Hello, all,
I'm back from my early summer road trip to Palo Duro Canyon, TX. The Buick Regal performed like the thoroughbred it is. The beast started every time, ran all day at 60-75 mph, and returned 29-30 mpg overall, while keeping me cool with A/C set to 72. We ran up I-10, U.S. 190, I-49, and I-20; then along US 287 paralleling the Oklahoma border to Amarillo, and down I-27 to Canyon.
There were scary moments descending and re-ascending the twisty two-lane road that goes down into the canyon proper. I happened to see a string of trucks coming down the road from the cliff top as I was leaving, and I was astonished at how steep the grade was. "I came down that???" I put the car in M3 (3rd gear of 6, via the manu-matic tranny), both descending and climbing the steepest pitches, and had no trouble with the car.
Slow? The Regal 2.4? Hardly. At one point I zoomed from 70 to 82 to pass a truck on I-20. Not only did the car handle it with ease, but I imagined it hunkering down and murmuring to itself, "Now I'll show him what I can do!" It seemed as if there was at least another 25 mph available to me.
I had to run mostly on ethanol-laced gas, though I did find two E0 stations. One was in the little US 287 town of Quanah, named for the famous Comanche chieftain. The other was right on I-40, exit 71, in Amarillo proper. I filled up there on my return trip, and saw a hair better mileage: a solid 30.5 with the A/C running.
On the way home, I gassed up at a Chevron on US 190 west of Baton Rouge. The owner of the convenience store, a Middle Eastern gentleman, took a look at the glossy dark gray Regal at the pump, and murmured, "Nice car!"
I was worried that the Regal would be a tiring car to drive, but the seats were excellent. Verdict: The Regal will handle more miles in a day than most people can!
I'm back from my early summer road trip to Palo Duro Canyon, TX. The Buick Regal performed like the thoroughbred it is. The beast started every time, ran all day at 60-75 mph, and returned 29-30 mpg overall, while keeping me cool with A/C set to 72. We ran up I-10, U.S. 190, I-49, and I-20; then along US 287 paralleling the Oklahoma border to Amarillo, and down I-27 to Canyon.
There were scary moments descending and re-ascending the twisty two-lane road that goes down into the canyon proper. I happened to see a string of trucks coming down the road from the cliff top as I was leaving, and I was astonished at how steep the grade was. "I came down that???" I put the car in M3 (3rd gear of 6, via the manu-matic tranny), both descending and climbing the steepest pitches, and had no trouble with the car.
Slow? The Regal 2.4? Hardly. At one point I zoomed from 70 to 82 to pass a truck on I-20. Not only did the car handle it with ease, but I imagined it hunkering down and murmuring to itself, "Now I'll show him what I can do!" It seemed as if there was at least another 25 mph available to me.
I had to run mostly on ethanol-laced gas, though I did find two E0 stations. One was in the little US 287 town of Quanah, named for the famous Comanche chieftain. The other was right on I-40, exit 71, in Amarillo proper. I filled up there on my return trip, and saw a hair better mileage: a solid 30.5 with the A/C running.
On the way home, I gassed up at a Chevron on US 190 west of Baton Rouge. The owner of the convenience store, a Middle Eastern gentleman, took a look at the glossy dark gray Regal at the pump, and murmured, "Nice car!"
I was worried that the Regal would be a tiring car to drive, but the seats were excellent. Verdict: The Regal will handle more miles in a day than most people can!
