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Look -- if you can't drive the car TO Texas, you can't drive it IN Texas, much, either. Drive it, or leave it.
Got an estimate of what it would cost to hire a flat and a driver, to move a piece of junk a thousand miles, that's not a reliable enough car to drive, and totally worthless for any other use?
Can a 1997 ford escort make it to Texas from Michigan
Is your car well maintained? Sound cooling system, no oil leaks, good brakes and tires? If you trust your car around town and it hasn't let you down, then why wouldn't it make it to Texas?
Highway miles are much easier on a car than driving it in a town or city with all the braking at red lights and then accelerating when the light turns green.
But of course, ask your regular mechanic for their opinion.
This^^^^ (from Miu above)
Get it in for a checkup before you leave and make sure they check the fluids, change the oil, check the brakes. Make sure the windshield washer fluid is full, in case the auto tech doesn't. Get the tires changed, unless yours are less than a year old. Check you have a spare tire.
Make sure you have a working phone and buy a Fix-a-Flat can, in case you get a blowout miles from anywhere. Keep a roll of paper towels in the car.
Don't try to set the world record for getting there. Take your time. It will be easier on both you and the car. We've done it lots (but never with quite as old a car as you're doing). Just use some sense and don't push things and you should be fine.
I plan on moving this year atleast by September if not before than and i was curious to know if my 97' ford escort could make the trip down to Texas. If not what vehicle would be best to travel that kind of distance
(Yes, i know i can't pack anything really in an escort i'm just tryna get down there)
The rest of the stuff i'm bringing that can't fit i'll just have someone with a Uhaul or a bigger vehicle come with me
I might travel from Texas to another state too just because i got some other people to see and i wanted to travel while i can.
If you're going to need a U-Haul anyway I suggest you rent a U-Haul with one of their car trailers and move everything at once.
That's what my daughter and I did when she moved from Phoenix to Dallas after college. We did the one way rent thing, found her an apartment, dropped off the trailer so it wouldn't be in the way, unloaded the truck and then turned it in.
I traveled a lot in my 96 Escort. It is a very reliable vehicle and inexpensive to run and has a lot of pep. As long as you have treated it right with annual oil changes, flushing the rad, and the hoses are all in good shape, and you don't have over 200.000 miles on it then go for it.
I let mine go in 2010 in favor of a pickup I needed for some landscaping projects.
Note there are some really crabby people in this forum that just want to growl at somebody all the time. Ignore them. They have nothing better to do than sit in front of the screen dissing everybody.
I plan on moving this year atleast by September if not before than and i was curious to know if my 97' ford escort could make the trip down to Texas. If not what vehicle would be best to travel that kind of distance
(Yes, i know i can't pack anything really in an escort i'm just tryna get down there)
The rest of the stuff i'm bringing that can't fit i'll just have someone with a Uhaul or a bigger vehicle come with me
I might travel from Texas to another state too just because i got some other people to see and i wanted to travel while i can.
After 20 salty Michigan winters, this sled is likely rusty toast. Better to sell it there, where such corrosion is considered normal, than to drive it to Texas, where you would have to drive it till the wheels fall off, no one would buy it. And probably few mechanics would want to work on it, never knowing how much the corrosion will have complicated R&R of parts (except to say, a lot).
That's assuming it would make the trip, without looking at the car in detail, I can't offer an informed opinion. Although, I would expect it to be in poor condition.
After 20 salty Michigan winters, this sled is likely rusty toast. Better to sell it there, where such corrosion is considered normal, than to drive it to Texas, where you would have to drive it till the wheels fall off, no one would buy it. And probably few mechanics would want to work on it, never knowing how much the corrosion will have complicated R&R of parts (except to say, a lot).
That's assuming it would make the trip, without looking at the car in detail, I can't offer an informed opinion. Although, I would expect it to be in poor condition.
There are places on the Texas gulf coast (Port Isabel, Port Lavaca) where cars rust out faster than they do in Michigan. Michigan uses a lot less salt than Ohio and Indiana.
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