I decided to take the Rambler out for a long drive today. Furthest I've driven it since I got it! I decided to head out to Red Top Mountain State Park and hike the visitor's loop with one of the three beagles. Nicholas (our official camping beagle) got picked for hiking duty. I was happy my oldest son decided to stay home and play Scrabble, just in case the car broke down. Well, I don't think well enough of that Rambler! We made it out local roads just fine. Headed up Route 41 at a good steady 50, front driver's side windows wide open, front passenger side window partially open. Vents wide open. Back windows closed. Nicholas hopped in front. He tried balancing paws on the armrest and sticking his head out the window. Had a good dog time driving up 41. Then he noticed the wind coming in the vent window, and stuck his nose in there. We drove along Route 41 with beagle nose sticking out the vent window. He had a great time. The car did perfectly well going up and down the small hills making it to Red Top. We took the entrance road to the park, and did well on all the curves and hills, shifting between second and third. Parked at the visitor's center and hiked the short loop. Then took an alternate route back home, doing smaller side roads and connecting roads. The car handled very well on the side roads. Good speed. Good power going up and down hills. Good brakes. I opened the rear windows half-way, and Nicholas made the return trip alternating between windows, head stuck out, ears flapping in the breeze. Checked the oil. It was fine. Checked the coolant. Looked perfect. Car did not get hot, hardly even got warm. I bet we'd have no problem at all making it to the park with the popup behind us. So - time to get that hitch on and hook up a 4 prong connecter and paint that camper! I'm not sure why, but the transmission wants to grind going into first, even when I'm at a complete stop. Just got the clutch replaced. I'll have to make sure the transmission fluid is topped off. Other than that - I think it's ready for even further distances. It certainly did well today. _______________________________________________ AMC-list mailing list AMC-list@xxxxxxxxxxxx http://list.amc-list.com/listinfo.cgi/amc-list-amc-list.com