2020 The Great E92 M3 North American Road Trip

[LostPanda]

So my little brother has this great idea of doing a North American round road trip. He haven't had his car due to an engine build for a little over a year and he still doesn't know when he'll get it back. If and when he does get it back, he asked if I'd like to do a road trip. ~7100 miles, 118.5 hrs of driving. Starting in Indiana, to the Grand Canyon, start to finish on the PCH, up to Vancouver, all the way back East to Toronto, and back home. All this in a span of ~14 days.

Any thoughts, advice, ideas for this possible trip?

Current situation:
65K on original bearings (for sure going to change if we do indeed make this happen).
I'm currently on a custom built set of BBS RSIIs with RE71Rs. Should I run monoblock wheels?



Edit: Heres my accomplice.

[MaximusB]

When are you planning on doing this trip?

If you're planning on doing the trip right now or within the next 3-4 months then you'll need winter tires. At least from Vancouver to Alberta through the rocky mountains. Not unusual to get snow at the summits till late April/May. Also PPF the hell out of your car, at the very least the entire front end and body panels behind the wheels. In Vancouver we use salt in the winter but from Albert and onwards, they use gravel. I know for fact that they don't start sweeping up the gravel on highway #1 from Vancouver to Alberta portion till late May and usually aren't fully done till July.

Edit: Nice car btw. If you do end up doing this trip, let me know when you're in Vancouver. Wouldn't mind meeting up and check out your car.

[roastbeef]

14 days seems a bit ambitious. I don't think you would get to enjoy it in that amount of time. For something like this, I would think about a month would be more ideal. You might like a place enough to want to spend a day there. 14 days doesn't afford any flexibility. You'd just be driving to keep a schedule.
At a minimum, I'd have bearings done (fresh oil included obviously) and spark plugs. And have a couple quarts of oil on hand. Pack a spare and tools to change it.

[BayE30]

i would step down to a non-aggressive 18" wheel setup if driving that far. also bring a spare tire cuz you will most likely need it.

[Ngilbe36]

Id wait until spring/summer and get some 18s with tires that can handle rain. Doing that trip in winter would be risky. On RE-71s it would be dumb.

[SAMM3Y]

Vlog it

[LostPanda]

We have talked about doing this late late summer, most likely early fall. Bearings and oil are on the list. I have a cage in it so a spare would have to be in the rear. I was thinking about using the 359Ms for the trip rather than getting a 18s.

I'll log the trip one way or another. Never have I vlogged anything.

[cjm41]

That southern route is all wrong. You're skipping Colorado and Utah, arguably some of the most beautiful landscape on earth but hitting Oklahoma and a bunch of other flyovers.

I drove across the country twice over the summer (both times Florida to California, one time in my M3, different routes both times). Plan your route accordingly. I'd rather drive every day for the rest of my life through Utah than one day through Illinois, or Indiana, or Oklahoma.

This is a once in a lifetime trip. Make it worthwhile.

Here's a link to my thread, some useful info about a long road trip:


Driving from Florida to California https://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1640124

[SAMM3Y]

^Agreed, plus if you're gonna head south you gotta hit cities like Austin, NOLA and Memphis. Get that good good.. not gonna lie, if I was planning a trip like this, it would be less about driving and more about eating, drinking, sports stadiums and live music...

[Bemo]

Wish I had time for this, the car and map look awesome. Be sure to post frequent updates so us corporate rats can live vicariously through this great journey. Best of luck and safe motoring.

[RedScytheM3]

I'm sorry but your route is terrible! If you told me we were driving through OK I would try to find the escape hatch. I feel the same way as the others above. You're going to be miserable for half the trip. You don't even come to the south. You're missing out on LA (New Orleans/Lake Pontchartrain), my home state Texas (Houston, Austin/San Antonio hill country and BBQ, El Paso and the best Mexican food this side of the Rio Grande)!

[brettcp]

I think you'd be rushing a trip like this in just 14 days, if you can give yourself some more time I think you'd be better off overall... and if you need a place to stay in San Diego, let me know - we have an extra room and you're welcome to crash on your way through!

[dtenev]

Do it. If you are from the Midwest, spend more time between Calgary and Vancouver, and even more time in Vancouver.
I did a road trip with my 335i from Chicago to Anchorage, Alaska and back. About 10k miles all together. It was awesome, and intense. I did it in June and as I was driving north the sun never set.
I got away with just a cracked windshield, and my rear tires got competently worn out and I almost spun out in a heavy rain. No flats and no breakdowns and no oil changes.

The M3 will burn a lot of gas but oh well.

[LostPanda]

Ok ok, took everyone's advice, lol. I've modified the trip the the most northern route through CO and UT. ~6400 Miles, 105hrs. Took out Toronto because I've been there already, didnt need to take that whole way 'round home. 14 days is the most I can take off work. Our main goal is actually 4 locations. Grand Canyon, Pacific Coastal Highway, Redwoods, and Vancouver. Every everywhere else would just be mini stops for R&R or scenic really.

I will bring a spare or two, reserve fuel, oil, and basic tools.

[ItsGary]

Originally Posted by MaximusB

When are you planning on doing this trip?

If you're planning on doing the trip right now or within the next 3-4 months then you'll need winter tires. At least from Vancouver to Alberta through the rocky mountains. Not unusual to get snow at the summits till late April/May. Also PPF the hell out of your car, at the very least the entire front end and body panels behind the wheels. In Vancouver we use salt in the winter but from Albert and onwards, they use gravel. I know for fact that they don't start sweeping up the gravel on highway #1 from Vancouver to Alberta portion till late May and usually aren't fully done till July.

Edit: Nice car btw. If you do end up doing this trip, let me know when you're in Vancouver. Wouldn't mind meeting up and check out your car.

This. Shoot that message

[LostPanda]

Originally Posted by ItsGary

This. Shoot that message

I'll definitely hit up everyone here if they wanna join in on a stint/meet with us on the way.

[amrazM]

You may want to use better tires, you never know what you will run into along the way. a/s3+ or maybe dws6, something that would be geared for different weather situations. def bring an extra wheel and tire with you as well as some basic tools. Im sure the car can do it no problem but you def want to minimize complication. I did TN to nyc in 12 hours, the car is definitely up to the task. Go over every inch of it before you set off.

[KevinGS]

So envious.

Just do it. And make sure you have the best tow coverage, just in case.

Everyone else's recommendations are solid.

Just prep, and go, and never look back. You only live once. Doing this trip in the M3, just epic, and you'll never forget it.

[ChiTownM]

I have driven to MFest Las Vegas from Chicago and drive to the Rockies for skiing once a year and agree that once you hit Colorado the ride will become interesting and nice. You did the right thing by adjusting the route through the Midwest. For this kind of adventure you may want to look into a AAA membership....

[gio14]

Cover your bumper cause it's gonna be rockchip city by the time your back! Another guy I follow on insta just did a cross country trip and covered his front end in masking tape! Cheap solution and it actually worked at a fraction of the cost of getting the real stuff on. Other than that sounds fun!!

[MaximusB]

Originally Posted by LostPanda

Ok ok, took everyone's advice, lol. I've modified the trip the the most northern route through CO and UT. ~6400 Miles, 105hrs. Took out Toronto because I've been there already, didnt need to take that whole way 'round home. 14 days is the most I can take off work. Our main goal is actually 4 locations. Grand Canyon, Pacific Coastal Highway, Redwoods, and Vancouver. Every everywhere else would just be mini stops for R&R or scenic really.

I will bring a spare or two, reserve fuel, oil, and basic tools.

Keep us posted. I can recommend a couple of routes you can take from Vancouver to Calgary that are a lot more scenic and fun than the main highway. My friends and I usually do a few cruises up to Kelowna, or at least part way there, every year. If timing is right we can show you some really nice back roads on your way towards Calgary.

[BeaterM3]

Originally Posted by cjm41

That southern route is all wrong. You're skipping Colorado and Utah, arguably some of the most beautiful landscape on earth but hitting Oklahoma and a bunch of other flyovers.

I drove across the country twice over the summer (both times Florida to California, one time in my M3, different routes both times). Plan your route accordingly. I'd rather drive every day for the rest of my life through Utah than one day through Illinois, or Indiana, or Oklahoma.

This is a once in a lifetime trip. Make it worthwhile.

Here's a link to my thread, some useful info about a long road trip:


Driving from Florida to California https://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1640124

I was gonna say. If I were to take a road trip like this, the last thing I would do is miss out on the Utah and Colorado landscape. Absolutely breathtaking.