Bringing the Elan home
Posted: Tue Jun 30, 2015 4:22 amI started this saga under the old thread, where I found and agreed to buy Paul Quiniff's '65 Elan DHC. It was suggested I move the description of the drive from Illinois to Boise, Idaho, where I live, to a new thread. First, here's yesterday's post, from the old thread:
Today (Monday) we made it out of Iowa and through most of Nebraska. We stopped in Gordon, a small town on U.S. 20 in the northwest corner. No car issues, although we did finally check the accuracy of the speedometer. The speedo (standard Smiths) tends to fluctuate wildly over a 20-mph range, so we decided to check it against the mile markers, trying to keep the middle of the fluctuations on the 60-mph mark. We discovered that yesterday, in trying to stay under 60, we'd actually been under 50 much of the day. This shouldn't have been surprising, since the car is riding on 185/60 series tires, quite a bit smaller in circumference than the 155-13s that were stock in 1965. So we cranked up the speed a bit today, and managed about 600 miles. We have to say that the Nebraska highways we've seen are generally in much better shape than either Illinois' or Iowa's. We're about halfway home, and back in our "home" time zone. We're optimistic.
OK, after assurances from Zog and conversations with Paul, my friend and I (both of us named Walt) flew to Chicago, spent Sunday morning with Paul, and drove away in the car about 12:30, heading for our home in Boise, 1800 miles away. So far we've made it to Toledo, Iowa, just past Cedar Falls. (Ever notice how many towns in Iowa get their names from other well-known sources.) we discovered ow water-resistant an Elan with slide-up windows is when we hit one of the heaviest rainstorms I've experienced--it doesn't rain much in Boise. Suffice it to say that we had moisture-assisted cooling to help us keep cool in the 68 degree temperatures. It looks like we'll make it home Wednesday night, barring any adverse circumstances. So far our only concern is an odd clunk from the right rear whenever the brake pedal is depressed. Our concerns about undertaking this trip have been allayed somewhat by the assistance of Ross Robbins, who not only urged us on, but also provided a list of names of Elan aficionados along our route who might be able to help if trouble strikes. Both of us Walts are previous Elan owners, so we're not unfamiliar with the cars--but we were both 30-50 years younger then. I hope to post more updates as we go. Wish us luck!
Today (Monday) we made it out of Iowa and through most of Nebraska. We stopped in Gordon, a small town on U.S. 20 in the northwest corner. No car issues, although we did finally check the accuracy of the speedometer. The speedo (standard Smiths) tends to fluctuate wildly over a 20-mph range, so we decided to check it against the mile markers, trying to keep the middle of the fluctuations on the 60-mph mark. We discovered that yesterday, in trying to stay under 60, we'd actually been under 50 much of the day. This shouldn't have been surprising, since the car is riding on 185/60 series tires, quite a bit smaller in circumference than the 155-13s that were stock in 1965. So we cranked up the speed a bit today, and managed about 600 miles. We have to say that the Nebraska highways we've seen are generally in much better shape than either Illinois' or Iowa's. We're about halfway home, and back in our "home" time zone. We're optimistic.
I agree with Zog about the tires. Almost any Discount Tire store (Chadron, Douglas, Casper??) will have Kumho Solus 155X13 tires which I have on my car and like just fine. With these tires you will increase your safety margin quite a bit and lower your revs per mile quite a bit. Good Luck fellas 
