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I'm moving to Oregon (from Pennsylvania) in June & will be making the cross country drive in my '93 L Sedan. I'm planning to replace the tires, as they need it & I'm told that rain is pretty much an everyday event over there. I'd like some advice on preparing for the trip (anything beyond a normal tune-up) and particualrly on lighting solutions-whether to replace my horrible stock lamps or to add aftermarket driving lights; as mine give me the most trouble @ night & in the rain.

Planning to do the trip in 4 days, over 800 miles each...I'm a trucker so I'm used to it-I just hope my legacy can handle it too.

Cooling system for sure. It's no fun doing high speed travel and constantly having to watch you temp gauge. Radiator flush, or if you have over 150k and know it's never been replaced, i reccomend buying a new one if you have the money. Some fouling just never comes out and the plastic endcaps become brittle. Upper and lower radiator hoses.

I drove mine Boston to San Fran and LA and back in the summer (through the desert on the way back) with 150k on it and had no problems. Longest stretch without stopping I did was 1900 miles. Nebraska went by at 110.

Definitely just do a check up of all the systems, bring some extra oil and antifreeze just in case, maybe a few tools. Check the brakes and do a timing belt/water pump if they're due. I also keep a spare headlight just in case. As far as lighting, try cleaning the lenses (you can search for the process) as if they are yellowed you'll get terrible light output. You can add whatever auxiliary lighting you want. If rain bothers you the most, though, I'd suggest fog lights over driving lights as they cut way down on the glare.

I'll bet the car will be fine if it's in good running condition. More or less constant speed doesn't stress things very much anyway.

Steve

I do my best to keep up with everything; and the best part of having a good friend as a mechanic is he won't let me not take care of the car. (Anyone remember the Seinfeld episode where Jerry's mechanic stole his car?)

Timing belt and cooling system flush were both done less than a year ago; also did a transmission flush (its an Auto) when I purchased it about 3 years ago.

The car runs great...I'm pretty sure a set of new tires is all she'll be needing...thanks for all the input though-preparing for the trip has me a little on edge.

My buddy also replaced all the hoses, belts & the water pump too...He says that Subarus are by far the easiest vehicles to work on! (Definitely an improvement over my Jetta, which he despised)

On that I have to agree...I love that I can change the oil without putting the car on ramps (& I'm a big guy) and I replaced the alternator myself when it went recently-I'm not even close to being confident working on cars...but I'm learning!

I suppose a AAA membership wouldn't hurt, but when my mother added me to her policy many years ago, my '83 sedan left me stranded that very day. Even with a tree falling on me as I drove down the street, that was the only time either of my old GLs failed to get me home. I think the car was insulted. Now I just rely on the power of plastic if I have a problem.

I like Mountain Dew for caffeine, another guy I know goes for Red Bull, but I'm not a fan of that stuff personally. Back when I went across, there was only one flavor of Mountain Dew. Nowadays these kids have all kinds of damn flavors ... Spoiled I tell ya, spoiled.

Yeah, these cars are very easy to work on and don't have many problems anyway. I've worked on lots of VWs and despise them, too (lots of problems also). Nissans are also a PITA, but my damn family insists on getting them. At least they're pretty reliable.

Steve

When in june are you coming?

Your stock lamps aren't horrible. Just fix the stock wiring, put good bulbs in, aim them right, and if the surface of the lenses is yellowed, clean that off. They'll do great.

Fog lights won't help you see in the rain. They help you see in the fog. If you need something to supplement your high beams, though, a pair of driving lights will help.

The new hoses, belts, water pump, and alternator, and recent cooling system service, sounds great to me. I agree with what everyone's said. Also bring a little ATF. A cell phone and/or a CB radio might come in handy too.

I'd suggest the AAA membership, just in case


Tires to go with would be Bridgestone Potenza re950s. I have them on my wagon and absolutely love them. Amazing all-seasons. They're great in dry, great in wet, and from what i've heard, great in snow as well. The 93 headlights should be great so long as the lenses are clear.

as for an alternative to the re950s
-especially since tire rack doesn't list them for the stock 14"s on an L-
I would recommend the Yokohama Avid T4's
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp ... mpare1=yes

I have them, I have done everything in them (stupid teenager clause here) from taking the backroads at speed, to trying to emulate the world rally championship in the snow, they're very capable, should last long and are very quiet assuming you have them well mounted and balanced. Since you're going to be doing a long cross country drive I'd recommend them, I put at least 80 miles on my car roundtrip from my house to Montoursville every Monday and I can conclude that they're great for the highway.

You guys are great...

I researched the posts on de-yellowing the lenses; I may give that a try when I have a clear weekend (the car is my daily driver). Thanks for the recommendation on the Protenzas, Laurel; those are the exact tires I was considering...much appreciated.

As I said, I'm a trucker, so driving long distances isn't a concern; but when my truck breaks, its my bosses problem...if my car breaks, I'm S.O.L...

I'm leaving tentatively on Saturday 6/18 & I hope to arrive on Tuesday 6/21...I'll be stopping in Columbus, OH to see friends & stay overnight, then I'll catch I80 in Iowa, take that west to Salt Lake City (with a stop to sleep somehwere in Nebraska) than catch I84 up to the far NW corner of Oregon. I'm nervous, but excited; I know my car will make the trip no problem & I'll have my XM & iPod to keep me company.

Thanks again for all the help & advice!

Good point Corsair...my rims are most certainly stock & while I'm not going to pinch pennies, I'm not really looking to upgrade to bigger/better rims. (I love my car but it's not winning any best-of-shows).

BIggest concern is wet traction...where I'm heading in Oregon (Astoria) snow isn't a big issue, not nearly as big as it is here in PA anyway...

want hydro resistance?

I'm going around 55 up a stretch of route 15 in Lewisburg, all of a sudden the suburban in front of me bails from my lane, I can't bail but I don't see any obstructions in the road. Well guess what I didn't see? A massive puddle along the left side of the road, oops! I hit the puddle and of course I feel the car hit the water and the steering feedback associated with that, anyway I keep going and just back off the gas a little and I'm through without a scratch. I've hit puddles like a madman (again stupid teenager clause) and have not hydroplaned or felt like I've lost any control.
I think those tires and the advantage of AWD are a good combination for the mad crazy L speed!


--on edit: It's mostly some ricer-esque story of the superiority of the subaru but these tires do as well in the wet as the dry, I had some worn down Yokohama Aegis' on the car last fall and I could toss the rear out and turns while wet with ease and lose traction, I can't do that now. It's comparing apples to oranges here but I really feel that these tires afford an amount of traction superior to most.

edited: I was dissin' the RE950's, but shouldn't have. The RE92 really do suck though.

edit- it's be clarified

EasternPA93 wrote:I'm moving to Oregon (from Pennsylvania)

Ahhhhhh, I'm jealous.

Planning to do the trip in 4 days, over 800 miles each...I'm a trucker so I'm used to it-I just hope my legacy can handle it too.

When I moved out to PA from Oregon, I made it in 3.5 days. I drove 20 hours a day though too.

Have a good trip, Oregon is beautiful and Astoria (home of The Goonies!) is very beautiful too. My ex-stepdads parents lived there and we used to go up there and to Seaside all the time. I love the Oregon coast but damn the water is cold so be wary of shrinkage!