Hey all, I'm going on a little road trip with my Is250 and this is my first time taking this car.

I have a stock '09 Is250 6spd with 1900kms (1180miles). Not quite broken in yet..

Just wondering if there is anything I should or can do to prep my car before going?

 

Best way is to get a clear bra and on top of that a colgan bra(the black one). That will give you maximum damage coverage.

If you want to stay on the cheap side, you can use a lot of painters tape. From my experience, it'll block out some small rock chips, but the bigger ones still dent through.

 

I recently took my car to Vegas. I just washed and waxed the car prior to help the clearcoat. Your oil should still be good, and tires as well. Just be safe driving out there and don't drive if you start getting tired.

 

Get a clear bra for your bumper, mirrors, and the front part of your hood. Good luck!

 

here's some prep items you'll need: candy, candy bars, chips, water (lots of water) shell credit card for 5% cash back on shell gas, shades (sun glasses) and a digital camera.

Now you're set!

Have fun dude

 

Is that why you have liter sized jugs of poland springs with you ALL the time? lol

 

I've seen a lot of pics with people using painter's tape and worked out well.
I'll probably do the same and cover the front end with the tape and just take it off after the drive. It shouldn't be too bad though because it's only about a 5 hour drive.


haha I already have that in mind and I'm gonna stock up at the gas station before leaving
I'm leaving tomorrow morning.

 

Painter's tape looks like ***, skip. Whether you drive 1000 miles in one trip or 1000 freeway miles over the course of three months, the same amount of chipping can happen. Either get a clear covering now for the life of your car or don't worry about it.
As far as other preparations, there isn't anything. Just have some water, snacks, a freshly charged phone battery, and a blast!

 

I know the painter's tape will make my car look like s*** but it's only for the drive so not a big deal to me. I'll just take it off when I get to my destination.

I decided not to get the clear bra because I mainly do city driving where I live and it's not a very big city.. the clear bra costs about 400-600$ to cover up the front end so i decided to put the money into something else for my car like tint and maybe a rear roof spoiler

 

Here are a couple pics of how it looked... I didn't end up taping the whole front end

 

(1) the tape looks like a$$, and likely not provide ANY protection (well maybe against sand),
(2) attract undue attention.

The Colgan is the way to go for temporary use.

 

check tires. and while driving keep filling up the seat with air, on off. this will help your back in the long run

 

Top tier radar detector is important for that trip too.

 

If you have aftermarket wheels make sure you have lug nuts for the spare tire. Many of the aftermarket rims likes Volks, Works, etc have different type lug nuts that should not be used with your spare tire. You don't want get a flat and then put on the wrong lugs and take a chance at having the spare come loose while your are driving.

I like to have a small cooler on the passenger side floor board so I can have something cold without having to stop. If you are going to stay on the phone talking to everyone while you are driving you may want to get a plug in phone charger. Sometimes when you drive and your phone roams allot it drains the battery.

Last but not least I carry a H&K compact .40 handgun with two fully loaded clips in case I have a major issue in the middle of nowhere. I'd rather be safe than sorry. Check your local laws before you get yourself in hot water with law enforcement.

 

it might be easier to leave that elsewhere.