Life ends at 359,833 miles - 1998 Chevy Cavalier

[qdeezie]

I finally got rid of the car after 15 years. One thing that was confirmed with my ownership of the Cavalier is that proper maintenance is everything.

I honestly don't think I'll ever own another vehicle and accumulate that many miles on it, but I have to say it was a great experience. I have nothing but fond memories of the car and it still ran and shifted well, but it was time to move on.

One thing I never got a chance to do was take the valve cover to see what it looked like. As far as oil choices, early on when I first got it, I used Exxon Superflo Synthetic or M1. After Superflo was no longer available, I ran it exclusively on M1 for the remainder of the first 300K miles and PP for the remaining 59K miles.

Regarding the transmission, I found that it wasn't really picky with regards to the ATF, but I did notice that it shifted smoother when using a quality name brand fluid such as M1 or Pennzoil High Mileage.

With regards to a replacement vehicle, I ended up purchasing a brand new 2013 Hyundai Elantra Coupe SE to replace the Chevy. I'm still getting to know the Hyundai and I'm definitely looking forward to the ownership experience.

Just figured I'd share the news since I receive questions from time to time about the Chevy.

 

[NHGUY]

I'm wondering how long an Ecotec 2.2 would have lasted vs the 1982 pushrod J-car engine that your 98 had...

 

[Kool1]

I want to get to your mileage one day. I have 151,000 miles on my 03 Honda CRV and look forward to reaching your numbers. You defenitely got your money's worth on that car!!!!! Congratulations!!!!

 

[Nick R]

Congrats man! On both getting so much life out of the cavalier and the purchase of the new car! Not a huge fan of the new Hyundais styling wise but they are definitely nice cars. Post some pics for us!

also inb4 posts tearing the OP apart for trading an old car for a new one etc etc etc.

 

[zoinks]

Impressive! Did the transmission ever require any major work?

 

[qdeezie]

The trans never required any work. It was the original trans.

 

[Nick R]

Originally Posted By: qdeezie
The trans never required any work. It was the original trans.


Lucky. The 1997 I had required a new transmission at 120k before I even got it. And then at 138k the oil pump went and destroyed the engine. Oddly enough, it was meticulously maintained by my grandfather so apparently just had really bad luck.

 

[qdeezie]

Originally Posted By: Nick R
Originally Posted By: qdeezie
The trans never required any work. It was the original trans.


Lucky. The 1997 I had required a new transmission at 120k before I even got it. And then at 138k the oil pump went and destroyed the engine. Oddly enough, it was meticulously maintained by my grandfather so apparently just had really bad luck.


I had a 1997 Cavalier, but I totaled it in 1998 and got the 1998 as a replacement. When I first got the 98, within the first 15k miles, it needed a head gasket. That was the extent of any major work I had done to it.

 

[qdeezie]

Originally Posted By: NHGUY
I'm wondering how long an Ecotec 2.2 would have lasted vs the 1982 pushrod J-car engine that your 98 had...


I've always wondered how the two compared durability wise. The Ecotec definitely outperforms the old pushrod 2.2 I had.

 

[Astro14]

Well done!

 

[JHZR2]

very nice!!!

 

[tinmanSC]

You are my new hero.

 

[kschachn]

Well done. I'm trying to get close...

 

[Oldasco]

Awesome! My daughter picked up a '98 Cavalier about a year ago with about 105,000 miles...it's still running strong and is a nice car. Been running conventional 5w30 in it...maybe better consider going with synthetic to try for another 200,000 miles on the car.

qdeezie, did you stick with Dex-Cool coolant? Fresh Dex-Cool is in my kid's Cavalier now.

 

[Clevy]

My girl had a 2000 cavalier with a 2.2. The car was beaten on its whole life. She used amsoil(I was using it exclusively for a few years) and it had over 300k when she totalled it.
10000-15000km intervals,5w30. Engine never consumed a measurable amount of oil between changes.
Went through 1 transmission though however the way she drove that car that's miraculous.
Those chev 2.2 engines were very durable with even mediocre maintenance.
Thanks for sharing

 

[sciphi]

Congrats! Good to see what regular maintenance does for a car!

I'm hoping our two can get up past 200k miles. They're both 1/3 of the way there and doing fine so far...

 

[redhat]

Congratulations.

 

[panthermike]

That's fantastic! Congrats on the life you got out of the Cavalier and your new Hyundai. Certainly got your money's worth.

 

[daves87rs]

Good to hear!

Wife's 03 (with the ecotec) with nearly 100k on the clock. Short of the Northeast rot, the car has done quite well. Hoping to get 200k before the rust gets mine....

 

[flacoman]

Surely didn't owe you anything !