First Major Road Trip

diannabill · February 11, 2014

Just got back from my first major road trip in my 2014 Silverado 1500 LT. The dog and I needed something to do, so I drove from Portland, Oregon down to southern California, then took I-10 as far as New Orleans. I stopped along the way to visit relatives in New Orleans, Lafayette, and Houston. The trip took 2 weeks and ended up around 5800 miles. The total trip mileage averaged 19.4 mpg. I got much better along the flat stretch of I-5 in Central California, and by the time I got to Los Angeles I was at about 20.1 mpg average.

But as is my usual luck, I had severe headwinds heading east along I-10, and side winds coming back west. I know that ended up affecting the mileage. Then I hit snow once I returned to Oregon yesterday, which created some interesting driving conditions. So I was definitely happy with the mileage I got considering the mountainous and windy conditions.

I can say I was very comfortable driving the truck, I enjoyed all the audio options I had, and I didn't experience a bit of trouble during the entire trip. The only thing I will say is that wind noise in extreme windy conditions was somewhat louder than I would have liked, but definitely nothing too annoying.

I was also surprised that the clock automatically adjusts to different time zones, and since I didn't pay attention to any signs saying I was in a different time zone, it was confusing. My cell phone automatically changes also, so I didn't have a clue what time it was back home some of the time. Until I called my wife and woke her up at 4:45 one morning.

Now I have about 6900 miles, I'm down to 13% oil life, and I have my first oil change scheduled for tomorrow morning. All in all, a great trip!

Silverado Steve · February 11, 2014

Man Bill, you weren't kidding when you said a few weeks back you needed to get some time behind the wheel. The truck is great on the highway, glad you had a safe trip and that you and Jake took some time to see some friends and family.

diannabill · February 11, 2014

Man Bill, you weren't kidding when you said a few weeks back you needed to get some time behind the wheel. The truck is great on the highway, glad you had a safe trip and that you and Jake took some time to see some friends and family.

Yeah Steve it was great. Jake was a good traveling companion, laid down in the back the whole time I was driving. But at night when I was ready to stop and sleep, he was ready for some action! Glad to be back home though.

gmc1 · February 11, 2014

That is quite the road trip. I want to say good job because that's some serious work man.. I drive like 90ish miles a day and it's the miles that take the most out of me not so much the manual labor at the various destinations. The mileage you observed is a fantastic piece of info for me tho so I greatly appreciate it. I'm going to make the drive from central TX to Phoenix soon and while that's not but a whisper of your journey it gives me a good prospective on my forthcoming expenses. If I may, how did you like your truck, lets say, at the end of your trip? Aka how was it to travel in?

edited because of miles I drive daily

diannabill · February 11, 2014

That is quite the road trip. I want to say good job because that's some serious work man.. I drive like 90ish miles a day and it's the miles that take the most out of me not so much the manual labor at the various destinations. The mileage you observed is a fantastic piece of info for me tho so I greatly appreciate it. I'm going to make the drive from central TX to Phoenix soon and while that's not but a whisper of your journey it gives me a good prospective on my forthcoming expenses. If I may, how did you like your truck, lets say, at the end of your trip? Aka how was it to travel in?

edited because of miles I drive daily

I like it more now than when I bought it! Very comfortable.

I will say that I have never seen more Silverados than when I hit Texas! Seems like they're everywhere! Glad I traded in my Tacoma because I think I saw maybe 2 or 3 Toyota pickups the whole time I was in Texas. Seemed like it anyway.

FWIW, the coldest part of my trip was driving along I-10 west after I left Houston last Thursday. It got down to 22, which was very surprising! I intentionally took the southernmost route home so I could enjoy some warmth. Ha! That didn't work. It wasn't even that cold once I hit the snow around the Portland area.

Have a safe trip and enjoy it!

Mutau95 · February 12, 2014

Sounds like a cool road trip! I wish I could get away for 2 weeks.

KMGZ400 · February 12, 2014

That's a lot of driving! The miles you drove on one trip is about as many miles as I put on my truck since I bought it 5 months ago!

20L8TSierra24 · February 12, 2014

Great to hear another member enjoying and praising his truck rather than complaining about little things! I smile every time I get behind the wheel! I drove mine to Orlando a couple weeks ago and probably saw 2 dozen Silverados and 12-14 sierras on the road! Highway mpg for me is around 19-20 as well after the update.