Post-Trip Outing
It was good to be home! Next, it was time to prepare for a “Jamborees on the Air” (JOTA) event in Louisa, VA. JOTA is a worldwide event where amateur radio operators showcase and share ham radio with scouts of all sorts.

Some scouts were already licensed — those who weren’t were still allowed on the air with licensed supervision. The goal was to allow scouts to talk directly with other scouts wherever they may be. Europe was active in the morning and the western states were on the air later in the day.

A fellow ham radio enthusiast invited me to display the car at their site. I was happy to attend and show the car under one condition: NO ANTENNA TOWER! Mounting the tower for an 8-hour day was not on my list of desires, especially after having been on the road for 7000+ miles! Mounting my loop module instead was much faster and easier.

The organizers were happy to have me there with my compact loop setup. There was a tiny hiccup, though: MORE RAIN! I don’t mind rain on a clean car. However, the JOTA site sat two miles down a dirt road, which meant that it was a mud road! Perhaps the mud-splashed sides gave the car some authenticity at a camping event. 😀

It was a good day overall, but I found myself surprisingly exhausted during my drive home. I think my long-distance “day trip” outings are a thing of my past — I’m getting too old for that! 😉 Overnights at a local hotel followed by an easy drive home is more my speed in the future. 🙂

Post-Trip Analysis
With that event recap out of the way, here are the final statistics from the cross-country Oregon trip. The numbers might look rough at first glance, but keep in mind that the car was fully loaded and pulling a trailer right near its maximum unbraked towing capacity. Additionally, highway travel speeds out west run higher than in my usual travel area along the Mid-Atlantic.

• Total Distance: 7,146 miles (11,501 km)
• Fuel Consumed: 320 gallons (1,211 L) of 93/91 AKI premium unleaded
• Average Fuel Economy: 22.3 mpg (10.55 L/100km)
• Lowest Tank Average: 18.5 mpg (12.7 L/100km) across three tanks, driven down by high western speed limits and rain.
• Highest Tank Average: 25.5 mpg (9.2 L/100km) in CA, where the 55 mph (88 km/h) trailer speed limit is strictly enforced.

Fuel efficiency hovered near the 22 mpg overall average for most of the journey.

Fuel costs varied wildly from state to state. California very predictably had the most expensive fuel at $7.25/gallon. Surprisingly, Nebraska had the least expensive fuel at $4.70, probably due to an abundance of ethanol blends. The average price of fuel along the entire trip was $5.51 for a total cost of $1755.66.

Hotel and meal expenses added up during the 16-day trip. However, I’m not sharing those details because they have nothing to do with the car. 😉 Unfortunately, there is one expense that surfaced which may or may not have been caused by the trip.

Performance & Trouble
Before I share that, I’ll report that the car performed almost flawlessly. The power and ride quality were good. My only gripe is that the exhaust note was a bit loud, especially once we were loaded in Oregon and had more of a parachute behind the car.

Climbing mountain passes reminded me why I almost returned to a factory IS20 turbo and front-end exhaust components in September when I replaced the turbo. The drive certainly would have been quieter if I had done that! But would the car still be as fun?

What was the unexpected expense? I developed a minor transmission issue along the return trip. It started with the occasional feeling that the shifting was a bit “notchy.” Then I had an issue getting the car into reverse while backing the trailer into a parking spot.

Blocking a thoroughfare with a trailer in tow is not a great time to lose 1st and reverse gears. Thankfully, it was a temporary problem that surfaced only a few more times along the drive home. Was it a clutch issue? Perhaps the shifter linkage?

Unfortunately, the problem may be more significant than I realized at the time. I’ll share more details in a follow-up post, most likely in my forthcoming 10-Year Anniversary post.

Cloudy Skies Ahead,

Scott