The Tail of the Dragon is one of the most marvelous roads I’ve ever driven, with mile after mile of beautifully banked curves through pristine woodlands. It’s tight and narrow, and better suited for motorcycles and sports cars than a big truck. That’s why it’s so hilarious to see someone try it in a stretch limousine.
That big ocean liner-looking thing in front of the Mercedes filming it is a 1986 Cadillac stretch limo that ran as part of the approximately 2,100-mile LeMons Rally—a grueling scavenger hunt-style road trip for cars ill-suited for road-trips. This limo’s best days were when I was barely able to walk, and it was pretty gross inside accordingly. We did, however, appreciate the wing, Trueno badge and Fujiwara Tofu Shop lettering the team added to the big beast.
One checkpoint was the Tail of the Dragon—a road perfect for the Porsche 944 we had entered, but less so for many of our fellow participants. Most of the crowd that wasn’t still fighting Daytona Hangover Syndrome congregated early in the morning to run it in one big train of car-pain.
Fortunately for anyone else who wanted to run the road, the LeMons Rally picked a winter weekday where the road was mostly empty to leave a not-insignificant layer of oil down on the road.
The limo has to cross the double-yellow line sometimes just to make some of the turns—usually a big no-no on a road with so many blind corners—but this big group was incredibly careful about it and seemed very aware of what little oncoming traffic they encountered on the road. They even added a big yellow “Caution Wide Turns” sign and a flashing yellow warning light to the car beforehand, and the truck ahead of them ran with its flashers on as well. Safety first!
What’s the strangest vehicle you’ve seen tackle a good driving road?