Michael Flanders, left, and Rod Wade celebrate in Venice Beach, Calif., after finishing a cross-country drive in Mr. Wade's 1930 Model AÂ Ford.  Sometimes, itâs best to cut oneâs losses and move on. For Rod Wade, the Australian automotive adventurer whose cross-country run last month in a 1930 Model A Ford was abbreviated by a broken crankshaft, cutting his losses wasnât in the cards. It was time to move on; all the way across the United States.  In a photo taken from the 1988 Plymouth support car, the old Ford is shown traveling snow-covered roads in New Mexico.  After sending the car back for a new crankshaft to New Jersey from Amarillo, Tex., where it broke last month, Mr. Wade came back to the United States from overseas with Michael Flanders, his co-driver, determined to achieve his goal of crossing the country in less than 60 hours in an 83-year-old car.  His perseverance paid off, and on Nov. 23 the car clattered into Los Angeles from Staten Island after 50 hours, 20 minutes and six seconds of travel time.  There were other challenges on this trip â namely very cold weather â but this time the carâs 40-horsepower 4-cylinder engine held up just fine. Mr. Wade said the car got about 15 miles per gallon throughout the trip, and with an extra 24-gallon fuel tank in the back, it kept well ahead of the 1988 Plymouth police interceptor that was following as a support car.  But Mr. Wade said in an interview that because the car was not equipped with a heater, he and Mr. Flanders had to stop every 10 miles when the weather deteriorated in order to keep ice scraped off the windshield.  âWe put new rubber seals around the doors to keep the cold out, but in those old cars itâs impossible to keep it all from coming in,â he said, adding that he wore two thermal layers, a neck roll, gloves and thermal socks. âWhen the rain hit the windscreen, it went to ice, so we had to keep stopping to chisel ice off the screen. It was hard to see â very dodgy driving.â  The going got especially tough around Amarillo â where tragedy had struck on the last run â when a winter storm hit and turned the roads into icy tracks. Mr. Wade said he couldnât feel his feet at times.  The men drove in shifts that lasted about 400 miles each.  âIt was like driving a toboggan without steering through Amarillo, but the engine did not miss a beat,â Mr. Wade said. âWe would have made it in the 40s, but the weather was tough.â  Mr. Wade says his car holds the record for driving a pre-World War II car across the United States. Heâs not averse to giving it another go if he feels the need.  âI think you could do this trip in an A Model Ford in about 47 hours,â he said. âSo if someone knocks off our record, weâll come back and give it another shot.â
Rod Wade and Michael Flanders had to cut their trip short the last time they attempted the journey, but this time the car cooperated.