Hey guys, well, being a senior in highschool, it's time for me to hunt around for colleges and recently I fell in love with the state of Florida, so I'm looking for a school down there. Currently I live in Connecticut. My car is a 1991 Trans Am convertible which will be undergoing a minor resto this winter. By now you probably are getting the hint that I want to take that car down there lol. Since I'll be tearing into the car this winter (but no ground-up/down-to-the-frame restoration here), I figured that I'd pay close attention to things that might fail on a 1000 mile car ride.

Apart from the usual, (fluid levels/changes, spark plugs, serpentine belt) what can fail and leave me stranded? What extra parts/supplies should be kept in the trunk? I'm still not 100% sure if I'll be even going down there, and if I will be, that will probably be around in august-september.

And did anybody else take their thirdgen for a long trip? I wanna hear your stories and advice!!

Oh and some info about the car, it has almost 99,000 miles. I bought it in august and the PO told me that the transmission was rebuilt not too long ago and I believe him... the shifts, even with the foot on the floor, are as smooth as butter. 700r4 transmission with the 305 TPI engine. The engine seems to run well; all 8 injectors were replaced about 700 miles ago. After getting the injectors fixed, the car runs like a charm with no problems... for now. *knock on wood*

 

here are some pictures of my car as a reference
Apparently winter driven due to the surface rust but nothing seems rotted underneath there

 

Make sure you don't have any coolant leaks and that your cooling system holds pressure.

 

Agree with the top comment. Replace the thermostat and hoses if you have not yet or don't recall when it was done just for precaution. But flush the system prior to doing so.

 

You might want to carry a spare ignition module and tools to replace it( 5.5mm socket with about a 3-4 inch extension and whatever size torx the plate over the dist. is held on by). Dont speed, speeding tickets in different states aren't fun and I think you got it covered. Whoops forgot to mention an air pump and tire plug kit.

 

Carry basic tools, extra chunks of wire, electrical tape and the Haynes book. Oh, and add a tire plugging kit, a $15 walmart 12v compressor, fresh batteries in a good flashlight, extra fuses, and a small set of the reflective fold-up cones. I always tuck an extra quart of oil under the hood somewhere, and wouldn't hurt to keep an old antifreeze jug to carry water in.

I have a soft-side cooler I carry travel tools in - it holds what I need, and the plastic liner is capable of catching or carrying fluids if I need. And the webbing straps for carrying will hold a ton of weight - mine weighs in at about 50 pounds of tools. I went to Harbor Freight and spent about $50 on el-cheapo tools - but for that I got enough tools to do everything - I could rebuild my car on the side of the road except I'd have to guess at torquing the head bolts

I drive from NC to the GM Nationals in Carlisle PA every year (400 miles one way), and I always carry extra tools, and I've made use of them. One year had the fuel pump relay go out on me, so I straight wired the fuel pump at the Oil Pressure Sending Unit - was great to have a few pieces of wire, electrical tape, and a pocketknife (alot of folks think about tools, but many forget wiring/electrical).

 

All this may seem a bit overwhelming and unerving to get you thinking about what may go wrong. But take it from us, it's better to be prepared in case there isn't anyone to bail you out. Btw, third gen cars are pretty easy to work on so you'll be fine. Just enjoy your drive.

 

Almost four years ago I drove my '91 from Houston to NYC & back about two months after I bought it. It had been sitting for a quite some time before it was sold to me. I think the only thing I did to it was an oil change & four new tires after one tread decided to separate on the freeway.

As long as there aren't any signs of a problem now I wouldn't be too worried about it. What has been said already sounds pretty good (and is close to what I keep in my car all the time anyway.) Some tools, tire plugs, some fluids and an ignition module would be a good one too. I have had mine quit randomly.

How fresh is your battery? Those usually don't just go out randomly without warning but it can happen. Oh & those steering parts look pretty nasty from that Northern rust.. So I'd go ahead & thoroughly inspect those too.

Oh & get a good radar detector. Speed limits suck.