So I pulled the plug... - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

crod · 03-26-2010, 06:52 PM

Today I finally got what I think is a nice 2001 Boxster S. As the car is in California, I will be flying there next week and spend the long easter weekend driving it ALL the way back to Canada, east coast.

2,800 miles!
I hope I have no freaking mechanical issues on my way back! This whole RMS/IMS thing still scares the **************** out of me and as a previous Porsche owner I know these cars (Porsche in general) can be very annoying with their design flaws.

Got rid of a 2006 Cayenne I got brand new. It was a great car in many ways but as I already got another daily beater, the Boxster will be a nice complement for my spring/summer/fall driving!
Guys, wish me luck! This will be a hell of a drive, passing through Las Vegas, Denver, Omaha, Chicago and finally Canada.
I will post pictures and will probably create a daily blog of the trip.
If anyone wants to meet along the way, just give me a shout!

Cheers.

CR

cas951 · 03-26-2010, 08:41 PM

Wow that will be one heck of a drive. Where in Ca?

violametallic-S- · 03-26-2010, 10:38 PM

Hey Im from ottawa aswell. I bought my escalade from texas and spent 800 on shipping. I would seriously consider that. You will get tons of rock chips and your ass will ache......

goodluck though, see you around the city

eightsandaces · 03-27-2010, 04:57 AM

Does the end of the trip include a stretch of 81N to the A bay bridge? Or are you going Detroit Windsor and over like I did in the Ann Arbor days.

RandallNeighbour · 03-27-2010, 06:21 AM

You will enjoy your car, although you'll find out it's not the most comfortable vehicle on super long trips, of which I have taken many in my boxster. I've driven from FL to TX, TX to CA to NV and back to TX, and TX to NC and back. And then to my chiropractor FOR my back.

Frequent stretching at rest stops is highly suggested, once an hour or so.

Also, you may want to buy a quart of whatever brand and weight of oil that was last used in the car just in case it drops a little during that long trip. 0W50 Mobil 1 oil is very hard to find in the middle of Nebraska or Iowa.

BTW, it takes at least 30 minutes after you shut off a hot boxster motor to read the digital oil gauge with any accuracy. I recommend checking your oil after lunch every day when you come back to your car after your meal. One bar on the gauge represents about a cup of oil. Do not overfill!

PS - Didn't you mean pull the "trigger" instead of plug?

jmatta · 03-27-2010, 07:02 AM

I bought my '02 Box in Dallas; after checking contained shipping costs, decided to drive back to northern Illinois. Shipping quote was around $2,000; open trailer would be less, but read the fine print...they are not held responsible for ANY damage.

In any case, the 1100 mile drive back was very pleasant and I found the seats to be comfortable and supportive. Driving through northern Texas and Oklahoma was quite an adventure, since I had jacked-up pickup trucks all over my a$$ at 90 MPH.

I'd definitely do it again.

tonycarreon · 03-27-2010, 07:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RandallNeighbour

PS - Didn't you mean pull the "trigger" instead of plug?

he's from canada eh. maybe they pull the plug eh, instead of the trigger eh, since they don't like guns.

eh.

Bladecutter · 03-27-2010, 07:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by crod

Guys, wish me luck! This will be a hell of a drive, passing through Las Vegas, Denver, Omaha, Chicago and finally Canada.

When do you think you will be passing through the Denver area?

I have a couple of really good friends who live just outside of Kingston, ON, and lots of family that lives in Hamilton. Always good to meet new Canucks.

BC.

crod · 03-27-2010, 08:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bladecutter

When do you think you will be passing through the Denver area?

I have a couple of really good friends who live just outside of Kingston, ON, and lots of family that lives in Hamilton. Always good to meet new Canucks.

BC.

The only one that can answer this question is the car.

My plan is to start going back on Friday so I should be in the Denver area sometime on Saturday afternoon/evening. Thing is I have no clue about the roads going from Pacific Palisades to Denver (or from Denver to Omaha/Chicago for that matter).
If I can get whatever paperwork is required done by Wednesday afternoon then I may start heading back on Thursday and in that case I guess I would get to Denver on Friday afternoon/evening.
Would be pretty cool to meet some Boxster owners along the way!

CR

crod · 03-27-2010, 08:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tonycarreon

he's from canada eh. maybe they pull the plug eh, instead of the trigger eh, since they don't like guns.

eh.

That is it. Up here we pull the plug, not the trigger.

CR

crod · 03-27-2010, 08:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmatta

I bought my '02 Box in Dallas; after checking contained shipping costs, decided to drive back to northern Illinois. Shipping quote was around $2,000; open trailer would be less, but read the fine print...they are not held responsible for ANY damage.

In any case, the 1100 mile drive back was very pleasant and I found the seats to be comfortable and supportive. Driving through northern Texas and Oklahoma was quite an adventure, since I had jacked-up pickup trucks all over my a$$ at 90 MPH.

I'd definitely do it again.

In a way money was not the deciding factor for me. To get the deal done through a third party it would cost me money. Adding shipping to that I would be in the $2,000 range too. So I thought to myself, why not fly there ($200) and drive the Boxster back? It must be a hell of a drive and honestly a trip that I have no idea if I will ever be able to do again. So I decided to drive it. And what better way to get used to the car?

I am sure there will be no one on my ass during the trip considering the under the bumper flame throwers I got installed. That should do it.

CR

crod · 03-27-2010, 08:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eightsandaces

Does the end of the trip include a stretch of 81N to the A bay bridge? Or are you going Detroit Windsor and over like I did in the Ann Arbor days.

I was thinking about crossing the border in Sarnia. Any reason not to do there?

CR

crod · 03-27-2010, 08:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RandallNeighbour

You will enjoy your car, although you'll find out it's not the most comfortable vehicle on super long trips, of which I have taken many in my boxster. I've driven from FL to TX, TX to CA to NV and back to TX, and TX to NC and back. And then to my chiropractor FOR my back.

Frequent stretching at rest stops is highly suggested, once an hour or so.

Also, you may want to buy a quart of whatever brand and weight of oil that was last used in the car just in case it drops a little during that long trip. 0W50 Mobil 1 oil is very hard to find in the middle of Nebraska or Iowa.

BTW, it takes at least 30 minutes after you shut off a hot boxster motor to read the digital oil gauge with any accuracy. I recommend checking your oil after lunch every day when you come back to your car after your meal. One bar on the gauge represents about a cup of oil. Do not overfill!

PS - Didn't you mean pull the "trigger" instead of plug?

Good advice! Appreciated. The oil was changed 700 miles ago, Mobil 1. I will get the exact same one they used and bring with me and will definitely keep an eye on it during the trip. Gee, my Cayenne had 45,000 miles on it and mechanically I had never had an issue (had tons of electrical ones though). So hopefully this Boxster will be at least as reliable as the Cayenne!
And as mentioned before, in Canada we pull the plug. No triggers here.

CR

crod · 03-27-2010, 08:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by violametallic-S-

Hey Im from ottawa aswell. I bought my escalade from texas and spent 800 on shipping. I would seriously consider that. You will get tons of rock chips and your ass will ache......

goodluck though, see you around the city

Well I thought about shipping it but it is such a great chance, great trip that I simply can't say no to that. I may get some chips probably but nothing I cannot fix one day if it really bothers me that much.
So how was it to go across the border with an US car? Too much hassle? I am reading the RIV.CA website and seems pretty straight forward but I would love to hear from someone that actually did it to confirm my thoughts on the subject!

CR

coolbreeze551 · 03-27-2010, 08:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by violametallic-S-

Hey Im from ottawa aswell. I bought my escalade from texas and spent 800 on shipping. I would seriously consider that. You will get tons of rock chips and your ass will ache......

goodluck though, see you around the city

Wow, $800! That's a good deal. I thought it got pretty pricey once you start crossing the border. What shipping company did you use?
It's always funny to here people like tonycarreon to think all Canadians are spitting images of 'Bob and Doug' Mckenzie.

tonycarreon · 03-27-2010, 09:20 AM

FYI, nebraska sucks.

end of story.

Quote:

Originally Posted by coolbreeze551

It's always funny to here people like tonycarreon to think all Canadians are spitting images of 'Bob and Doug' Mckenzie.

being from texas i'm constantly told "wow, you don't sound like you're from texas." i suppose it's because i've never said "ya'll."

TRawls · 03-27-2010, 09:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by crod

I was thinking about crossing the border in Sarnia. Any reason not to do there?

CR

Sarnia is definately the place to cross; much more fun to go over the Blue Water Bridge and through some stinkin' tunnel!!

Enjoy

violametallic-S- · 03-27-2010, 10:07 AM

[QUOTE=tonycarreon]he's from canada eh. maybe they pull the plug eh, instead of the trigger eh, since they don't like guns.

Very typical. CROD I guess you didn't realize hes stereotyping canadians. Eh Tony wanna go grab our skates n sticks n play a lil ice hockey and drink a couple of Wobblies ehh. Eh Tony I love guns, I have 3.

P.s Tony do you like pasta?

violametallic-S- · 03-27-2010, 10:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by crod

Well I thought about shipping it but it is such a great chance, great trip that I simply can't say no to that. I may get some chips probably but nothing I cannot fix one day if it really bothers me that much.
So how was it to go across the border with an US car? Too much hassle? I am reading the RIV.CA website and seems pretty straight forward but I would love to hear from someone that actually did it to confirm my thoughts on the subject!

CR

as long as you have the correct paper work you should be fine. Remember the border wants to hold your title for 3 days or you can not cross the border with the car.I got the dealer to fedex it before the escalade crossed. Try and get a temporary tag in the u.s this will allow you to do the etest, saftey and then take it to Canadian tire for the stamp after they see you have day time running lights then register it. There's nothing else that needs to be changed. The gauge can be switched to kms. I've done this procedure about 5 different times. Any questions I'll be glad to help, eh.

violametallic-S- · 03-27-2010, 10:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by coolbreeze551

Wow, $800! That's a good deal. I thought it got pretty pricey once you start crossing the border. What shipping company did you use?
It's always funny to here people like tonycarreon to think all Canadians are spitting images of 'Bob and Doug' Mckenzie.

I'll dig up my papers today to find the shipping company which I used.