It only took 14 hours to drive from Ventura County to Denver in the long-term 2005 Ford GT, and that's pretty good considering it was a daytime run with plenty of traffic in and around Las Vegas. I give partial credit to this black Chrysler 300C with 20-inch wheels. The guy wanted to go fast between Los Angeles and Las Vegas, which made him a perfect blocker as long as I stayed with him.
By the time I crossed into Arizona is was HOT outside, and it remained that way until Vail Pass. The GT's air was on the whole time, keeping the cabin cool and my sinuses dried out and irritated (this is not unique to the GT, all A/C systems will do this to me after about two hours). But the temp gauge never went above halfway.
Gas mileage was right around 20 mpg -- despite my average speed. Two-thousand RPM is good for 90 mph and 2,500 gets you 102, so keeping it at 80 or below has the engine basically idling. I've heard other owners report 25-plus MPG on highway runs, which seems logical now.
I did make one unscheduled stop in the middle of Utah, halfway between Salina and Green River. This is the exact spot where our long-term 2003 Honda Pilot
stranded my family in May of 2003, so it just seemed appropriate to make a (voluntary) stop and shoot a photo of the GT.
cruiserhead1 says:
01:32 PM, 07/17/08
Karl,
on the temp gauge- I have found manufacturers put in quite a large 'dead zone' on the temp gauge. it could be as much as 30F (or more) where the gauge does nothing but stay dead center.
Once I hooked up my Scangauge II, I found a much more accurate real-time temperature read.
I understand this as if it was truly accurate, I think people would freak out but owning a car like the GT, I would want to know exactly where it was at!
looking at that pic, yeah that's damn sexy. which is one "damn" higher than the R8 :)
subytrojan says:
01:38 PM, 07/17/08
Chrysler 300C = fullback
Ford GT = tailback
:o)
ahightower says:
01:41 PM, 07/17/08
We got ourselves a blocker! I used to use them all the time in an old car that didn't have cruise control. But then a friend got pulled over along with the guy he was following. I didn't even know they could pull over two at once. Also been seeing a lot of them working in teams lately.
cruiserhead1 says:
02:02 PM, 07/17/08
if they pace you from behind, you're in trouble too. that's a common way to get pinched
7driver says:
03:31 PM, 07/17/08
You gotta know how to properly use a blocker. The first rule is not to over-use them. A little farther down the list is not to let him make you lazy and lose your situational awareness. Yeah, cops can pull over two at a time and/or work in teams but if you are using the blocker properly it doesn't much diminish his usefulness.
carlisimo says:
03:41 PM, 07/17/08
I have a friend who got caught doing that, on the same route. He and the blocker were both clocked at 110 by an airplane, and they were pulled over by two cars that were dispatched by the plane. So choose your weather wisely.
dougtheeng says:
05:39 AM, 07/18/08
Traveling at 90mph and still being able to take a relatively clear shot of the Arizona border sign? Thats pretty impressive.
sgude says:
05:39 AM, 07/18/08
I have not used a radar detector for almost 10 years now and have not received a ticket in that time. My situational awareness is very high, although I think it contributes to road fatigue a bit. I've used blockers from California to New York and all points in between; it's true that you have to know how to use them.
There are two main points: watch the skies, watch the mirrors, you'll generally be fine. Don't follow too closely either. Stay out of the passing lane as much as possible. And when you're alone, don't go more than seven mph above the limit.
skierx420 says:
01:04 PM, 07/21/08
I like the blocker method but ask the Minnesota Corvette Club about running in a pack of cars over the speed limit. They pulled the entire club over. Before fuel prices got out of hand for truckers (they sped a lot more when fuel was cheap) I had a CB and frequently monitered them. The cops were always more apt to get the trucker than the car. Now that they all go less than the speed limit for fuel savings I never get to use them for that anymore.