Cross-country trips are easy on the car. Things can fail, but I'd say they're more likely to fail in local, stop-and-go, driving.

If you have driven the car for some distance after all the fixes (say a thousand miles) and everything is fine, no warning lights, no runny noises, I'd say you're fine. But if there's something you've been worrying about, or been told by a shop that you should consider fixing, it's a good idea to do that before you leave.

Things I would double-check before leaving:

1. Wiper blades. They should work perfectly without skipping or streaking. You will need them working properly for this trip. Plus washer reservoir should be full, spare jug with you, and spray pattern needs to be properly set up. (I would also carefully clean the inside of all the windows before leaving with something like Windex.)
2. All tires hold pressure. NO leaks, no matter how slow. Check the spare tire pressure too. Make sure the lug bolts are torqued to spec, NOT airgunned on by a shop that promises "we use torque sticks ha ha ha". Properly torqued lug bolts can be removed with the tools in the car (you have the tools, right?). Improperly torqued, you need to call a service truck.
3. You do have winter tires on, right? Considering it's winter, I would be leery of doing this on all-seasons, unless you take a very southerly route.
4. No fluid leaks. If something does leak or the level drops, you want to be sure that it doesn't start dropping really quickly when you're in the middle of the Nevada desert.
5. Headlights need to be properly adjusted. If halogen, I'd grab a spare set of bulbs. You don't want to be driving on one headlight in unfamiliar territory after dark.
6. Stereo works properly. You'll probably be listening a lot.

Good luch. Road trips are a lot of fun. I've done long trips with crappy vehicles and I'm still here. :cheesy: Especially in a convoy with other cars, it's going to be fine.


By the way, I typically don't carry a lot of tools/spares with me. Sure, a socket/wrench set and a toolbox with screwdrivers and pliers and stuff. Hopefully I never have to pull it out. The point is, if everything is running fine and you know the car, nothing minor should go wrong. If something major happens, well you don't want to be doing, say, an oil pan drop or fuel pump change by the side of the highway anyway. (Although, if it isn't too cold, a roadside fuel pump change isn't infeasible on a 9-5.)

 

It's funny fuel pump is one of the last things I'm doing before I leave. That and fuel filter. Sadly snow tires I do not have. This road trip is a moving thing for me so I will have alot of tools and such with me and radio works great with video screen and subs as well. (I'm a music buff and bass head) that's what alot of people told me is highway is alot less stress on a car. And so far no leaks. Coolant dropped a little but is steady now. I'm guessing it was air bleeding out. I got the p1312 and p1334 codes so I'm guessing a dic will be needed before the trip? Also any ideas on a tablet mount that can be put on the dash for a better view of GPS or let's say music videos for the girlfriend to watch

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I'm a newbie to 9-5s but I'm currently prepping a 2008 for my daughter to take to college and so have been on a steep learning curve. You may already know a lot of this and some may not apply to your '02.

The engine mounts and torque rod bushing in my '08 were all shot at 100,000 miles, I'm replacing them all.

The serpentine belt drives the water pump and so is a lot more important than in a car with a timing-belt driven water pump. A broken serpentine belt means rapid overheating and potentially a blown head gasket or worse.

It's also important therefore that everything in the serpentine belt path be in good shape as a broken idler pulley, for example, leads directly to a broken or derailed serpentine belt. So make sure you know everything in the serpentine belt path is good before you start your trip.

The heater bypass valve is a piece of chintzy plastic cr@p that no sane person would bet their engine on, but Saab did.

You might want to carry a spare coolant thermostat and coolant temperature sensor and the tools to change them. Can be done on the side of the road. Also an upper radiator hose and spare crankshaft position sensor.

You might want to check that you have the correct spark plugs installed for your engine and DIC. I also adjusted the spark plug gap on one plug so all four were equal.

If your ignition lock is in any way sticky or balky, service it now. It's easy to remove and you can make it a lot easier to operate by removing some of the lock wafers.

 

The serpentine belt drives the water pump and so is a lot more important than in a car with a timing-belt driven water pump. A broken serpentine means rapid overheating and potentially a blown head gasket or worse.

It's also important therefore that everything in the serpentine belt path be in good shape as a broken idler pulley, for example, leads directly to a broken or derailed serpentine belt. So make sure you know everything in the serpentine belt path is good before you start your trip.

Amen to this. Just came back from a 2000 mile road trip (Cincinnati - Orlando round trip). Our KIA Sedona mini van worked great but after a week being home my wife said she got a battery warning light. I thought the alternator was shot as it was not charging the battery when running. Then I looked down to check the belt and found that the tensioner pulley had disintegrated! Only the bolt was sitting by itself on the stud. Could probabky not have been able to predict that but a good idea to look over the belts and pulleys. Luckily for us, this failure did not occur during the road trip but it was just a few days short of happening.

 

Once you fix the current codes, would be good to have spare DIC in the trunk just in case.

 

Get the: AIRTEX/WELLS 5C1762 from Rockauto.com

Install and clear the codes.

The other car in the convoy will probably be the problem.

 

Considering its a veloster hopefully not. (Traveling in speed and style) hahahaha

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Just finished a 3K round trip VT to MN. 06 9-5 with 170K on the clock. Had a spare DIC and CPS in trunk. Two observations: your cruise control might stop working for a while if you get hit with slushy lake effect or other snow...this, I think, is by design. Prolly shouldn't be using CC anyway when traction is marginal. And, if you have a compass in your mirror, prepare for it to whack out. You're passing through about five magnetic zones as you head west (it can be re-calibrated later...just don't trust it if it starts telling you you're on the way to Alabama.)

 

Longest trip we have taken in an 03 Aero has been to Vegas and back. Not as quiet as some other cars, but I think that is primarily due to the tires on the car. But it handled amazingly, and the seats are some of the most comfortable I have ever experienced. Wasn't sore at all after sitting in them for 5ish hours.

 

I do love the seats in this baby

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COVENTRY???/ I am from West Warwick originally and we had a summer house on Flat River Reservoir!!!!

Live in L.A. Now.....if you need any help when you get out here PM me or just holler here. Have 4 9-5 Aero's in the family and a bit of knowledge.

 

Hahaha wow!!! I thought i was the only one frpm ri here. I'll already have friends there XD. Not to mention a fellow saab fanatic. Here's a look inside the cabin at night

https://youtu.be/y7GT11ubQ50



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Lincoln......Cool. I am originally from West Warwick and Coventry......now L.A.

 

Make sure your spare is in good shape and holds air, change the oil if you're within 4k miles of your next oil change, gas up and go.

I wouldn't hesitate to hop in my 04 and head out on any length of trip. I've never had a more reliable car.

 

liked your video from the burger king parking lot

i wish i was doing something just like that right now.

anyway, interested to know the bulb specs for each of the lights you put them in, and also, did you do anything with your courtesy lights on the doors?

one day i did a total driveway hack and just put some red lens tape over them and i liked the effect, but was thinking some good colored leds would be awesome. i just have ordered led's for several other car projects (not just my saabs) and almost every time i end up going right back to the original bulbs because they don't work or something happens.

also - did you do anything to the instrument lights? they had a cool look to them...