Are we there yet? Travel time estimate from Austin, Texas to Bangor, Maine

[Road Sloth]

Hello. If a googlemap drivetime estimate is 36 hours from Austin, Texas to near Bangor, Maine and my skoolie, Road Sloth, has a top speed of 65 mph, and less on the slightest incline, do you think the drivetime estimate for such a skoolie would be twice as long? More? Less? Road Sloth has never driven outside of Texas. Thank you!

[s2mikon]

It depends a lot on how big your fuel tank is and how long you stay in the seat. If 65 MPH is up against the governor I would back it off. The rule of thumb on old tech diesels is 80% of governed speed. You don’t want to break it before you get there. I had one of those 8.2 motors and it was very good on fuel running it right. I think that SWIFT (sure will irritate fast truckers) truck lines figured 48 MPH average and they were governed at the time to 58 MPH. They go faster now. I have driven over the road trucks governed at 62 MPH and trucks governed at 67 MPH and didn’t notice much difference. You will lose more time eating, fueling, going pee and sleeping. Take your time and enjoy the trip.

[cadillackid]

I try to average 50 MPH (with stops) in my red bus (interstate travel) and 40 MPH (with stops) in my DEV bus..



I didnt buy a bus to haul ass across the country.. I bought a bus to enjoy the drive and take my time..



I have easy access to a HellCat RedEye and delta airlines if I want to haul ass across the country

[Sehnsucht]

Google maps estimates figure running posted speed limits and total cumulative driving time without factors like fuel stops, traffic, and sleeping. A truck driver governed by a log book (all e-logs nowadays) would figure that a three day trip, maybe three and a half depending on if his truck is governed below the posted speed limits. If you can bear being in that seat 12+ hours a day you can get further and depending on how much time you need to rest between travel days. Also if you can plan to hit metro areas at night you'll avoid lots of daytime rush hour delays. Nevertheless, s2mikon has the right advice that you're going to want to keep your cruise speed at about the 80% threshold so the engine isn't killing itself for a few more mph plus if this is the first long trip in diverse terrain not knowing how it'll perform. Take your time, enjoy the journey, even if it means building an extra day into your plans.

[FAC]

I just did our first long multi day trip, central california to southern Texas. I figured about 50 miles per hour ended up being my average speed. So I would just ignore the drive time in google maps and estimate my time that way so 200miles would be 4hrs etc

[ewo1]

Originally Posted by Road Sloth

Hello. If a googlemap drivetime estimate is 36 hours from Austin, Texas to near Bangor, Maine and my skoolie, Road Sloth, has a top speed of 65 mph, and less on the slightest incline, do you think the drivetime estimate for such a skoolie would be twice as long? More? Less? Road Sloth has never driven outside of Texas. Thank you!

I would take a sleeping bag with you when you pick up the bus, stop at a hardware store and get a sheet of plywood.
Put plywood up on seats, roll out sleeping bag and enjoy your first skoolie trip.

Take 3-4 days, enjoy some sights...that'll get you nice and motivated to convert that dang thing!

[Sehnsucht]

Right now the plywood might cost more than the bus!!

[Doodlebee]

I can tell you right now if you take the Google Maps route (which puts you on 95 right around the PA/NY border) you might as well add a *crapton* of time to that trip. I'm originally from WV, and I live in CT right now. Google Maps will tell you the "fastest route" is via 95 - it's a big fat lie. (And unless you like sitting in traffic in NYC for 3+ hours, I wouldn't count it as "seeing the sights")

I've never been to Bangor, but I can tell you right now, to save you some grief, *don't take 95*. (I tell my parents this *every time* they come up to visit, and *every time* they ignore me, and *every time* they're 5 hours later than they expect). The route we always take (and I would *highly* recommend, even though GM will tell you it'll an hour or so out of your way AND it's MUCH prettier) is when you hit Scranton, PA, get on 84 (do NOT take 78 - there's a split on 81 where you can continue on 81 to your left, or go straight on 78 through NJ. Avoid that at all costs *. Stay on 81 until Scranton.) Then get on 84. Follow 84 until you hit 90, then 290, then 495 to 95. You will have avoided NYC and Boston traffic by using this route instead.

When you're in Maine, if you want to take a really pretty route (but 2-lane roads - I did my first internship in Maine and lived in Biddeford) when you hit the border, get off 95 and take route 1 instead. It'll take you through small towns and such, but it's a super-pretty drive - especially during leaf-peeping season. It follows parallel to 95, so you can get back on it pretty easily if you want to.

* I recommend not getting on 78 because, for some reason, NJ likes to tell you gas stations are off an exit, and when you take the exit, the gas station is like 10 miles away through residential areas - it's so weird. Also, taking 78 will take you across the Tappan Zee, which is cool, but not cool enough to deal with the traffic. And you end up on 84 anyway, but the "on" ramp from from 684 to 84 is a *doozy* - it looks like a regular on-ramp, but there's this weird sharp turn in the middle of it that will take you by surprise, and when you're revving up to 80mph (which is what everyone drives up here in CT) it's NOT a fun surprise - so may accidents on that on-ramp because of it.

[rossvtaylor]

I can't speak to that route...but I did just make a 2100 mile trip from NC to AZ, getting home yesterday...and it was funny watching the Google map time estimate. It was some kind of Ensteinian relative time thing, because I'd drive an hour and the trip estimate wouldn't change. I was towing a bus with tires rated for 55 mph, so I kept my speed to 45-50 mph. I ended up just taking the trip time estimate and adding 50%.

[o1marc]

Originally Posted by Sehnsucht

Right now the plywood might cost more than the bus!!

$120 a sheet in many areas. OUCH. 2x4s are $8, I'm used to paying less than $2.

[o1marc]

Originally Posted by Doodlebee

I can tell you right now if you take the Google Maps route (which puts you on 95 right around the PA/NY border) you might as well add a *crapton* of time to that trip. I'm originally from WV, and I live in CT right now. Google Maps will tell you the "fastest route" is via 95 - it's a big fat lie. (And unless you like sitting in traffic in NYC for 3+ hours, I wouldn't count it as "seeing the sights")

I've never been to Bangor, but I can tell you right now, to save you some grief, *don't take 95*. (I tell my parents this *every time* they come up to visit, and *every time* they ignore me, and *every time* they're 5 hours later than they expect). The route we always take (and I would *highly* recommend, even though GM will tell you it'll an hour or so out of your way AND it's MUCH prettier) is when you hit Scranton, PA, get on 84 (do NOT take 78 - there's a split on 81 where you can continue on 81 to your left, or go straight on 78 through NJ. Avoid that at all costs *. Stay on 81 until Scranton.) Then get on 84. Follow 84 until you hit 90, then 290, then 495 to 95. You will have avoided NYC and Boston traffic by using this route instead.

When you're in Maine, if you want to take a really pretty route (but 2-lane roads - I did my first internship in Maine and lived in Biddeford) when you hit the border, get off 95 and take route 1 instead. It'll take you through small towns and such, but it's a super-pretty drive - especially during leaf-peeping season. It follows parallel to 95, so you can get back on it pretty easily if you want to.

* I recommend not getting on 78 because, for some reason, NJ likes to tell you gas stations are off an exit, and when you take the exit, the gas station is like 10 miles away through residential areas - it's so weird. Also, taking 78 will take you across the Tappan Zee, which is cool, but not cool enough to deal with the traffic. And you end up on 84 anyway, but the "on" ramp from from 684 to 84 is a *doozy* - it looks like a regular on-ramp, but there's this weird sharp turn in the middle of it that will take you by surprise, and when you're revving up to 80mph (which is what everyone drives up here in CT) it's NOT a fun surprise - so may accidents on that on-ramp because of it.

I make that trip to Ct. once or twice a year. Always north on 81 to Scranton, then 84 east through the short chute of N.Y. into Ct. Longer, but less time and you miss the massive tolls if you go the eastern route.

[Bert06840]

Originally Posted by Road Sloth

Hello. If a googlemap drivetime estimate is 36 hours from Austin, Texas to near Bangor, Maine and my skoolie, Road Sloth, has a top speed of 65 mph, and less on the slightest incline, do you think the drivetime estimate for such a skoolie would be twice as long? More? Less? Road Sloth has never driven outside of Texas. Thank you!

I think a sensible estimate is three times that. Also, you don't want to hammer the thing with a transcontinental marathon after having led a geriatric life in a single school district.

I brought my bus home just the other day. What I did was first drive it for 10 miles. Scan all the codes, check fluid levels, all hoses, brakes, bulbs, tire pressures etc. Nothing over 30MPH.

ALL of them were off: I needed to add oil (like close to 2 gal), coolant, tighten hose clamps, replace a couple of bulbs, top off the batteries, ATF, drain the tanks, and add a ton of air to the tires.

Then, after another couple dozen miles, farther along, the steering started to feel more responsive, and the brakes more supple. More oil, more coolant, more air. An hour later, another check. Now not much was needed. Tires held pressure, ATF and coolant stayed level.

On the following run I dared to test its top speed. It does about 74-75 on the dash, maybe 68 in reality. That's way too fast to sensibly sustain, it does rev at 2350RPM. At next stop, I pulled the fault codes, and the ECM indeed recorded an overspeed. You don't want to do that, it is just a bad idea and you gain nothing.

So yeah, my ISL has an absolute ton of power on tap, it is fast and nimble and takes you to top speed in no time. Would I plan on driving it at 65, which it appears to be able to do seemingly without effort? Hell no.

I drove it around 50 most of the time. For that run, 8.5MPG was the average. Google maps estimated 10h by car, I did it in perhaps 25. And that was the right thing to do. Next time I'd budget 30.

That's active driving time, not including fueling, sleeping, hose-squeezing, and dipstick-gazing.

I made it back in one piece, with a LOT of new insight into my new toy.

[Road Sloth]

Great advice! Thank you! There is a reason I need to get there as quickly as possible.

[oberrw]

A suggestion: If you are using the route shown by Google, stay on I-81N until you get to Scranton, PA; then take I-84E to the Mass Turnpike (I-90) east; I-290E; I-495N to I-95N This way you avoid New Jersey, New York City and environs and all that mess and traffic. The most traffic you'll see will be Scranton, PA and Hartford, CT.

[wushock92]

2,230 miles approx, figuring 50 mph average for the entire trip I would allow 45 hours drive time if you can. The route I chose using GM avoided toll roads (I hate the Mass Turnpike), took me up thru Nashville, Louisville, Cleveland, Columbus, across the middle of NY to Albany and thru VT and NH. Keeps me away from NYC, Hartford and all of Mass.

Good luck and safe travels.

[Oscar1]

Originally Posted by Bert06840

I think a sensible estimate is three times that. Also, you don't want to hammer the thing with a transcontinental marathon after having led a geriatric life in a single school district.

I brought my bus home just the other day. What I did was first drive it for 10 miles. Scan all the codes, check fluid levels, all hoses, brakes, bulbs, tire pressures etc. Nothing over 30MPH.

ALL of them were off: I needed to add oil (like close to 2 gal), coolant, tighten hose clamps, replace a couple of bulbs, top off the batteries, ATF, drain the tanks, and add a ton of air to the tires.

Then, after another couple dozen miles, farther along, the steering started to feel more responsive, and the brakes more supple. More oil, more coolant, more air. An hour later, another check. Now not much was needed. Tires held pressure, ATF and coolant stayed level.

On the following run I dared to test its top speed. It does about 74-75 on the dash, maybe 68 in reality. That's way too fast to sensibly sustain, it does rev at 2350RPM. At next stop, I pulled the fault codes, and the ECM indeed recorded an overspeed. You don't want to do that, it is just a bad idea and you gain nothing.

So yeah, my ISL has an absolute ton of power on tap, it is fast and nimble and takes you to top speed in no time. Would I plan on driving it at 65, which it appears to be able to do seemingly without effort? Hell no.

I drove it around 50 most of the time. For that run, 8.5MPG was the average. Google maps estimated 10h by car, I did it in perhaps 25. And that was the right thing to do. Next time I'd budget 30.

That's active driving time, not including fueling, sleeping, hose-squeezing, and dipstick-gazing.

I made it back in one piece, with a LOT of new insight into my new toy.

Hey Bert
Thanks for the detailed breakdown on your home run. I like the way you think, it’s all new so take it easy and keep track of things.
Cheers

Oscar