If you have the knowledge yourself and you know what you’re doing or indeed if you are privy to the rather rare services these days of a good mechanic who will do a good job in getting it into top shape, buying a fixer upper and giving it some love can make for a great investment by way of getting yourself mobile, but naturally some extra special care will need to be taken if you’re planning to take your baby on an adventure road-trip. Adventure road trips are known for the selection of challenges they offer to both the travellers and the motor vehicle itself, so here are some tips to make sure no such challenges lying in wait will be too much for your mode of transportation to handle.
Time the trip to closely follow a scheduled service
A fixer upper doesn’t necessarily have to be an old vehicle model – it could perhaps be one which had been involved in an accident and subsequently suffered some minor (or major, but manageable) accident damage. Even if it is an older model however, either way, fixer uppers which are passed fit by authorised inspectors are often eligible for services such as getting a service plan for it.
If you’re planning an adventure road trip on which to take your fixer upper, try and have it immediately follow the next scheduled service, just so that you’re covered by what is usually the integrated after-service window during which any subsequent problems which develop can be covered for free or for a very low price. Such problems which develop in this period are often covered in this way under the suggestion that they weren’t picked up by the car servicemen during the regular service.
Put together a detailed contingency plan
Here it’s simply a matter of making plans for all possibilities which may develop by way of emergencies while you’re out on the road, no doubt very far away from home and very far away from the place where you regularly take your car to get fixed or tuned up for peak performance. Every last detail should be in place, such as having the numbers of a mobile mechanic handy, so too those of your insurer. What this would also mean is that you’d have adequate supplies to keep you warm and fed, in case of the worst case scenario, such as having a tent handy and some blankets – it can get really cold really quickly if you don’t have the power of your car’s running engine to provide heat, light, etc.
Put it through its paces
There’s always the mandatory pre-trip inspection to complete before taking any-length journey, but serious problems only tend to show up when your car is really put through its paces. I’m not suggesting you put the pedal to the metal and clock the speedometer, but rather just suggesting something like driving with a bottle of fuel so that you can run a test to empty the tank, just so that you can see if features such as your reserve tank are fully functional and that the monitoring system works as well.
