Who really needs AWD? My 1200 mile trip home.
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Joined: Jul 2014
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Likes: 584
From: San Francisco
what a road trip! glad you made it back safely. I also did a road trip to pick up my car but driving back from Las Vegas to SF was pretty unadventurous compare to this, needless to say. great color too.
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Senior Member
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From: Las Vegas
Thanks! I hope to meet up with the Bay Area club sometime too.
Senior Member
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 531
Likes: 178
From: California
Thanks for sharing your trip. What a way to break in the new car. Just spent a week at Lake Tahoe without my F-Type. All I could think about was what it would be like if I wasn’t in the comfort and security of an all-wheel drive vehicle, now I know. I think I will only take my car there in the summer months though with the top down.
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Joined: Feb 2011
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From: on-the-edge
Tires, experience or both.
I once ferried a Firebird 455 on Firestone F-60x15 belted summer tires from Washington, DC
to Burlington VT in the worst blizzard for several years. They ended up shutting down
entire cities. By Boston, nothing was on the roads except plows and the Firebird.
Found a single Kentucky Fried Chicken that was just closing for the only food of
the day.
No worries at 70 mph except getting around the snowplows. Otherwise, clear
sailing.
Momentum is very important. The only thing that nearly stopped me was Greyhound
bus slogging up hill on a side street near a bus terminal getting slower by the second.
If I had not gotten around him and carried the momentum, I would have had to back
down the hill and try another route.
Around here, both windshield shots are 60 mph roads on 255 winters. The insane ones
are doing 75+ on the way to the ditch up the road.
I once ferried a Firebird 455 on Firestone F-60x15 belted summer tires from Washington, DC
to Burlington VT in the worst blizzard for several years. They ended up shutting down
entire cities. By Boston, nothing was on the roads except plows and the Firebird.
Found a single Kentucky Fried Chicken that was just closing for the only food of
the day.
No worries at 70 mph except getting around the snowplows. Otherwise, clear
sailing.
Momentum is very important. The only thing that nearly stopped me was Greyhound
bus slogging up hill on a side street near a bus terminal getting slower by the second.
If I had not gotten around him and carried the momentum, I would have had to back
down the hill and try another route.
Around here, both windshield shots are 60 mph roads on 255 winters. The insane ones
are doing 75+ on the way to the ditch up the road.
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Joined: Jun 2014
Posts: 1,498
Likes: 179
From: Herefordshire, England
Ok, so the title is a bit sarcastic as I just had one hell of a journey home in my new F-Type Coupe R. Long story ahead.
Last wednesday I picked up my beautiful Italian Racing Red and blacked out R with alcantara interior in Denver. Absolutely stunning in person. Couldn't be happier with the configuration.
I put on roughly 200 miles just around town as I visited with family planning my adventure home over the weekend. Colorado weather was great during the week but a storm was brewing on the west coast. My plan was to get to the Grand Canyon by Saturday night, then home in LA on Sunday after 1200 miles.
I paid close attention to the weather reports, radar, and satellite feeds. I had a narrow window to get through the mountain pass. The rest of the journey looked to be 50/50 on weather they would get snow but all forecasts pointed to evening time.
I took off in the morning, skies were clear, car gassed up. I weaved my way through the Rockies on some pretty nice roads. Finally I got to really test out what this car could do. My TT-RS was no slouch and has similar performance figures as the R, but this just felt faster. Especially when doing pulls from 60-70+. I made great time.
By 1:30 I had reached the mountain pass. Climbing up to 10,800 feet, the east side was clear. About a 1/4 mile from the top I hit the snow line. For the first time I felt the back kick out on my twice. I was keeping steady throttle, snow/rain driving mode flicked on. I got to the snow covered top without incident and passed by the Sheriff who I'm sure was thinking "what the hell is this bright red sports car doing up here?"
7% grade for next 10 miles. That is what I saw, along with snow and ice covered road, thick fog, and a steep drop off. Now I was nervous. I couldn't go back, I couldn't stop, I just had to keep pressing on. I crawled at a steady 18mph (natural idle speed going down hill) and flipped on my hazard lights.
I managed to snap a quick photo going down during a straight section.
After 45 minutes, I was finally down. No slipping, no drama. I kept my foot off the gas and off the brakes. The snow finally cleared and I could see sunny skies ahead. There was even a nice rainbow that I could see from my side mirrors.
Rain did show up, but I made it to Durango. Time for lunch. While sitting there the rain turned into a downpour. Then the downpour turned into a giant snowflakes. Crap! Time to book it. I checked the weather radar and noticed my westward route had a giant storm cell over it. Heavy snow. South looked more promising but I wasn't sure what the road was going to be like or at what elevation. I rolled the dice and went South.
Enter a full on blizzard. Snow was falling faster and faster. The roads were completely covered but there were at least tire tracks I could stay in. At times it was a complete white out. I couldn't see more than 50 feet in front of me. Eventually the snowing stopped but the damage had been done.
I managed a photo once things started clearing up and it was mostly slush.
There was 60 miles of this, but I made it down and again what looked to be clear skies in the direction I needed to go. I powered through the rain and eventually hit open skies. I could see the sun setting now.
Enter blackness. I was pretty behind on my schedule but the roads were dry and I was able to keep a steady pace. The worst was behind me. I shouldn't have said that. Out of nowhere another storm hit. This time the snow was sticking immediately. For a bit it was near whiteout conditions. I lost track of the tail lights that were in front of me. No lights were even behind me. By now I was pretty used to this. Just keep a steady foot, no braking, no sudden movements.
I'm through! I'm not less than 100 miles from the Grand Canyon. I'm a bit late but the roads were open and clear. Time to make up some time. I make the turn towards the South Rim. For the rest of the trip I do not see a single car in either direction. No phone signal. I'm alone.
I make it into the park, the road changes to the narrow 'park' style roads. I can hear the gravel they put on the roads for snow. About half way into the park there is a physical line from clear driving to winter apocalypse. At least 3" of fresh fallen snow covering the road, high winds blowing snow left and right. I could barely see anything ahead of me. I'm 15 miles from my destination. I laid down some fresh 295w tracks down the center of the road. I even had to rely on my navigation to show me where the turns were. This road trip saved the best for last. I crawled along, using what worked before. Only now I had a new challenge, going up hill. I watched my speedometer like a hawk. 20mph, 18mph, 15mph, 10mph. I could feel the tires slipping as it tried to keep pace going up the hills. Every time I got to the top I sighed of relief, only to have another one come up. It took an hour to get through. No cars ever came by. I looked at what I drove through on the map, just a Grand Canyon sized hole on my right hand side. It wasn't like I could have slid off and over that.
Made it to the hotel, car covered in dirt and salt. What shouldn't have been able to be done was done. 550hp/RWD, summer tires, through 4 blizzards and a mountain pass. Thanks Jaguar for building one hell of a car.
I couldn't even get any glamour shots that I had hoped on this trip. It was all about the task at hand and to not be the guy that crashed his $100k Jag into the Grand Canyon.
Day 2 was much better.
Last wednesday I picked up my beautiful Italian Racing Red and blacked out R with alcantara interior in Denver. Absolutely stunning in person. Couldn't be happier with the configuration.
I put on roughly 200 miles just around town as I visited with family planning my adventure home over the weekend. Colorado weather was great during the week but a storm was brewing on the west coast. My plan was to get to the Grand Canyon by Saturday night, then home in LA on Sunday after 1200 miles.
I paid close attention to the weather reports, radar, and satellite feeds. I had a narrow window to get through the mountain pass. The rest of the journey looked to be 50/50 on weather they would get snow but all forecasts pointed to evening time.
I took off in the morning, skies were clear, car gassed up. I weaved my way through the Rockies on some pretty nice roads. Finally I got to really test out what this car could do. My TT-RS was no slouch and has similar performance figures as the R, but this just felt faster. Especially when doing pulls from 60-70+. I made great time.
By 1:30 I had reached the mountain pass. Climbing up to 10,800 feet, the east side was clear. About a 1/4 mile from the top I hit the snow line. For the first time I felt the back kick out on my twice. I was keeping steady throttle, snow/rain driving mode flicked on. I got to the snow covered top without incident and passed by the Sheriff who I'm sure was thinking "what the hell is this bright red sports car doing up here?"
7% grade for next 10 miles. That is what I saw, along with snow and ice covered road, thick fog, and a steep drop off. Now I was nervous. I couldn't go back, I couldn't stop, I just had to keep pressing on. I crawled at a steady 18mph (natural idle speed going down hill) and flipped on my hazard lights.
I managed to snap a quick photo going down during a straight section.
After 45 minutes, I was finally down. No slipping, no drama. I kept my foot off the gas and off the brakes. The snow finally cleared and I could see sunny skies ahead. There was even a nice rainbow that I could see from my side mirrors.
Rain did show up, but I made it to Durango. Time for lunch. While sitting there the rain turned into a downpour. Then the downpour turned into a giant snowflakes. Crap! Time to book it. I checked the weather radar and noticed my westward route had a giant storm cell over it. Heavy snow. South looked more promising but I wasn't sure what the road was going to be like or at what elevation. I rolled the dice and went South.
Enter a full on blizzard. Snow was falling faster and faster. The roads were completely covered but there were at least tire tracks I could stay in. At times it was a complete white out. I couldn't see more than 50 feet in front of me. Eventually the snowing stopped but the damage had been done.
I managed a photo once things started clearing up and it was mostly slush.
There was 60 miles of this, but I made it down and again what looked to be clear skies in the direction I needed to go. I powered through the rain and eventually hit open skies. I could see the sun setting now.
Enter blackness. I was pretty behind on my schedule but the roads were dry and I was able to keep a steady pace. The worst was behind me. I shouldn't have said that. Out of nowhere another storm hit. This time the snow was sticking immediately. For a bit it was near whiteout conditions. I lost track of the tail lights that were in front of me. No lights were even behind me. By now I was pretty used to this. Just keep a steady foot, no braking, no sudden movements.
I'm through! I'm not less than 100 miles from the Grand Canyon. I'm a bit late but the roads were open and clear. Time to make up some time. I make the turn towards the South Rim. For the rest of the trip I do not see a single car in either direction. No phone signal. I'm alone.
I make it into the park, the road changes to the narrow 'park' style roads. I can hear the gravel they put on the roads for snow. About half way into the park there is a physical line from clear driving to winter apocalypse. At least 3" of fresh fallen snow covering the road, high winds blowing snow left and right. I could barely see anything ahead of me. I'm 15 miles from my destination. I laid down some fresh 295w tracks down the center of the road. I even had to rely on my navigation to show me where the turns were. This road trip saved the best for last. I crawled along, using what worked before. Only now I had a new challenge, going up hill. I watched my speedometer like a hawk. 20mph, 18mph, 15mph, 10mph. I could feel the tires slipping as it tried to keep pace going up the hills. Every time I got to the top I sighed of relief, only to have another one come up. It took an hour to get through. No cars ever came by. I looked at what I drove through on the map, just a Grand Canyon sized hole on my right hand side. It wasn't like I could have slid off and over that.
Made it to the hotel, car covered in dirt and salt. What shouldn't have been able to be done was done. 550hp/RWD, summer tires, through 4 blizzards and a mountain pass. Thanks Jaguar for building one hell of a car.
I couldn't even get any glamour shots that I had hoped on this trip. It was all about the task at hand and to not be the guy that crashed his $100k Jag into the Grand Canyon.
Day 2 was much better.
No longer a trailer queen. Now you can drive it the way it was meant to be driven.
Last edited by Unhingd; Dec 27, 2014 at 04:32 AM. Reason: spelling
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Senior Member
Joined: Jan 2014
Posts: 969
Likes: 270
From: Las Vegas
I did a hand wash and wax this weekend and did find some road rash on the back quarter panels and one or two rock chips. All in places were I don't have a clear bra installed. 
Luckily it isn't very noticeable.
Veteran Member
Joined: Oct 2014
Posts: 3,468
Likes: 1,800
From: Northeast
Separately, didn't you find hand-washing it a sensual (and rewarding) experience? No, I'm not kidding (or providing a set-up for a punch-line). I've done several quick detailings after driving mine and I have truly enjoyed touching each and every curve. Your opinions may vary.
Last edited by RickyJay52; Dec 27, 2014 at 07:27 AM.
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Senior Member
Joined: Jan 2014
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From: Las Vegas
Bravo!
Separately, didn't you find hand-washing it a sensual (and rewarding) experience? No, I'm not kidding (or providing a set-up for a punch-line). I've done several quick detailings after driving mine and I have truly enjoyed touching each and every curve. Your opinions may vary.
Separately, didn't you find hand-washing it a sensual (and rewarding) experience? No, I'm not kidding (or providing a set-up for a punch-line). I've done several quick detailings after driving mine and I have truly enjoyed touching each and every curve. Your opinions may vary.
Junior Member
Joined: Dec 2014
Posts: 25
Likes: 3
From: Deep south
Reading that story was like reading a good book...not only do you write well but i found my heart racing and all sorts of visual images were coming into my mind...i found myself wanting more of this story! Happy you and your stunning car made it home in one piece. Wow...those were some excellent driving skills.
Senior Member
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 449
Likes: 105
From: Florida USA
I thought about your road trip when I saw this video. Does the slipping and sliding bring back memories? No need for AWD although he may have winter tires.
Who Needs an SUV? Formula Race Car Tackles the Snow-Covered Nürburgring ? News ? Car and Driver | Car and Driver Blog
Who Needs an SUV? Formula Race Car Tackles the Snow-Covered Nürburgring ? News ? Car and Driver | Car and Driver Blog
Last edited by Lovemonet; Jan 5, 2015 at 10:37 PM. Reason: Error
Senior Member
Joined: Feb 2014
Posts: 419
Likes: 62
From: north of Houston
I enjoy reading reviews like this one...while I know the AWD in an X-Type is in no way comparable, I always like the joy of seeing people with the look of amazement as a Jag is being at least as road-competent as the traditional winter beater SUV's 
I do
Years ago I made the same drive in a Ford Capri. I left in the late afternoon and drove overnight. A heavy storm hit and I could no longer see road signs or even the side of the road. For the worst part I found a snow plow and followed it but I thought I was dead a number of times (hell it didn't even have posi).
I have a house in Bend now and drive up and back this time of year but I drive the FX35 with Yokohama Ice tires (no studs but damn are they good) and I pass lots of folks in ditches or off the road with lots of EMTs and police cars. You got lucky but one year on black ice I was sideways on a road with two other cars all of us doing around 15 miles an hour on summer tires (it was kind of like dancing in that we were all sideways at the same time).
We'd all tried to brake for a side street and none of us had seen the ice (I was the last of the three and it was kind of surreal (fortunately we all stayed on the road and all pretty much stopped without hitting each other but there was no driving, we were all ballistic-the wheel did zip).
One of our contractors in Bend (he lives there) flipped his truck 3 miles from his home last month and then watched a BMW drive right off the road in the same place also driving slow (both had snow tires and he was in a huge 4x4 truck which is now totaled and he ended up in the hospital with collapsed disks in his back). So you were lucky my friend.
Summer tires even with 4 wheel drive are very dangerous, a rear wheel drive car with summer tires... Anyway glad you made it safe, I would highly recommend no one else tries this unless you have a death wish.
On our last trip we did teach our smaller dog to be a snowplow though.
I have a house in Bend now and drive up and back this time of year but I drive the FX35 with Yokohama Ice tires (no studs but damn are they good) and I pass lots of folks in ditches or off the road with lots of EMTs and police cars. You got lucky but one year on black ice I was sideways on a road with two other cars all of us doing around 15 miles an hour on summer tires (it was kind of like dancing in that we were all sideways at the same time).
We'd all tried to brake for a side street and none of us had seen the ice (I was the last of the three and it was kind of surreal (fortunately we all stayed on the road and all pretty much stopped without hitting each other but there was no driving, we were all ballistic-the wheel did zip).
One of our contractors in Bend (he lives there) flipped his truck 3 miles from his home last month and then watched a BMW drive right off the road in the same place also driving slow (both had snow tires and he was in a huge 4x4 truck which is now totaled and he ended up in the hospital with collapsed disks in his back). So you were lucky my friend.
Summer tires even with 4 wheel drive are very dangerous, a rear wheel drive car with summer tires... Anyway glad you made it safe, I would highly recommend no one else tries this unless you have a death wish.
On our last trip we did teach our smaller dog to be a snowplow though.
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