Tell me the truth...

Though this is not impressive for sheer miles, it's kind of impressive for least amount of stuff we've done to a car in the amount of miles and years of owning it.

2006 Ford Five Hundred, gotten at 60K in 2011, now 162k.

Engine related stuff:
Throttle body
Air conditioner compressor check valve ($20 easy to change part.)
Ignition coils and plugs (had what smelled like a coolant leak before I did this, but retorquing all the intake gaskets down when I did the plugs fixed this 100%.)
EDIT:
Power steering semi-flushed and topped off with Lucas Power Steering fix. (fixed whining Ford pump.)

Suspension/brakes:
1 rear wheel bearing
Quick Struts/Tie Rods/Control Arms/Sway Bar End Links (pretty much everything up front...)
Front and rear rotors, one pair each

Misc interior/etc stuff:
New bulbs for the gauge cluster
New radio because the CD player stopped working and I wanted my cool head unit in it
2 seat levers from the junkyard (really awful plastic weak pieces)
Two inner door weatherstrip pieces from the junkyard
New wiper arm linkage
Junkyard shifter bezel
New battery in 2016

Stuff it still needs done:
Front transmission mount that connects to strut bar
Rear struts
CVT fluid change (still on whatever fluid was in there when we got it.)
Maybe valve cover gaskets (high mileage oil seems to be helping.)
Front rotors

It's done tremendously better than our 2001 Taurus we had, and I think it's more or less matched imports of people I know as far as amount of stuff done, or in a lot of cases beating them. We've never done an alternator, for example. The only issue that ever stranded us was the drive by wire throttle body dying, and that sucked as we bought it to Ford and they denied it even with a TSB as the car was 11 years old and not 10 and we had to pay a $200 diag fee. They also wanted 3 hours for putting it in for a job I did at home in 10-15 minutes of actual labor and 20 minutes of sitting in the car letting it idle to operating temperature.
 
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I bought my 92 Cavalier in 2006 with 76,000 miles on it. It now has 242,000. I do 5,000 mile oil changes with many different brands over the years using 5W-30. Here are the things that I've replaced over the years that I can think of.
Several radiators
all radiator hoses
spark plugs and wires several times
O2 sensors several times
alternator once
Ignition control modules about 4 or 5 times. Thank god for lifetime warr. parts
coils about the same amount of times as ICM.
coolant temp sensor about 4 times
thermostat twice
radiator cap
heater core
AC components twice
two motor mounts and transmission mount once
Gas cap twice
head gasket
valve cover gasket
intake manifold gasket
several sets of tires
mufflers three times and cat once
changed transmission filter and fluid every 30,000 miles
Front struts and rear shocks once
Several sets of brakes and rotors
Rear brakes and wheel cylinders twice and replaced rear drums once
Fuel injectors once
PCV valve a couple of times
Exhaust manifold gasket once
Left side CV shaft twice
Air filter every 30,000 miles
Oil pressure sensor twice
Cam sensor twice

Car still has the same fuel pump and water pump as when I bought it as well as all four wheel bearings.
 
Exposure to salt or lack of it makes an extremely big difference.
Lots of road salt up here plus roads with big potholes that make the moon look more suitable for driving on. Would be interesting hitting a lunar pothole in zero G. Parts would be flying around forever. Sorry , had to inject some bad humour given the condition of our “roads”.
 
I'll try to recall from memory as best as I can.
1998 Chevrolet Cavalier
2.2L Engine
359,833 miles
Took ownership around 9,000 miles after totaling a 1997 Cavalier in sometime late 97/early 98.

During the time of ownership.
While under warranty:
Head Gasket Replacement

After warranty repairs:
Two belt tensioners (could be considered maintenance)
Gear shifter cable
EGR Valve
ABS Sensors
Starter
Alternator
A few batteries
Catalytic Converter
Fuel Pump
Radiator
Two water pumps (possibly three)
Front wheel bearings
Brake light/taillight connectors (the part between the harness and bulb melted)
A/C died - never did fix it, but it was good for about 280k miles.
Emergency Brake cable
Spark plug wires - I used wires for a Ford Ranger 2.3L because the wires for the Cavalier were 7mm (Ranger wires were 8mm) and the Cavalier spark plug wires were expensive!!! Nothing was remotely special about those wires. Normally wires are maintenance items, but the OEM wires went bad sooner than what I'd consider to be normal. And I wasn't about to pay top dollar for another subpar 7mm spark plug wire. The Ranger wires were about $15-$20 back then as opposed to probably $90 for OEM-style aftermarket replacements and were better.

General Maintenance:
Oil changes. Used Exxon Superflo Synthetic, then Mobil 1, then moved to Pennzoil Platinum
Oil Filter - Religiously used Purolator Pure One in the blue can and then the gold can. When I got on BITOG, I experimented with Wix a bit.
Transmission Fluid: Used Supertech early on and then moved to Pennzoil High Mileage.
Brake pad and shoe changes.
Spark plugs
Coil Pack
Serpentine Belt
Flushed power steering pump with Valvoline Synpower
Periodic Coolant Flush
Thermostat (whenever I did a coolant flush I'd replace the thermostat).
Upstream O2 sensor (replaced periodically)
Cleaned throttle body and IAC periodically
Replaced fuel filter periodically

At the time I got rid of it (2013), it still ran fine, but the valve stem seals needed replacing and something was going on with the cooling system and since the car had zero power options and I was in a much better position in life at that point and could afford better, I had no interest in fixing it. Had it had power options, I would have kept it. Sometimes I do wish I could come across one the same year and color, but with options. I'd have somewhat of an interest in picking it up. It was very good on gas.
 
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Latest car that shoot over 300k miles was BMW E61 525d that I had in Bosnia.
so in no particular order:
Lots of oil changes
Lots of all filters.
EGR valve
Two water pumps
Three thermostats.
One complete suspension overhaul as car was constantly blasting 120-130mph on hwy’s there.
several transmission fluid refills (every 60k) with new pan/filter.
several brake rotors and pad kits.
numerous brake flushes.
one battery
One expansion reservoir
Once complete replacement of coolant hoses
Radiator
One set of all glow plugs
Several steering fluid flushes.
once steering pump
Every 60k transfer case fluid and differential fluids.
Car never had any big mechanical issue, never left on the road, never refused to start. At the end I think it would need DPF cleaning or replacement but car was sold.
 
1995.5 Toyota Tacoma (Totally stripped, base model' regular cab, 4cyl, 5spd MT, no ac, no power anything)
15 years / 379,000 miles (~80% highway, no towing or OR, mostly commuter)

- Oil change every 5-8k (First 100k was whatever was on sale, last 279k was Mobil-1 5w30 and OEM filter)
- Plugs, filters, pvc, coolant every few years or so
- a few batteries and don't remember how many sets of tires

Around the 10 year ~250k mark there were some minor problems that triggered me to do a lot of extra preventive maintenance (And preemptive replacement):

- Engine fan assembly (Was making a grinding sound, this was the closest I ever had to a break-down)
- belts, hoses, thermostat
- master cylinder
- U joints and rear diff fluid
- Cat back exhaust
- Catalytic converter and O2 Sensors (Trying to get rid of CEL)
- Drivers Window crank (Manual LOL)
- Clutch
- Heater fan (Wires leading to it fried)

FWIW:
- Went the whole 15 years on the original rear drums and shoes (Might have cleaned them once or twice I think)
- 1 or 2 sets of front pads (But never replaced the original rotors)
- Never changed or even checked the manual transmission fluid
- I used BG "MOA" for about 10 years (Kinda regret spending the money on that)
- At the end it was due for a front end rebuild and exhaust system. Power was down a little; a mountain I crossed every day could no longer be done in 5th gear. Front (bench) seat was about shot and started to have some rust in the wheel wells and tailgate... Other than that I was mostly just sick of it and not having a/c
- Paid $10k new, got $2,700 as a trade in
 
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I'll try to recall from memory as best as I can.
1998 Chevrolet Cavalier
2.2L Engine
359,833 miles
Took ownership around 9,000 miles after totaling a 1997 Cavalier in sometime late 97/early 98.

During the time of ownership.
While under warranty:
Head Gasket Replacement

After warranty repairs:
Two belt tensioners (could be considered maintenance)
Gear shifter cable
EGR Valve
ABS Sensors
Starter
Alternator
A few batteries
Catalytic Converter
Fuel Pump
Radiator
Two water pumps (possibly three)
Front wheel bearings
Brake light/taillight connectors (the part between the harness and bulb melted)
A/C died - never did fix it, but it was good for about 280k miles.
Emergency Brake cable
Spark plug wires - I used wires for a Ford Ranger 2.3L because the wires for the Cavalier were 7mm (Ranger wires were 8mm) and the Cavalier spark plug wires were expensive!!! Nothing was remotely special about those wires. Normally wires are maintenance items, but the OEM wires went bad sooner than what I'd consider to be normal. And I wasn't about to pay top dollar for another subpar 7mm spark plug wire. The Ranger wires were about $15-$20 back then as opposed to probably $90 for OEM-style aftermarket replacements and were better.

General Maintenance:
Oil changes. Used Exxon Superflo Synthetic, then Mobil 1, then moved to Pennzoil Platinum
Oil Filter - Religiously used Purolator Pure One in the blue can and then the gold can. When I got on BITOG, I experimented with Wix a bit.
Transmission Fluid: Used Supertech early on and then moved to Pennzoil High Mileage.
Brake pad and shoe changes.
Spark plugs
Coil Pack
Serpentine Belt
Flushed power steering pump with Valvoline Synpower
Periodic Coolant Flush
Thermostat (whenever I did a coolant flush I'd replace the thermostat).
Upstream O2 sensor (replaced periodically)
Cleaned throttle body and IAC periodically
Replaced fuel filter periodically

At the time I got rid of it (2013), it still ran fine, but the valve stem seals needed replacing and something was going on with the cooling system and since the car had zero power options and I was in a much better position in life at that point and could afford better, I had no interest in fixing it. Had it had power options, I would have kept it. Sometimes I do wish I could come across one the same year and color, but with options. I'd have somewhat of an interest in picking it up. It was very good on gas.
That’s a lot of repairs, but then again, that’s a ton of miles. Your experience feels a bit similar to mine (with repairs), except you went a good amount further. I’d say this car was reasonably reliable for you. Nice job with it!
 
1995.5 Toyota Tacoma (Totally stripped, base model' regular cab, 4cyl, 5spd MT, no ac, no power anything)
15 years / 379,000 miles (~80% highway, no towing or OR, mostly commuter)

- Oil change every 5-8k (First 100k was whatever was on sale, last 279k was Mobil-1 5w30 and OEM filter)
- Plugs, filters, pvc, coolant every few years or so
- a few batteries and don't remember how many sets of tires

Around the 10 year ~250k mark there were some minor problems that triggered me to do a lot of extra preventive maintenance (And preemptive replacement):

- Engine fan assembly (Was making a grinding sound, this was the closest I ever had to a break-down)
- belts, hoses, thermostat
- master cylinder
- U joints and rear diff fluid
- Cat back exhaust
- Catalytic converter and O2 Sensors (Trying to get rid of CEL)
- Drivers Window crank (Manual LOL)
- Clutch
- Heater fan (Wires leading to it fried)

FWIW:
- Went the whole 15 years on the original rear drums and shoes (Might have cleaned them once or twice I think)
- 1 or 2 sets of front pads (But never replaced the original rotors)
- Never changed or even checked the manual transmission fluid
- I used BG "MOA" for about 10 years (Kinda regret spending the money on that)
- At the end it was due for a front end rebuild and exhaust system. Power was down a little; a mountain I crossed every day could no longer be done in 5th gear. Front (bench) seat was about shot and started to have some rust in the wheel wells and tailgate... Other than that I was mostly just sick of it and not having a/c
- Paid $10k new, got $2,700 as a trade in
As soon as I read “1995 Toyota Tacoma base model”, I knew you weren’t going to have many repairs. Lol.

Those things were legends for reliability, that and the 4-runners. The old camrys and Honda Accords. Nissan pickups. Just high mileage warriors!
 
Ended up having to respect both left and right ball joints now.

Good thing tire guy noticed a problem when swapping winter/all seasons at some independent tire shop as the Honda dealer never noticed a thing wrong with them just last October. Is it realistically possible ( didn’t do much driving since last fall due to not working now ) that they could both be o.k last fall but both not be o.k in easily spring when not driven much? I am wondering if the Honda dealer missed it last service?
 
1982 Celica, AC, power steering, manual windows and locks, 5 speed manual, 195,000 when sold in perfect running order. A couple water pumps, one thermostat, one radiator, probably six sets of plugs and a couple sets of wires, few distributor caps and rotors, two or three sets of front brakes, one set of rear brakes, 1 set of hoses, probably 6 or 8 fuel filters, a few air filters, one alternator, a few cans of R12 freon. One clutch and TO bearing. one set of shocks and struts. One fuel pump. Had the front seats recovered once. A few batteries.

I bought this car in 1984 it had 32000 miles, sold in 2000 with 195k.

Never once was towed, or left me stranded. Very reliable car and fun to drive. The tires always wore out evenly, and barely used any oil at the very end.
 
Ended up having to respect both left and right ball joints now.

Good thing tire guy noticed a problem when swapping winter/all seasons at some independent tire shop as the Honda dealer never noticed a thing wrong with them just last October. Is it realistically possible ( didn’t do much driving since last fall due to not working now ) that they could both be o.k last fall but both not be o.k in easily spring when not driven much? I am wondering if the Honda dealer missed it last service?
It depends on what type of service you last had at Honda. Some techs aren’t going to check ball joints, they may move the tire side to side when it’s up on the air to check the tie rods, and they may move it up and down at the 12 and 6 o’clock position, but to truly inspect the ball joint on a Honda you must put a floor Jack under the lower control arm and bar it. A lot of techs might not bother to do that unless you ask for it. So, yeah. It might have been missed at your last service for sure. And you may not have had that much play in the ball joints...some guys will determine/say, it’s failed, while others might not. I’ve seen that many times. And lastly (long rant), yes, your ball joint could have failed over the winter...it could have been questionable to begin with and winter driving (pot holes) easily could have sent it to failure range.
 
It depends on what type of service you last had at Honda. Some techs aren’t going to check ball joints, they may move the tire side to side when it’s up on the air to check the tie rods, and they may move it up and down at the 12 and 6 o’clock position, but to truly inspect the ball joint on a Honda you must put a floor Jack under the lower control arm and bar it. A lot of techs might not bother to do that unless you ask for it. So, yeah. It might have been missed at your last service for sure. And you may not have had that much play in the ball joints...some guys will determine/say, it’s failed, while others might not. I’ve seen that many times. And lastly (long rant), yes, your ball joint could have failed over the winter...it could have been questionable to begin with and winter driving (pot holes) easily could have sent it to failure range.
Thanks.

Last fall, at the Honda dealership, it had the most comprehensive service inspection done ( B1).

Weird how an independent tire shop was the way I found out even though I never asked for anything other than to swap my tires ( winters off ).

The manager of the tire shop said it’s not uncommon that they find stuff ( this tire shop also does all the same maintenance any car dealer does ) wrong with vehicles that the owners say are routinely serviced at dealerships ( those preventative maintenance inspections ) , even fleet vehicles.

You would think the dealer would check the ball joints on a car with super high mileage like mine but like you said, it’s possible they were o.k last time I brought in in but I am suspicious. I am not working now ( since Feb ) and I wasn’t driving nearly as much since March 2020. I am a careful driver, I didn’t hit any potholes ( I make jokes because my wife HAS done serious damage to her car because the roads are bad but they can be avoided if your careful ). My wife has to replace a blown tire/rim plus other stuff ....she drives too close to other cars ( not enough distance to see ) , through large puddles which is playing with fire when driving on bad roads. Certain roads I would avoid at night because they are harder to see. Pot hole radar would be a nice option to buy lol. Satellite image of the road ahead on the screen ( kidding ).

Reminds me of the time my moms car ( Toyota ) had a flat tire so I went to get the spare out from trunk and it was completely flat. I called ( she was fussy like me with those inspections ) the Toyota dealer later and asked do they not check the tire pressure ( they say they do ...” tire pressures checked“ ) of the spare tire and they said no.

Makes me sort of not want to bother with the “ inspections” anymore within reason.

**it’s not as if these inspections have ever found anything wrong in my car anyways ( except with brake pads/rotors ) as I am the one who noticed something wrong and had the car brought in to have them check it ( needed new a/c, new wheel bearing ....that’s it , until now ). Even with brakes ( good idea to have them lube slider pins once a year or have an annual brake inspection ) , I could wait until I hear the wear indicators making noise.

Makes me wonder.




MAIN ITEM B/B1
Factory Recommended Maintenance
  • Replace engine oil* and filter.
  • Service front and rear brakes.
  • Check parking brake adjustments.
  • Rotate tires**, inspect for wear and adjust pressure.
  • Inspect tie rod ends, steering gear box and boots.
  • Inspect suspension components.
  • Inspect driveshaft boots.
  • Inspect brake hoses and lines (including ABS/VSA).
  • Check all fluid levels and condition of fluids.
  • Inspect exhaust system.
  • Inspect fuel lines and connections.
 
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My 2003 civic coupe is now over 250k on it, I legit haven't done anything but standard maintenance. The only thing it needs currently is a radiator fan as one of the motors died, but it's been that way for years lol. Will try to take care of that this year.
 
204,000 miles on my Crown Vic. Bought it used six years ago at 117,000 miles. The VIN report showed all the dates it had been taken in for regular service up to 100,000 miles. The dealership that serviced it looked up the VIN and told me it had never needed any repairs, only maintenance by the book.

Since I've had it, the only repairs have been a leaking differential seal and re-solder a connection in the circuitboard in the dash that shows the odometer reading. It's a known bug with 2008's. The EPA ordered Ford to use a lead-free solder that didn't hold up well. Fortunately, one of the shops that specializes in that repair was just a few miles down the road from where I lived. They removed the dash, fixed the circuitboard and put it all back togerther again while I waited, for under a hundred bucks. The A/C blend door motor is broken but I'm not going to repair it.

Other than that it's just been maintenance as needed when I take it in for 10K oil changes: Rear shocks when I bought it, power steering and brake fluid (once), lower radiator hose (twice), radiator flush (twice), transmission drain and fills (fluid stays cherry red), front brake pads and rotors (once), fuel filter (once), air filters, two sets of tires rotated every 6000 miles, wiper blades, replaced the windshield (once) because of sand pitting, and most recently a freon charge.
 
204,000 miles on my Crown Vic. Bought it used six years ago at 117,000 miles. The VIN report showed all the dates it had been taken in for regular service up to 100,000 miles. The dealership that serviced it looked up the VIN and told me it had never needed any repairs, only maintenance by the book.

Since I've had it, the only repairs have been a leaking differential seal and re-solder a connection in the circuitboard in the dash that shows the odometer reading. It's a known bug with 2008's. The EPA ordered Ford to use a lead-free solder that didn't hold up well. Fortunately, one of the shops that specializes in that repair was just a few miles down the road from where I lived. They removed the dash, fixed the circuitboard and put it all back togerther again while I waited, for under a hundred bucks. The A/C blend door motor is broken but I'm not going to repair it.

Other than that it's just been maintenance as needed when I take it in for 10K oil changes: Rear shocks when I bought it, power steering and brake fluid (once), lower radiator hose (twice), radiator flush (twice), transmission drain and fills (fluid stays cherry red), front brake pads and rotors (once), fuel filter (once), air filters, two sets of tires rotated every 6000 miles, wiper blades, replaced the windshield (once) because of sand pitting, and most recently a freon charge.
Yeah, those crown vics were legends for reliability. Think about all the police cars and the abuse they took, sitting there idling or hammering the gas pedal. Very reliable cars.
 
I had a 96 Maxima SE 5 speed at close to 200k before I got rid of it. It had about 15k on it when I bought it in 98. Full list of what was done to it:

Ignition switch replaced
One of the hoses for the power steering was fixed under warranty just before 36k
In the end when I let it go, one of the hoses for the clutch had a slow leak
I think I might have had a CV boot/axle done on it once or twice
Serpentine belt replaced

Everything else was just regular maintenance stuff like brakes, battery, spark plugs, lights, etc.

I ran Mobil 1 oil and filters in it when I first got it but most of it's life it got changes at quick lube places because I lived somewhere where I couldn't change it myself. I regularly drove that car hard for 15 years. It didn't burn any noticeable amount of oil and it ran just as good the last time I drove it as the first time.
 
1995 Villager (Nissan Maxima driveline) 240k miles when we sold it; it still ran great
- a couple of water pumps and cam belts
- a motor mount 2x
- typical consumables (brakes, rotors, tires, plugs, shocks/struts, etc)
Bought new: I started out with syns at 3k miles, then 5k miles, then started running dino oils at 10k miles after warranty ran out; never any difference in wear rates despite the differences in oil and filter brands and OCI durations. UOAs posted on BITOG. It was the quintessential soccer-mom vehicle; start/stop all day long, short trips, etc. Ran like a champ it's entire life.

2005 Grand Marquis (4.6L 2v) 270k miles when we sold it; still ran great
- a couple of water pumps
- intake manifold
- typical consumables (brakes, rotors, tires, plugs, shocks/struts, etc)
- a/c accumulator receiver
- seat belt pre-tensioner (yikes that was pricey $$$, but it had to be replaced to make the warning light go out)
Bought used; started out with 5k mile dino OCIs, then went to 10k mile OCIs mostly with cheapest lubes on sale. Ran some dino/syn experiments; never made a darn bit of difference in the wear rates. UOAs posted on BITOG. Rodents ravaged it after we sold it to friends and they just let it set outside; sad end to a great car.

2000 F-250 4x2 (7.3L PSD) 275k miles when we sold it; ran fine
- oil cooler o-rings
- turbo pedestal o-rings
- cam position sensor 2x
- typical consumables (brakes, rotors, tires, shocks/struts, etc)
- the trans was going to need a rebuild soon
- typical body rust in all the right places (bed fenders, cab lower corners, etc)
These were great engines when left stock or lightly modified; they just keep chugging along. The tranny needing a rebuild was that straw that broke my son's back; didn't want to put the money into it.
 
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