American Road Trip: what car??

[gordyshreds]

Heading out to the states end of July this year for a road trip. Route is as follows....
LA, San Diego, Grand Canyon, Antelope Canyon, Vegas, Yosemite, San Fran then down the Pacific Coast Highway to LA.
Has anyone done similar and if so what car did you use? I'm looking at using "Turo" and renting a car. Currently thinking a new shape Mustang of Camaro convertible. Though not sure if for 2500 miles over 2 weeks there would be a better suited ride, or if a modern convertible is a nice enough place to be?
Thanks in advance

[exelero]

Definetly Muscle, get a Hellcat if you don't really want a convertible



ETA Spelling

[lee_erm]

A Cadillac CTS-V if you can stretch! Failing that I'd go Mustang, or maybe a plush Explorer.

[anonymous-user]

Did something similar in 2015, meet a lot of brits in soft tops who regretted the choice, too noisy for most journeys and limited time to enjoy roof down. We had a small SUV, hyundai/kia thing which worked well. Lots of yank roads are long/straight and hood down it gets tiring, ifyou do 200 milesaday its a no no.Enjoy the roads and meet the locals there a good lot generally.

[anonymous-user]

I have done the trip and we changed cars at each city as it is an absolute pain to try and park anywhere.

Chevy Suburban around L.A. And San Francisco

Then another big American 4x4, I want to say Cheverlot but nothing special.

Another road trip we had a Chevy Camaro (convertible), X5, Jeep Wrangler, had all sorts!

Fast cars are all well and good there but the speed limits are so low, the traffic is horrific and the 'cops' everywhere so be careful.

[JulianHJ]

How many of you and how much luggage? The muscle cars are great, but space can be limited. We've had the coupe versions of Camaros, Challengers, Mustangs and Corvettes. All have been great fun, and I've driven those (excluding the Corvette) over the sort of miles you're planning without issue.

[bobtail4x4]

I did the trip in 2015 clockwise,
we had a convertable mustang, only a V6 but great fun, we did 450 miles one day no problem, 2800 total.

when it gets too hot put the top up.

[IanCormac]

I am going to do the same thing and have been looking at the mustang gt. Never driven one but they look nice.

[BlueStreak]

We did a similar trip last May: San Fran, PCH, route 66, Grand Canyon, Vegas, Death Valley, Kings, Yosemite, San Fran. We had a Mustang convertible and it was great. Boot is big - maxed our luggage allowance on the way out, we had walking kit, posh kit (went to a wedding in Vegas) and enough for 3 weeks, nearly filled the boot but there was enough space. Mustang was just fine, this model is so much better than previous generations, big, quiet, good handling (suits american roads). Roof up was quiet and comfortable for long highway stretches, roof down was fine on anything up to 70ish then could get a bit tiring after a while but more than worth the compromise for when you do want to get the roof down (which is lots of the time). Main downside is the sun, cheap cowboy hat from a supermarket solved that, and remained comfortably on my head even at 70+ ) assuming it's just 2 of you - Go for the Mustang! Rear seats are worthless though so if any more than 2 then it would be a no-go!

[surveyor]

I think the most suited car I've ever had for driving in US was a Ford Taurus.....

I think it was a new model (even Americans were asking what it was), in Gold, with Chrome wheels - really fitted in to the scene over there, and was actually nice to drive.

I'd be wary of a convertible in the locations offered. Too hot.

[gordyshreds]

Thanks for the replies, it's just me and my wife that are going. We are taking a year out to go round the world, living the dream! Decided to rent a small SUV in the end, booked a Rav4 for a half the price of what a Mustang convertible would have been, then will probably rent something special whilst in Vegas or San Fran just for a day.

[V40TC]

I would include:
Death valley
Sacremento
avenue of Giants(road towards Oregon)
then back down PCH
we had camaro was great
mustang convertable previous trip.
I use Autoeurope.co.uk
to choose cars.
never had a bad one yet.

[dvshannow]

We ad a challenger v8 which was perfect for covering the miles and loads of space. Before that have some suv was a gmc terran and was bloody awful.

There is a huge premium on convertibles the v8 coupes and sedans are v reasonable

[Bristol spark]

Having recently travelled 4100 miles over 3 weeks in western USA, i can confirm a big SUV is the perfect tool for when you need to cover 500 miles in a day.

Comfy, almost silent cruising at 90, plenty of poke, massive fuel tank, tons of toys and plenty of space.

This was the one i had, i managed to double its milage

[ZOLLAR]

thedoc50 said:

Did something similar in 2015, meet a lot of brits in soft tops who regretted the choice, too noisy for most journeys and limited time to enjoy roof down. We had a small SUV, hyundai/kia thing which worked well. Lots of yank roads are long/straight and hood down it gets tiring, ifyou do 200 milesaday its a no no.Enjoy the roads and meet the locals there a good lot generally.

Work colleague went to vegas in July last year, hired a convertible Mustang.
Went out for a long drive with the roof down, his wife almost passed out in the heat

Definitely don't get a convertible

[P1ato]

I did a similar trip over Easter last year, but had my wife and 2 teenage daughters with me. We hired a Jeep Cherokee, which was not exciting but big enough for all our luggage, comfortable, and got the job done.

If it was 2 of us I'd go for a Mustang coupe.

[Guyr]

Bristol spark said:

Having recently travelled 4100 miles over 3 weeks in western USA, i can confirm a big SUV is the perfect tool for when you need to cover 500 miles in a day.

100% agree.

I've done many big US road trips, both just as a couple and with our kids.

Most trips we get a big SUV, had a 6 litre Yukon XL on the last family trip and did Washington-Charleston-Savannah-Asheville-Washington. Great vehicle, huge, comfortable, just perfect when you're doing 600 mile journeys in a day.

Last trip with just my wife, we did Austin-Dallas-San Antonio in a Camaro 6.2. Looked great, but a really disappointing car, terrible lazy gearbox, not fast and if you go on a empty Tollway you can only sit at the same 80-90mph as everyone else.

The problem is most US roads are just long and straight, cops are everywhere and on decent windy roads like the Pacfic Coastal Highway it's jammed with traffic in high season.

They also take speeding very seriously, I also got chased down a Florida Interstate in a Buick Sedan once and also got stopped in Death Valley, after having not seen another car for ages, by a Police Car with built-in front-facing radar that nabbed me before I could even see it was a Police car.

Travel comments:

LA - generally rubbish, do Venice Beach for a few hours though
San Diego - Much nicer City, great Zoo
Grand Canyon - obviously amazing, drive to Hoover Damn and do tour or get Helicopter ride into Canyon if you can, both great
Antelope Canyon - never been
Vegas - epic food, hotels and shows
Yosemite - beautiful, but crowded in summer
San Fran - favourite US city, really interesting
down the Pacific Coast Highway to LA. - fun at first but windy, slow and has cops, visit Hearst Castle and Monterey

Edited by Guyr on Sunday 19th February 17:50

Edited by Guyr on Sunday 19th February 17:51

[fivepointnine]

Trexthedinosaur said:

I have done the trip and we changed cars at each city as it is an absolute pain to try and park anywhere.

Chevy Suburban around L.A. And San Francisco

Then another big American 4x4, I want to say Cheverlot but nothing special.

Another road trip we had a Chevy Camaro (convertible), X5, Jeep Wrangler, had all sorts!

Fast cars are all well and good there but the speed limits are so low, the traffic is horrific and the 'cops' everywhere so be careful.

What the heck are you talking about speed limits are low and traffic is bad? Maybe going through downtown LA and SAN FRAN. Anywhere else away from the main tourist areas the speed limit is 75-80 (on the I5 through the central valley) and traffic is almost non existent, PCH can get frustrating if you are traveling during peak times (drive it in the early morning or evening when the only other traffic will be surfers speeding to get to the breaks). I will agree that the police are everywhere.

Edited by fivepointnine on Monday 20th February 09:52

[Riley Blue]

Guyr said:

LA - generally rubbish, do Venice Beach for a few hours though
San Diego - Much nicer City, great Zoo
Grand Canyon - obviously amazing, drive to Hoover Damn and do tour or get Helicopter ride into Canyon if you can, both great
Antelope Canyon - never been
Vegas - epic food, hotels and shows
Yosemite - beautiful, but crowded in summer
San Fran - favourite US city, really interesting
down the Pacific Coast Highway to LA. - fun at first but windy, slow and has cops, visit Hearst Castle and Monterey

Edited by Guyr on Sunday 19th February 17:50

Edited by Guyr on Sunday 19th February 17:51

To that list I'd add:

Carmel - 'quaint' in an American way
The Mystery Spot, Santa Cruz - just plain weird
Long Beach - for the Queen Mary and Spruce Goose
Definitely Hearst Castle at San Simeon - jaw dropping opulence

ETA: the last time I was there my hire 'car' was a mahoosive kingcab pickup; worth considering for an experience you're unlikely to repeat

Edited by Riley Blue on Monday 20th February 10:16

[sealtt]

Most convertibles are too compromised in terms of road noise and refinement to be any good for that sort of journey & mileage, well unless you just don't care that much about refinement. A Mercedes SL or S-Class Carbiolet would be fine, but such cars are prohibitively expensive to rent.

Having done that journey my car of choice would be a big SUV. Spacious, comfortable, half decent refinement and good visibility to reduce fatigue on longer sections of the trip.