Those with 150,000 miles or more, check in

[Bob The Builder]

1996 Toyota Tacoma, has a 2.4l 4 cylinder 16 valve, aluminum head, cast iron block, 266,810 miles as of today. Same engine, valve clearances checked one time and left alone, because they were fine.

I have never had to replace anything. I have been fortunate, and pray that it keeps being reliable. I change the antifreeze, power steering fluid, oil, tranny and diff fluid regularly. Heck, I even change the brake fluid occasionally.

I do seem to go through clutches a lot though. How the heck long are those things supposed to last anyway? Maybe I should re-phrase that. How long should they last for lead feet?

Well, that's it.

BtB

 

[Terry]

190,000 miles on 88 olds cutlass calais quad 4 ( original )engine !

Pennzoil straight 30w used for most of its life.

Now uses GC 0w-30 and LC.

Uses premium fuel and FP every tank.

Gets 34 MPG on hwy and 30 around town. I have tricked it a bit.......chemcially mostly.

Factory header/long tube intake. Transmission is falling apart but Synergyn racing ATF works real well when it isn't spewing past out put shaft seals( bushings shot).

Fast little ugly dented dried up red car.

 

[lukey]

85 Toyota Camry I've had for 11 years as my beater car now but main transportation back then. 4 cyl Automatic had 53k miles on it when I bought it. 205k miles on it now. I changed oil every April and December, 10w-40 Castrol in Dec and Castrol 20w-50 in April. Car is falling apart but engine runs decent except for consuming oil (1000 miles per qt. approx).
I've since repented of being a heavy oil guy since
being on this board (LOL).

Lukey

 

[454MAG]

94 Pontiac Formula 5.7 LT1 currently at 210,000 miles. M1-10/30 or 10/30-15/50 mix at 10,000 mile intervals since new. Still runs like the day I bought it. 100 mile a day daily driver and sees redline twice a day. Never had the valve covers off but currently on fourth opti. Also has original 4l60e with M1 fluid changed every 100k miles. Still smokes the tires all the way through 1st gear. Currently getting 25.3 MPG after recent plugs and opti.

87 chevy 4x4 PU 225k miles on 305 TBI waas very tired when taken off road and used for a wood truck. Still runs but probably only puts out as much HP as your average new honda or toyota --- pathetic

 

[PF52]

Its possible I may have posted in this topic already, so if so I apologize.

I had a 1991 Beretta with the 3.1 V6, owned since brand new. Retired it in June 2004, when an 18-year old kid with a big GMC pickup hit me and sent me to the emergency room. Caved in the trunk nearly up to the rear window. Pushed me into the guy in front of me too, which caved in the new radiator I had just put in.

My poor car had 318,000 miles on it, 100% oiled by Pennzoil since day one. About a year ago, I posted a pic of a cylinder head with the valve cover off; it was VERY clean. Absolutely no sludge or varnish. I don't believe the Pennzoil myth that perpetuates most other car boards.

Anyway, now I am driving my S-10 pickup which I'm unsure of the oil history, although knowing it was my dad's I'm certain the change interval wasn't the greatest.

 

[MADMIKE]

1992 Mazda 323 with 274,000 miles using nothing but Wal-Mart Supertech oil (5w-30) and filters with strict 3,000 mile OCI's.

 

[TonyMazz]

I have a 1999 Chevy Blazer LS 4.3L (W) motor that has 160,000 and going strong.

Raised on Dino Oil and X2 Fram Filters strict 3K OCI, now run Castrol GTX dino and AC-Delco Filter.

Ran my first UOA (posted in UOA section) and results were outstanding. Has convinced me that this motor remains strong and will keep running it with hopes of 300K.

I am a firm believer of 3K OCI since I came from a drag racing family....it's just what we did....

It's cheap insurance ...and now I am reaping the benefits of it...no knock, tick, and no oil burning....

 

[Eigeraholic]

1990 GMC S15 2WD, 4.3 V6. 265,000 before truck was stolen and stripped. Used about 1/2 qt every 2,000 miles. 0-190,000 Kendal 10-30 (bulk oil at work) Napa filters, use for local and long haul deliveries. Oil changes were every 3k-5k. I bought the truck at 190,000 and changed the oil every 2k with what ever was cheep with Fram filters.
Plugs and wires were the only thing done to this truck up to 190,000. When I bought it I noticed it have very little heat in the winter. Changed the thermostat to a 180 degree and it got a little warmer. I think it lasted that long because of a faulty thermostat. My opinion though.

 

[k1xv]

1991 Infiniti Q45, 160K miles.

The first 90K miles, oil changes every 3500 miles or so with whatever the dealer used (I think it was usually QS 10-30. 90K-120K miles, oil changes every 5K using M1 10-30

120K to present, oil changes every 6K using Shell Rotella Syn 5w-40. The car is now driven in a rural/interstate environment.

No oil use, runs like new.

I also had (don't laugh) a 1985 Audi 5000 turbo. I sold this car to my mechanic at 150K miles. Over the life of this car, everything mechanical broke at least once, other than the engine, which used no oil at all. This car mostly got 15w-40 Valvoline All Fleet, changed every 3K miles.

 

[LarryL]

1984 Honda Civic wagon, 376k, never opened, but a new camshaft about 100k ago, one lobe started to wear down. Broken in on dyno oil, then Castrol Syntec for a couple of years, then a couple of years on Mobil 1 and the rest on Red Line. I've gone from 5w-30 to 5w-50 (Syntec) back to 5w-30 (Mobil 1) then to Red Line. As the miles piled on I went to 10w-30, 10w-40 and finally 20w-50. It's 5k changes and it burns a half quart between changes.

Compression is still at brand new levels and even in every cylinder. The only non-scheduled work has been a camshaft with valve seals and one radiator. I consider the water pump in this engie a wear item like spark plugs, and it's had one at each 60k belt change. So the too thick Red Line oil only suitable for racing is doing just fine.

Part of all this is that I live in Southern California and treat the car well while driving. I've only replaced the clutch twice and the CV joints once. The brakes have only been done three times, so driving style and conditions may be just as important as maintence for making a car last a long time. My only problem is that I have a good car that is worth nothing (except to me).

 

[opus1]

I don't own this vehicle anymore, but I had a 1989 GMC S-15 Jimmy 4x4 with the 4.3L V-6 and automatic transmission that I bought new and put over 158,000 miles on. I used regular oil only (no synthetics) and only AC Delco filters, changed oil and filter religiously at 3000 miles except for the 11 months when I had a ridiculous commute and was putting close to 600 miles a week on the clock. Since it was 85% interstate driving, non-rush hour on top of it, I let the interval slide to 4000 miles. Engine and transmission were never worked on except for a new water pump at about 100,000 miles and replacing ATF every 30-40,000 miles. The engine burned very little oil towards the end, maybe a half-quart if that. I wound up getting rid of the truck in 2001 for several reasons, none of them having to do with the engine or drivetrain though.

 

[Michael Polutta]

I' m the original owner of a 1989 Mazda MX-6 GT. 2.2L 12 valve turbo. Just turned 200,000 miles last Thursday. Still on the original clutch too.

She's been an amazing car. Still REALLY quick.

 

[harrydog]

I got rid of a 1991 Honda Civic a few years ago with over 216,000 miles on it. It still ran fine and consumed no oil. Original clutch too. The body was rusting pretty badly though.
I used mostly Castrol GTX, but sometimes Mobil 1. I also used moly additives from time to time. Started out with 3000 mile change intervals but later on switched to 5000 miles.
For most of it's life the car was not garaged and saw countless early morning start-ups at temperatures well below zero.

 

[NewGuy]

I have a 1990 Jeep Comanche with 156K miles on its 4.0L I-6. It set in the driveway since 1999 (only 3K miles from 10/99 to 2/05) and I just tuned it up and began driving it on a regular basis again. Dino only oil changes every 4-5K with whatever 10W30 was on sale

It has the original transmission and runs great. I just completed the initial treatment with ARx and will change to the rinse phase this weekend. This is a great little truck with plenty of power. It will get a diet of Havoline 10W30 or 10W40 after the ARx. I might run Delo 400 15W40 this summer.

 

[kreigle]

My Dad: 1979 Saab 900 GLE purchased new in '79 - 300k+ miles(exact # unknown due to broken odo) when it was junked in '94-'95 due to terminal rust. NO regular maintenance schedule that I can remember; he started Mobil 1 in it when it was still only a couple years old. I don't remember any oil change schedule on it (maybe 15k-25k) but it leaked like a sieve from both the valve cover and the timing chain cover. Engine never taken apart and is actually still in his garage.

Me: 1991 Honda Prelude SI 2.05 - 178k miles. 3rd owner. Previous owner did 4-5k changes at the dealer for 60k, 1st owner maint unknown(40k). Purchased in 1997 with 107k. 3-5k oil changes (whenever I remember). Currently in 2nd AutoRx rinse phase. This engine has consumed oil since I got the car, with consumption increasing over the last couple years. I have a UOA out to Butler from the 2nd clean phase and will post results when I get them.

I found out during the last year or two that the 2.05 (B21A1) engine that Honda used in the 1990-91 Preludes in prone to major oil consumption due to being an experimental FRM sleeve design (these were the first Honda engines to use this new technology). Very few people I run across online still have their B21s due to either excessive oil consumption or to spun bearings/thrown rods. Do a search on preludepower.com for 'B21' and all you will find are horror stories about this engine.

I would like to keep mine running as long as possible, but can't find any real information about what causes the problems.

 

[terminaldegree]

1995 Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera 3.1 -- 172,000 mi and still going
Castrol GTX 10W-30, AC PF-47 filters.
Engine uses no oil, and still gets the original EPA mileage. Never had an engine or cooling system problem.
4T-60E trans ate itself @ 130,000.
Sold the car to a friend last week.
From what I know the '96-03 3.1's were the ones with the troublesome intake gaskets.

 

[buster]

This thread makes most of us look like complete idiots when b@tching about small differences in PPM wear numbers.

Maybe RL is right....

 

[TheFuror]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Patman:
I just wanted to see how many people here have over 150,000 miles on their original engines, to see what kind of oil you've been using and what kind of intervals.

---

1990 Chevy Work Truck 4.3 V6 Vortec. Sold it at 179K miles, and still passed SMOG II.

I had it from 0-135K miles, then sold it and bought it back at 178K miles. Vehicle was nice when sold and beat up when returned. I used GTX 10w-30 for the time I had it, with 3K OCI (I sometimes used those bad orange filters, too, before I knew better).

Bob W.

 

[labman]

81 Pontiac Phoenix V-6, Pennzoil dino/QS 10W-30 every 6 months. Bad sludge under the valve covers as it neared 140 K. Used little oil, and good pressure. Traded for 91 Grand AM, HO Quad 4. Decided failure to follow severe maintenance schedule caused sludge problems, so went with 3 month intervals and before long switched to the recommended 5W-30. Pennzoil dino. Oil usage approached Pontiac's qt/K ''normal'' limit. Oil pressure still good when I traded it at 180K.

My poor old 77 chevy LUV only has 125K short trip, stop and go miles. Still holds 60 psi at 70 on the interstate in warm weather. Same oil and OCI as Pontiacs and now 02 Cavalier with about 60K. Not adding oil between changes on either.

 

[Waldo_vt]

Hello all:

Just had to post this one... Until 1 year ago my daily driver was an 84 SAAB 900 with over 275,000 miles. I do not know the final mileage as the odometer broke! But I know most BTOG's would be horrified to hear that for the final 4 years I changed the oil (10w40) twice a year (12,000 mile OCI) with no problems. The car still ran without any problems...

And no I do not keep this practice with my current cars.

Later