A friend and I may be embarking on a Route 66 adventure this summer. The plan is to buy a sub-challenge priced car in Chicago, drive it to LA, sell it there, and buy something in LA that would be hard to come by elsewhere (old japanese stuff, prerunner, etc.) to drive back.
What car do we want? My thoughts are that the only way to go is old and American, but all suggestions are welcome.
The cheapest properly working one?
Fixing it before we leave is on the table. Reliability is good, too much reliability is boring 
Sounds like a great trip. In the interest of reliability, I'd go with a Japanese ride each way. Buy a rust-bucket back east then a non-rusted one to come back with.
A 240Z has always been a great mile after mile car to drive. Lots of room for people and stuff, comfortable seats, reliable, & fun.
Make certain that it can pass the inspections required by the man in California, otherwise it is scrap.
In reply to pilotbraden:
That had slipped both our minds... maybe we want to go even cheaper for vehicle #1.
Find a decent '63-'64 Impala.
Pre-74 gets you out of the emission, IIRC.
corolla?
Panther
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ wrote: Such style Such comfort
Style will get you there with a few less gas stops than comfort.
You won't find anything near "turn key" sub challenge priced in Chicago that's out of the ordinary or in demand in California. So whatever you want pre 74 really.
Aren't air cooled VWs always in demand in California? Find a Bus and sleep in it along the way.
Check here:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/ and do a custom search for your area rather than wade through everything.
Buy that giant Caddy ASAP!
You can't cruise the Mother Road in a Japanese car. It needs to be big and powered by 8 cylinders. Cadillac is perfect.
In reply to Keith Tanner: I've made the So. Cal. to Ky. trip & back several times when there were almost no freeways in the middle of the country. I've taken a '66 Catalina 2+2 tri-power, '66 Tempest Sprint, '69 RoadRunner 440 6Pk., & a '71 240Z. I loved that Z-Car so much I never used anything else for several years afterwards.
I haven't tried it in a Cadillac but I'm guessing that Catalina was close enough to understand what you mean. Even today for an older long distance ride, I'd still prefer an early Z-Car. Or maybe if I wanted to go all luxury, I'd try a Datsun 810 or a BMW Bavaria.
You need this:
1967 austin princess
The 500 cube caddy. Gas prices have fallen, you can do it!
Whats your price point? When is the date?
Ive got a '60 flat top Caddy that would be perfect, but i would need a little time to put it together.
AWD is harder to come by in LA, so maybe a Subaru of some sort?
Farm trucks are popular, maybe a big old F100 or something with an Iowa farm logo on the side?
My advice is buy something so big and cheap that the scrap value will allow you to break even. Then Sawzall the top off. Some of my best memories have been in cars that I knew were scrap heap bound. It puts you in a very different mindset. Bonus points for hot gluing momentos to the car.
SVreX wrote: Whats your price point? When is the date?
2nd this.
In reply to SVreX:
While a flat top 1960 Cadillac would be an excellent choice, I have feeling there aren't any for under $2015 that will make a cross country trip.
Such comfort FTW! I mean look at that trunk:
The hookers won't know what to do with themselves (once they regain consciousness)!
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