

My wife and I have made this same trip at least 20 times over the years. Iowa and Nebraska aren't boring if you get off I-80. But along I-80, which is just meant to get you across the state, is a total bore. If you read through this entire thread, you may remember I said earlier that West Kansas or West Texas are worse, much worse. Iowa is great, with rolling hills and farms (we are from a farm background). But again, I-80 is boring. We love Lincoln Nebraska, but again, I-80 is a bore. Hope this clears up that I'm not dissing Iowa or Nebraska.