Hey all....

Just to settle my mind, I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions for minor work to be done to my car before I start out on a 1300 mile drive from Ohio to Texas. I'm leaving in two days so I don't have much time to deal with.

Over the winter, I had some issues with the 25 amp fuse under the hood and that problem has been fixed. In trying to fix the problem, I also installed a new fuel pump and fuel filter. The battery is brand new. The spark plugs are about 2 months old (the old spark plugs were sooty and black, but not oily). The alternator is about 2 months old and so are 3 of the 4 belts (the power steering to A/C compressor belt didn't get changed). In the past few weeks, I've also installed a new oxygen sensor, cleaned the flame trap, cleaned the AIC valve, cleaned the throttle body, and flushed the ATF fluid. After cleaning the flame trap, the AIC valve and the throttle body, the car ran notceable smoother with a little more power. When I flushed the ATF fluid it was brownish red. No noticeable large particles in the fluid.

She does act up once in a while when I start her up. The engine acts like it isn't getting any fuel for a few seconds and then she purrs like normal as if nothing happened. I'm thinking that might be fuel pressure regulator related and I wish I had spent the money and changed it out. But now with 2 days before the move, it's a little late for that. I'm getting the oil changed later today. The car runs smoothly (not like brand new, but like a 20 year old car would). Burns a slight amount of oil, maybe 1 quart every 3000 miles. There are no known electrical problems and I've visually checked the wiring and the fuse panel, everything looks ok. Suspension wise, the rear springs sag a bit, but I haven't had the money to replace them with wagon springs. Cosmetics wise, the car is kind of rough, no rust, but missing some trim pieces, a cracked turn signal lens, and the paint is horrible.

Yesterday, I took a small road trip and she did fine (150 miles round trip). Gas mileage wasn't as great as it should have been, but I guess after 20 years, what would one expect? I estimate the mpg for the 150 mile trip to be in the vicinity of 18-20 mpg. I left home with a half tank, filled up at 1/8 (11.6 gallons to fill) and when I got home, she's got a little more that 3/4 of a tank. In estimation, I used a little over 1/2 tank of gas from the 15.8 gallon capacity fuel tank.

I'm basically asking if there's any small, minor things that I haven't thought of. I'm trying to make sure my 1300 mile drive goes without interruption and without a break down. I plan on stopping every few hundred miles for gas and I'll be keeping an eye on fluid levels and the sort. Wish me luck and any advice would be greatly appreciated......


Matt