I feel like this trail gets a bad rap and I get it, but I've been doing the bottom portion for the past 28 years and it holds a special place in my heart.  For those unfamiliar with the hike up from Maple Springs, you can 1) park at the bottom and do the 24 mile round trip 2) park where the pavement ends and do the 17 mile round trip 3) park where the hiking guide says and do the 9ish mile round trip.  There are also tons of other parking options along the road if you want to just randomly pick a spot and choose your own adventure.

If you decide to go past the point where the paved road ends, it's definitely no joke and I wouldn't try it in a small car.  However, I did it in a small SUV and it was fine.  I spent a good portion of my childhood in rural Colorado and driving down the dirt road made me feel like a kid again LOL!  It is definitely hot out there right now and you're in full sun by 10:45 so go early or late.  The good news is that it's a quick, easy hike if you do the 9 mile version.  I was up and down in well under 4 hours including a snack break at the top and lots of stops to take pictures of the wildflowers for my naturalist friends.  I also would recommend doing this on a weekday or very early in the morning if you have to go on a weekend.  As everyone mentioned, this is a popular road for ORV and is dusty when vehicles go by.  I've seen lines of dirt bikes and jeeps on the weekends.  On Thursday with an 8AM start, I only saw 1 motorcycle and 1 jeep- both were driving slowly and respectfully and stopped to chat with me as they passed.  Not bad at all!