High miles with no Coolant / ATF or other maintenance

[SC Maintenance]

My daughter needed a car for a short drive to work a few days a week. After looking for used one weekend I decided to just give her my Xterra for now, so my +1 car is gone. Since I have been looking more - mostly online, but some in person. I have noticed a trend. Cars with 150K or more miles, with extensive carfax history of oil change every 5K miles, but little else. They seem to list everything - like alignments and tires balanced even.

However I fail to see any service at all for ATF or Coolant, or PS or anything else. Just oil changes and the occasional brake fluid flush. I guess everyone assumes there lifetime?

Also noticed almost no mention of timing belt change. Lots of what looks like nice Honda 3.5's with 150K miles - what appears to be original belt. I did see one that always went to the dealer that mentioned 90K service, which I assume includes that - but other than that one, nothing. No sticker under the hood either. A lot of them seem to change hands around that time and go only to speedy lube afterwards. I assume if it runs when I bring it home, I can just change the belt then. I guess no one knows or no one cares?

So would you buy any of these cars? I have found a couple that look very nice - well kept, Southern cars, no rust. But it seems risky to me to pay maybe $12K for a 150K mile car with no service but oil changes?

 

[Furious]

My daughter needed a car for a short drive to work a few days a week. After looking for used one weekend I decided to just give her my Xterra for now, so my +1 car is gone. Since I have been looking more - mostly online, but some in person. I have noticed a trend. Cars with 150K or more miles, with extensive carfax history of oil change every 5K miles, but little else. They seem to list everything - like alignments and tires balanced even.

However I fail to see any service at all for ATF or Coolant, or PS or anything else. Just oil changes and the occasional brake fluid flush. I guess everyone assumes there lifetime?

Also noticed almost no mention of timing belt change. Lots of what looks like nice Honda 3.5's with 150K miles - what appears to be original belt. I did see one that always went to the dealer that mentioned 90K service, which I assume includes that - but other than that one, nothing. No sticker under the hood either. A lot of them seem to change hands around that time and go only to speedy lube afterwards. I assume if it runs when I bring it home, I can just change the belt then. I guess no one knows or no one cares?

So would you buy any of these cars? I have found a couple that look very nice - well kept, Southern cars, no rust. But it seems risky to me to pay maybe $12K for a 150K mile car with no service but oil changes?

I would check the condition of the fluids, is the transmission fluid still red or is it burnt, is the coolant clean or is it dirty.

Without documentation proving the timing belt was done always assume it never was done and purchase a OEM timing belt & component kit.

Many shops do not report to carfax, especially the smaller shops also some people prefer to DIY.

 

[eljefino]

So would you buy any of these cars? I have found a couple that look very nice - well kept, Southern cars, no rust. But it seems risky to me to pay maybe $12K for a 150K mile car with no service but oil changes?

Yes, but, gulp, 12k is a bunch of money. But if that's the going rate and I needed an SUV...

It would get a going through like any mid-life crisis car: timing belt, fluid film, spark plugs, complete fluid exchange, cabin filter, deep clean...

 

[nwjones18]

if the ATF smells/looks ok I wouldn't sweat it. Making a first pass of changing all the neglected fluids on a new used car is part of the fun. Also service history's are very far from complete and comprehensive and I take them with a grain of salt. None of my vehicles would show any maintenance on a carfax. If you have one that shows regular oil changes then it has been taken care of more than the average used car.

 

[SC Maintenance]

if the ATF smells/looks ok I wouldn't sweat it. Making a first pass of changing all the neglected fluids on a new used car is part of the fun. Also service history's are very far from complete and comprehensive and I take them with a grain of salt. None of my vehicles would show any maintenance on a carfax.

Yes, I saw one that had zero carfax maintenance. I assumed it was a DIY. I would have been OK with that one. My vehicles show the same thing I am sure.

 

[Hall]

I'd say 80% of vehicles never get the coolant changed. When it comes to ATF, I'd say it's close to the same but maybe 67-75%.

If it's a Honda with 150k miles, I'd cross my fingers and keep them crossed the whole trip home, then park it or drive it to my preferred shop to get it changed. It could go another 50k miles or even longer or it could fail on the drive home....

 

[Elkins45]

If someone had pulled a Carfax on any of my cars they would have seen the yearly registration and maybe tires. I did all the fluids myself and those cars were always in tip-top shape.

 

[doublebase]

Unfortunately this is what you get when buying used cars in that mileage range. It sucks.

I’d say coolant is the number one neglected fluid in all used cars today. Long life coolant has made it so the typical new car buyer never changes the fluid, then trades it in at 70,000 miles, where a lot of places will change the brakes, slap new tires on it and wax it up and throw it on their lot. Someone else buys it, doesn’t change the coolant, drives it another 70,000 miles and now the thing is sitting there with 140,000 on the clock with original coolant. Gone are the days when that coolant was getting change during the timing belt service, when the water pump would be replaced as part of the job. So, unless there is an actual report of the service being done, or radiator or water pump replacement in the vehicle history? It probably has the factory coolant in it.

As for the transmission fluid? That’s number two on the fluid neglect list, and probably the more serious of the two. These manufacturers (some of them) don’t even suggest replacement anymore! It’s nuts.

The coolant I’d say is the more forgiving of the two, just change it. The tranny fluid can be a little more tricky if you’re sitting there at 150,000 miles and it’s never been done - now you have to consider…are you better off just leaving it alone at that point? I wouldn’t. I’d do a simple drain and fill, and then another 10,000 miles later. Or just go all in and drop the pan, clean the magnet, replace the filter and gasket. I probably wouldn’t use an exchange machine on it at that point, but some would argue you could.

 

[shurguywutt]

All those fluids are an easy check. I check all the fluids every time I look at a vehicle. If they look good then they are probably good until you can save a few bucks and change them yourself and start fresh knowing it's done right.

 

[Lubener]

I wouldn't pay $12k for any car with 150,000 miles, especially poorly maintained ones.

 

[SC Maintenance]

I wouldn't pay $12k for any car with 150,000 miles, especially poorly maintained ones.

Well I would like to say I am the same, but if you need a car right now, your options are:


After that - just buy new.

 

[StumblingElk]

I think people get way too hung up on carfax. It means about diddly squat, honestly.

Having a trusted mechanic go over the vehicle is a better option. Ideally, a mechanic familiar with the particular platform.

And the number of miles doesn't mean a whole lot compared to how/where those miles were driven. I've seen many many vehicles well over 100k miles that were maintained (not reflected on carfax) and/or were mostly highway miles that were in much better condition than vehicles with half that mileage. Especially when factoring in the rust belt cars.

 

[Lubener]

Well I would like to say I am the same, but if you need a car right now, your options are:


After that - just buy new.

Buy a horse.

 

[willbur]

Unfortunately this is what you get when buying used cars in that mileage range. It sucks.

I’d say coolant is the number one neglected fluid in all used cars today. Long life coolant has made it so the typical new car buyer never changes the fluid, then trades it in at 70,000 miles, where a lot of places will change the brakes, slap new tires on it and wax it up and throw it on their lot. Someone else buys it, doesn’t change the coolant, drives it another 70,000 miles and now the thing is sitting there with 140,000 on the clock with original coolant. Gone are the days when that coolant was getting change during the timing belt service, when the water pump would be replaced as part of the job. So, unless there is an actual report of the service being done, or radiator or water pump replacement in the vehicle history? It probably has the factory coolant in it.

As for the transmission fluid? That’s number two on the fluid neglect list, and probably the more serious of the two. These manufacturers (some of them) don’t even suggest replacement anymore! It’s nuts.

The coolant I’d say is the more forgiving of the two, just change it. The tranny fluid can be a little more tricky if you’re sitting there at 150,000 miles and it’s never been done - now you have to consider…are you better off just leaving it alone at that point? I wouldn’t. I’d do a simple drain and fill, and then another 10,000 miles later. Or just go all in and drop the pan, clean the magnet, replace the filter and gasket. I probably wouldn’t use an exchange machine on it at that point, but some would argue you could.

I changed coolant on 12 and 16 yo vehicles- looked like new and the observed internal parts were pristine. I asked myself- why am I doing this? Changed my mind about coolant but I agree with ATF , brake fluid etc. Not trying to be argumentative but coolants and materials are much better these days...

 

[MattPersman]

Some of the manufacturers don’t push the fluid changes in the maint schedule. They like to claim low cost of ownership at the risk of fluid lasting and or many new vehicle buyers getting rid of them before a ton of miles anyways.

Call some dealers to get prices on some not common fluid maint items and they will have to look into it for you. Its not an everyday high profit money maker

 

[D60]

I've never even considered looking at Carfax, esp for something that would be a ~$12k car in today's world. That's just a mid-level beater after somethingnomics.

Buying used is always caveat emptor. So, yes, I would consider ALL those vehicles AFTER an inspection by me and based upon what I observe: does it drive straight, does it shift well, is the fluid burnt (side rant: good luck with new dipstick-less automatic transmissions) etc

You can generally tell a lot about a vehicle based upon the body and interior. If the back seat is all kidded-out, a taillight is cracked, the body has numerous heavy scratches and dings, windshield is severely cracked, upholstery torn or cigarette burns etc.....this was a scatter-brain owner who viewed it as an appliance like a toaster oven.

That said, I've purchased some former gas patch trucks with many of the problems listed above....although shopping for a truck can bring different criteria (for me).....

 

[2013ecof150]

For a 150k mile car that has been DIY maintained you run the risk of the atf, ps, coolant, etc being all original. The owner may have done this to save money and keep ownership costs to a minimum. I have met several people who say “ the trans shifts fine, why would I service it”

A dealer maintained car that is owned by someone who doesn’t know much about maintenance and just follows the advice of a service writer is much more likely to have all the major fluids changed at some point. BG flushes are a huge money maker for a dealer and they typically push hard for these.

 

[The Critic]

I wouldn't be too concerned about coolant maintenance in 10/150k if was untouched. Modern Coolants last a very long time.

ATF? If it wasn't a Honda 5/6AT or Euro DSG transmission, not too concerned either.

 

[pbm]

If someone had pulled a Carfax on any of my cars they would have seen the yearly registration and maybe tires. I did all the fluids myself and those cars were always in tip-top shape.

Same here.