“Get Your Kicks On Route 66”

As a youngster, I always loved listening to music by Nat King Cole, but when I recite the lyrics to this classic, it reminds me of long family trips riding in the back seat of my parents’ station wagon, for what seemed like hours and hours and hours… I wasn’t a big fan of long rides, drives or anything remotely looking like being forced to sit still for a very long time going anywhere. And who could blame me? I was an active kid, wanting to run, jump, swim, bike or play. Watching my little brother in his car seat annoy me to death or just looking out the window at the warped scenery whizzing by wasn’t my idea of a good time. Transitioning into adulthood, I never really had the time to travel being a fulltime sales consultant required a lot of time and presence at the dealerships. It wasn’t until only recently; I really had the opportunity to start traveling on the road with my wife. Within the last couple of years, my mother-in-law’s cousin, invited us to drive down from our home in Virginia to her home in Huntsville, Alabama. I input the address in my GPS and found it was approximately a 9-to-10-hour drive. My initial thought was, “Oh my God, I’m gonna be bored out of my mind driving so long down the road.”  I had never driven anywhere near that distance before, outside of delivering a vehicle to a client in Queens, New York back in 2016 (That’s for another post…) I started thinking, maybe I should have my wife help me drive or take NO DOZ pills to make sure I stay awake, but I was determined to give this a shot and see for myself that driving a long distance behind the wheel would be a worthy experience.

I had the opportunity to take a late model Audi A6 for the trip. I have always liked how Audis drive, having owned an older model some years before. What I truly loved about it was the ride quality and the fuel range. First of all, let me tell you… Riding in the back seat on long drives is absolutely nothing like driving on long rides. I had an absolute, wonderful time. One of things I loved about the trip was it gave me the time to relax, escape into my own thoughts, listen to our music, talk with my wife and just take in the beautiful scenery as the primary driver. It was a totally different experience for me that I continue to look forward to future rides down to Alabama.

What made this trip so intriguing was my Car Guy interest in the Audi’s fuel range. When we gassed up in Virginia prior to hitting the highway, my fuel range displayed 650 miles to empty! I compared this with the total distance from the gas station to Huntsville and much to my pleasant surprise, we could actually drive the entire trip without needing to refuel. Now to a Car Guy, that’s LOL wonderful to see because I’m always about pushing the limits and marking some pretty creative milestones. But my wife wasn’t so enthused. We caravaned down the highway with her parents and her aunt who rode in Hyundai Palisade. I love these SUVs for their comfort and smooth ride, but unlike the range for the Audi, they had to stop and fuel at least once going down the road. My father-in-law asked if I needed to get gas and I boastfully told him, “I’m in good shape. I’m in such good shape; I won’t even need to gas up until we get to the house!” He looked at me as if to say, “ok, he’s gonna learn in a minute…” Lol. We were literally 15 miles from Huntsville, I was singing my victory song in my head, triumphantly awaiting the arrival and the boasting of a milestone achieve when the infamous fuel light came on. My wife looked over from the front passenger seat and saw that light and instantly said, “Um, are you crazy?! You better pull this thing over and get some gas.” I said, “Babe, it’s just the warning light, I’ve got a good 50+ miles before we run out and we’re only 10 minutes away… I definitely can make it in without stopping.” My wife shifted back over and proceeded to call her mother who was slightly behind us and explained the situation. She got off that phone and with a very authoritative voice, told me to pull over at the next gas station. When I got out the car, my mother-in-law was waiting for me, looking dead at me and said, “Boy, don’t make me show you another side of me!” LOL!! I said, “Yes ma’am.” I decided I’m gonna stay in my mother-in-law’s good graces, even if it kills me. I filled the car up and when we headed back to Virginia, I put gas in the Audi at every stop we made, just to make sure I would not upset my mother-in-law again… So much for pushing it, but I know that in my heart, we would’ve made off of one tank… LOL

Car Guys’ Car Tip

For my DIY car guys and gals doing routine maintenance on your vehicles, I’d recommend oil changes at every 5,000 miles for 4- cylinder vehicles and 3,000 to 4,000 for six-cylinder vehicles. Tire rotations I would recommend at least every other oil change. (Note: These recommendations depend on the type of oil used and manufacture standards for service)