The day is finally here! Greg and team have finished my car…..I’m just anxiously awaiting it to ship to Wisconsin.
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Congratulations!
The next week or so, waiting for it to arrive, will seem like a year, I'm sure.....
@NeenahSpeedster posted:The day is finally here! Greg and team have finished my car…..I’m just anxiously awaiting it to ship to Wisconsin.
Ship? WTF? It’s Spring! Fly down there and drive it home. 
If you’re worried, Carey knows a great B&B to spend a night or two while you do shakedown cruises. If you’re busy, fly me out and I’ll drive it up to you. I can leave tomorrow.
Isn't it a VM --- not a Beck? A lot longer ride but still would be an adventure ride from Hollywood Gdns, Calif to Cheeseland.
I did think about it, but the thought that stopped me was there really isn’t a way to lock it overnight in a hotel parking lot.
Even better! I can get flights to LAX for $49!
@NeenahSpeedster posted:I did think about it, but the thought that stopped me was there really isn’t a way to lock it overnight in a hotel parking lot.
Good point.
@dlearl476 posted:Good point.
Creativity can easily overcome that perceived obstacle.
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You have at least five good options to avoid theft:
- Park it at a police station and Uber to your motel.
- Put a 'Manual Transmission' sticker on your windshield.
- Pull the coil wire at night and bring it into your room.
- Adopt a Rottweiler in LA and have it sleep under the tonneau cover.
- Pick up the Speedy at Greg's and drive round the clock until you're home.
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I was thinking of driving mine home to TX from Roy's place when I get mine. Then I read that the first oil change and valve adjustment is at 300 miles for the new motor.
Just can't see myself at the rest stop performing a valve adjustment with the wife. 😂
coil wire works unless they use a ramp tow truck
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Yeah, my meager attempts at humor notwithstanding, there are good reasons not to make the maiden voyage a long one.
The builders themselves will remind you that these are handmade machines that will require some checking and tweaking at first. Some iron road warriors have done it, but that is the stuff of legend and song.
If you're skilled enough to take care of things yourself, you'll still need a load of spares and tools that you won't want to carry through airports. If you're not, a lot can happen when you least suspect it, and usually in places like Kingman, Barstow, and San Bernardino.
And as mentioned, there's the matter of doing a proper break-in — probably not best accomplished in one steady burn at 70 mph.
This is the one time you'll want to be seeing your pride and joy on the back of a flatbed.
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Unless you already have a clear bra, you will be mad at yourself by the time it gets home. It will have rock chips unless you take all the B roads and that will take you 7 days to get home 
I think it can be done, but from experience spending a week driving around Greg's place or at least a few days enjoying the scenery and get in 300-400 miles in and around the builder is wisdom. Take your son 
Then you get the first oil changes and set ups and adjustments that you will have to do. You can even arrange to partk it at Greg's and uber to your hotel Hey, you will do fine tuning and adjustments at Greg's or at home, and that is a given. Greg has the parts, the knowledge and the people who know the cars.
Why not spend the money and time fly to the builders. My money would be take a trip, that is truly part of the shakedown for a hand build car. When your satisfied, book the transport and fly back home. (Bring a son / Grandson along )
@Marty Grzynkowicz posted:Unless you already have a clear bra, you will be mad at yourself by the time it gets home. It will have rock chips unless you take all the B roads and that will take you 7 days to get home
That is a good idea Marty. You could Ask Greg to get the front XPel Filmed for you before it leaves the place.
@Sacto Mitch posted:.
Yeah, my meager attempts at humor notwithstanding, there are good reasons not to make the maiden voyage a long one.
The builders themselves will remind you that these are handmade machines that will require some checking and tweaking at first. Some iron road warriors have done it, but that is the stuff of legend and song.
If you're skilled enough to take care of things yourself, you'll still need a load of spares and tools that you won't want to carry through airports. If you're not, a lot can happen when you least suspect it, and usually in places like Kingman, Barstow, and San Bernardino.
And as mentioned, there's the matter of doing a proper break-in — probably not best accomplished in one steady burn at 70 mph.
This is the one time you'll want to be seeing your pride and joy on the back of a flatbed.
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This, needs to be cast on bronze....
As @Sacto Mitch intoned, "If you're skilled enough to take care of things yourself, you'll still need a load of spares and tools that you won't want to carry through airports."
Trust me, TSA is usually not thrilled to see a bunch of tools and car parts going through their ever-vigilant scanners.
I had a delightful 45 minute chat with several TSA'ers "in the back room" when they found a pair of VW heater boxes in my checked bag as I was heading from one house to the other. They were NOT pleased that they looked like a pair of sawed-off shotguns on their screens.
They let me go after a long explanation, showing their supervisor (an ex-Army MP lady who turned out to be quite nice) photos of my car at a few shows, looking up heater boxes on the CB Performance website to show them and a promise never to bring stuff like that through TSA again. I think it helped that I was leaning into "Old Guy" age 'cuz they looked at me as I was walking away from the chat room and they were all shaking their heads. At least they were sort-of smiling (and probably glad to be rid of me).
Trust me. Ship your spare parts and tools via UPS to the builder. God only knows what TSA would do if they found a Sawzall or angle grinder or rolling floor jack in your bags. Maybe they would give you SOC access from Jail, if you're lucky.
Mitch's advice is solid, and Ray's is perfect. The only sure way to make sure you won't be one of the many folks who "reluctantly sell" 2 years and 400 miles later is to spend a week in a hotel near your builder taking the car out for increasingly more adventurous spins every day. LA can be lovely, and once you get out of town, California is glorious.
The thing about locking the car though has been bugging me since I read it. If you're afraid to leave the car because you can't lock it (which I understand) - even back home, you'll never drive it. The real joy of these cars (besides going on long trips to places you've never been) is in using them like you would any normal car. I take mine to the home improvement center, to Walmart, to dinner with my wife. In any of these places, the car is just left, wide open for the world to see.
It's disconcerting at first, but unless it's going to be garage-art or a trailer-queen, you're going to leave it unattended. Can bad stuff happen? Yes it can. But if it does - it happened while you were using the car, rather than hiding it away in the garage.
This brings up another point. I assume from your screenname @NeenahSpeedster that you're from Neenah, WI.
I'm from the upper Midwest (Peoria, IL) too. The thing about the weather here is that rain is always a possibility. If you're afraid to leave the car, you'll probably be even more afraid to drive it when it might rain... which is to say, "always".
At the end of the day, it's just a car. The more you treat it like a car, the happier you'll be with it. you might get wet, somebody might touch it while you're getting a burger, but this would be true no matter what you spent your money on.
"A ship is safe in harbor, but that's not what ships are for.” - John A. Shedd
@Stan Galat I hear you 100% it is a car, meant to be enjoyed. I’ve wanted this for me for as long as I can remember and I’ve finally been in a position to own one. I have every intention to drive this as much as possible when the weather does not have snow in the forecast……
To be honest, I have no concerns about taking it out and leaving for the day at work, a store or a restaurant……my concern was more around leaving it overnight in a hotel parking lot in an unfamiliar town. Because I’ve waited and saved as long as I have to achieve this goal, I’m simply trying to set my mind at ease. Maybe someday I’ll be brave enough to venture beyond day trips to Road America or friends homes where overnights feel more secure..that said, anyone in Wisconsin looking for partners in crime…….I’m all in
i genuinely appreciate everyone’s feedback and humor. In the short time I’ve been on this board, it’s nice to find a group with common interests and willing to laugh with me at my mistakes.
Well @NeenahSpeedster that is the attitude to have to drive on of these cars as OCD as we are laughter helps. It helps you laugh after brain Lock leaves you and you just realize you had brain lock
On the few road trips I've taken with my Speedster, staying at a Hotel/motel was less of a concern by just talking with the desk person or shift manager and asking if you could park right out front, under the lights, where they could keep an eye on it for you. They usually readily agree after they've seen the car. If you're worried about rain overnight, take along a car cover and use it. Often I did both: Parked it out front with the cover over it and it was never touched. some of the car covers squish down to a very small bag, like parachute rip-stop fabric. Mostly opaque and takes up little space.
And a big theft deterrent is to simply remove the distributor rotor and take it to your room with you.
@Gordon Nichols - thank you for that…..that seems reasonable for future travel
For ten years I drove from Charleston, SC to Carlisle and back (1500mi round trip) and made 6 or so trips to the mountains. Never once did I have an incident or even any indication of one. Weather is much more likely to be an issue, and it can be dealt with. While your concerns are valid, don’t let them hold you back.
When I park my Speedster overnight at a hotel I too cover it. My cover has a cable that goes under the car with a little lock on the end. Of course, that little lock is not much of a theft deterrent. It does help prevent people from lifting the cover to look at the car. For a theft deterrent, I have a removable battery cutoff switch.
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As folks are suggesting, theft and vandalism are far smaller problems than the logistics of overnight travel in a very compact, open car.
I've been hanging out here for over ten years and can't recall anyone having a car stolen. The old VS shop was hit once about 15 years ago, but that was a pro job in the big, bad city.
The pros generally want little to do with our cars, which are much too conspicuous to drive off in quietly or to resell, and which contain almost nothing a chop shop would be interested in.
We don't do much extensive travel in the Speedy, but we frequently spend a night or two in a motel within about 200 miles of home. We generally park on the street, and sometimes where we can see the car from our room window. It's amazing how much attention the car does draw — people will often stop and take pictures — but it has never been molested. We just use a tonneau cover, which seems to have the magical ability to keep curious teens from doing anything more than looking.
People will sometimes leave notes. I once found one from a guy claiming to be the CEO of a Swiss chemical company on vacation in the Napa Valley and wanting to know if the car was for sale. As I read on, I was rolling my eyes at the bluster of this obvious scammer. Until I got home and looked up the company on the interwebs. The guy was for real — and probably didn't realize the car was a replica.
Traveling in this car can be the best part of it. Wide open, moreso than modern convertibles, you really get to smell the roses touring in new territory. But it's also a great conversation starter if you want to connect with the locals.
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“Some thieves might be thwarted in their attempt to steal a car with a manual transmission, since many thieves possess varying levels of intellect. That very personal element is also a factor in the degree of expertise necessary to overcome some of the more sophisticated security systems.” Frank Scafidi – NICB
https://parksidemotors.ca/manu...errent-fact-or-myth/
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I was living in NYC when I bought my Spyder on the outskirts of Chicago. It was a real bonus that Bremen was about 50-75 miles away. I flew with a bag of tools, picked up the car and made it to Special Editions, drove out to the B&B Carey recommended. Got to the shop next day early, they installed my windshield, built and installed me a tonneau, and adjusted my shifter.
The following morning I headed out early and rolled into my place about 11:00 pm. The only tool I needed was a small screwdriver, to replace the rolled pin in my shift linkage that fell out about 3 miles from home.
But I used to do week-10day MC trips with nothing but a few changes of underwear and a AAA card. I don’t know if I’d be so fool hearty today.
“Adventure is misery recounted at leisure.”
“Traveling in this car can be the best part of it. Wide open, moreso than modern convertibles, you really get to smell the roses touring in new territory.
Oftentimes, those roses smell a lot like engine exhaust……. 🤧
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Gordon, you need to do some touring out here.
All of our roads are covered in rose petals.
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@Gordon Nichols posted:“Traveling in this car can be the best part of it. Wide open, moreso than modern convertibles, you really get to smell the roses touring in new territory.
Oftentimes, those roses smell a lot like engine exhaust……. 🤧
Closest thing to motorcycle touring there is.
@Sacto Mitch posted:.
Gordon, you need to do some touring out here.
All of our roads are covered in rose petals.
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I have "toured" out there.
I spent 3-1/2 HOURS driving from LAX to Long Beach on the 405.
Everyone told me I made pretty good time.
The view from my room was the QE II.
At least, in Boston, I can see "Old Iron Sides" or at least a Swan Boat.
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Gordon, if you saw the QE2 out your window, you weren't in Long Beach. That would have been Dubai, where the QE2 has been docked since 2008. Maybe a glitch in your GPS? I can't speak to the road conditions there.
In Long Beach, you might catch a glimpse of the original Queen Mary, which has been operated as a hotel there for quite some time.
Here in California, Caltrans is tasked with keeping all public roads sweet smelling and covered with rose petals at all times. And the skies are not cloudy all day.
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@NeenahSpeedster is this your car (FB Vintage Motorcars post) , if so do you have an ETA on arrival? I am about 3 hours south of you and do a few road trips to Lake Geneva.
*edit* with pics from FB
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It’s expected to arrive Monday - I don’t Facebook, so I’m not sure if it is on there.
Lake Geneva is a great area, my son had a few lacrosse games there.
Yes….that’s mine! Still doesn’t seem real……
Beautiful car. Congratulations.
@550 Phil Thank you!
@NeenahSpeedster posted:Yes….that’s mine! Still doesn’t seem real……
Christmas comes early!