Planning a road trip..

[passatpout]

OK, here's one for some thoughts...

My car's up to about 41,500km, and I'm doing about 500-600km/week. At the end of next week, we're heading off on a 2-week road trip from Melbourne to Brisbane and back, via Newcastle, Orange, and Merimbula (estimating about 5,000-6,000km of travel in that time). Obviously the 45,000km service will fall due during the trip, but at the same time the tyres are getting close to done as well - there's probably about 3mm of tread left.

Bearing in mind the car will be loaded up with luggage, pram, etc, and will have my wife, our 2-month old, and myself inside.

So, with the following options, what would you do?

Service:
A) Service prior to leaving, which would be early by up to 3000km.
B) Service after the trip, probably late by up to 2,000km.
C) Service during the trip (which would probably see us on the Gold Coast or Brisbane).

Tyres:
A) Change now, prior to the trip.
B) Wait until after the trip.
C) Change during the trip.

At the moment, I'm leaning towards replacing the tyres now, and seeing about getting the service done whilst in warmer climes. Any recommendations for decent service places in Canada (if Victoria's Mexico..)?

Cheers,
AP

[apom]

Do the service and the tyres BEFORE you leave. Given you vehicle will be loaded and travelling at higher country speeds having is done prior will ensure you know your vehicle is in the best shape for the long trip. Warn tyres, long trips, full load, bad combo, especially in an emergency. The new tyres could also improve fuel economy and overall ride, not to mention driving enjoyment.

Additionally, if you have people you know and trust locally, use them as this also ensures you can have the car sorted prior to you leaving to make sure you are v.happy with it all.

[gead]

do both now before you go....piece of mind FTW

[R36 Dreamer]

Personally I would get the tyres done now, and get the service done when you get back.

There should be no issues with overrunning a couple of thousand kilometres, and if the car is still under warranty, spending a long time in the car on a road trip might bring to light any issues you may want to bring to the dealers attention.

Ensure your levels are all ok (my R36 uses a little oil >1L per 10,000) and then take it for a run.

Just my 2c worth.

Sidenote: my car is being serviced on Friday 1,800kms prior to the schedule due to needing to have some warranty work done. I prefer to go to the dealer as seldom as possible.

[gerhard]

Get your tyres before you leave, you can shop around for the best deal in familiar surroundings.

The 45,0000 service is basically just an oil/filter change. Getting an oil change done in Brisbane should not be a challenge, although you have to take time out of your holiday to book it in, take it in, etc.

Might as well get that done before you go.

[richdave]

I'd do the tyres after the trip... if the tyres are in good condition and properly inflated and are still roadworthy there should be no problem with driving on them

[Rthirsty6]

Keep in mind that the DSG is also serviced at 45,000km (extra $$, $450 on my Audi last time, just for an oil and filter change).
Keep in mind that you might have to book it in advance, depending how busy the dealer is.
I personally would not risk it and wouldn't want to be mucking around during my holiday. Needs to be done sooner or later so why not get it done now and the car is fully checked and ready for a good time on your holiday?!

A tip, if you have a full-size spare, get them to use the spare and put the best of the 4 tyres as a spare. Saves you buying the fourth tyre and still have a good spare tyre that you probably will never use anyway!

Good luck and have fun!

[gerhard]

Keep in mind that the DSG is also serviced at 45,000km (extra $$, $450 on my Audi last time, just for an oil and filter change).
Keep in mind that you might have to book it in advance, depending how busy the dealer is.
I personally would not risk it and wouldn't want to be mucking around during my holiday. Needs to be done sooner or later so why not get it done now and the car is fully checked and ready for a good time on your holiday?!

A tip, if you have a full-size spare, get them to use the spare and put the best of the 4 tyres as a spare. Saves you buying the fourth tyre and still have a good spare tyre that you probably will never use anyway!

Good luck and have fun!

DSG service is 60,000k. 45k service is basically just an oil/filter change, as I already said.

[gregozedobe]

I'd definitely replace the tyres before you go - worn tyres have a lot less grip in the wet, and are also much more prone to punctures and other problems.

I'd be getting the service done on or before the due date/distance, if you don't then you have given VWA the perfect excuse to deny any warranty claims.

[ipy]

Like others here I will suggest..
Service:
A) Service prior to leaving, which would be early by up to 3000km.

Tyres:
A) Change now, prior to the trip.

In addition, when it's being serviced, get VW to do a once over to ensure things are working as they should. There's enough going on during your vacation then to worry about your car not performing as it should.....

[richdave]

The Continental Sport Contact 2 tyres on my car are spec'd at 7.94mm tread depth when new and the minimum legal depths is 1.6mm and is where the tread depth indicators become flush with the worn tread surface.

No surprise that Continental suggest replacement at 3mm depth... but then they have an interest in churning tyres don't they.

Changing at 3mm will leave 22% of the legal usable tyre life (tread depth)

[gerhard]

The Continental Sport Contact 2 tyres on my car are spec'd at 7.94mm tread depth when new and the minimum legal depths is 1.6mm and is where the tread depth indicators become flush with the worn tread surface.

No surprise that Continental suggest replacement at 3mm depth... but then they have an interest in churning tyres don't they.

Changing at 3mm will leave 22% of the legal usable tyre life (tread depth)

They also have an interest in your safety - that's why they bother to research and test and test and test until they know more about their tyres than any single consumer. Very few vehicles wear tyres exactly evenly across the entire width.

People who value a little bit of money over their safety will always stretch the envelope, and some will accuse tyre companies of being profiteers. I just hope those people don't drive near me when the road isn't perfectly dry and offering maximum grip.

[richdave]

People who value a little bit of money over their safety will always stretch the envelope, and some will accuse tyre companies of being profiteers. I just hope those people don't drive near me when the road isn't perfectly dry and offering maximum grip.

It's up to each of us to asses the value and risks associated with such matters. Driving style, road surfaces etc all need to be assessed. If you have an R36 and drive like a demon then changing sooner is probably warranted, if however you drive conservatively, leave plenty of room, and rarely exceed the speed limits then it MAY be possible to extend the life of the tyres a little.

That said, the minimum wear limits weren't pulled out of some bunny's arse and they ARE considered safe MINIMUM limits.

[passatpout]

Well, for what it's worth, I had the car serviced at 44,788km in Brisbane today.. $275.. first question from the dealership was "Has this car been here before?".. to which I replied "Check the rego...". Had to be the only Vic rego'd car serviced there today..

Tyres rotated, the now fronts have 4mm tread left and the rears have 3mm.. so on richdave's tyre tread depth, they're around the halfway mark (3.94/7.94 = 50% used, 4.94/7.94 = 62% used, approximately, etc, etc.).. so I'll keep an eye on them on the return trip to Melbourne. With about a 3,000km return trip planned...

[passatpout]

OK, a quick summary of the trip..

Departed Melbourne at 1100 on 1/11/09, stopping in Yass for the night after receiving the news that my mother had passed away (missed making it there by.. well, enough).

Yass to Newcastle on 2/11/09. Filled up in Goulburn. The following week was running around Newcastle with funeral arrangements, etc.

Newcastle to Yamba on 10/11/09. Found that the Pacific Highway hasn't really improved that much since the last time I travelled on it in 2003 and not much different to what it was like in the 1990s. Filled up in Port Macquarie..

Yamba to Broadbeach on 11/11/09, stopping in Byron Bay along the way for lunch.

4 days of the Gold Coast, beaches, boat rides, all sorts of good things.

Broadbeach to Brisbane on 15/11/09, via Mount Tamborine.

My wife then came down rather sick in Brisbane, so we spent another couple of days up there before she was ready to travel back. The car also had its 45,000km service in Brisbane along the way.

Brisbane to Newcastle, via the New England Hwy and Thunderbolts Way, on 19/11/09, filling up in Ipswich along the way. For all you drivers, head to Thunderbolts Way at some point - it's a cracking drive, particularly heading into Gloucester. I also have permission from my wife to go uphill next time....

Newcastle to Sydney on 20/11/09.

Sydney to Tumut on 21/11/09 via Winmalee. Filled up in Sydney.

Tumut to Melbourne on 22/11/09, including going non-stop from Holbrook to Melbourne - not bad with a still sick wife and an 11 week old bub in the back.

All up, just under 5000km in 3 weeks - it was originally going to be a 2 week trip, and include a couple of other places like Orange, but circumstances dictated otherwise.

Anyhow, I'll tot up some things, and put a bit more detail in.

The driving was one of the enjoyable parts of a very bittersweet holiday, and the car did the job quite well. All sorts of things, heavily loaded, hot weather, mountain runs, and it just kept on keeping on.

Now, I wonder when the next long trip will be...

Cheers...