The joys of owning a car with 200K miles

[supton]

Originally Posted By: Silverado12
Come down here to the South and you'll find a decent selection of cars w/o rust. It's almost like rust is an unknown phenomenon down here. I'm originally from northern WV (Morgantown) so I have experienced lots of rust issues.


Yeah, I probably will do that at some point. It'll cost an extra grand or so to acquire, but it'll have so many less issues.

 

[dlayman]

My 05 Civic got to about 285k with really no issues, then everything seemed to start to break at the same time, the door lock tumblers broke, the drivers armrest snapped off in my hand, the hood pull lever broke, steroe had problems, wheel bearings, exhaust manifold crack, other nickel and dime (and dollar) stuff. I sold it at just after 300k as my wife refused to ride in it anymore and I was getting tired of all the inconveniences of things breaking. I would have had to sink at least $2k into it to keep it roadworthy, and the developing rust made that a losing proposition. Was an unbelievably reliable car until the last 20k miles, and it saw a LOT of winter driving with lots of road salt. Was replaced by an '03 with about half the miles. Three things seem to cause the demise of these Hondas, rust, AT breakdown, or catastrophic head gasket failure (assuming timing belt and associated hardware is maintained). My 03 just started to develop an external leak and fortunately caught it early and relatively inexpensively. hopefully it will be good for awhile.

 

[mclasser]

Originally Posted By: Chris B.
What engine and tranny does your Accord have? I have a 2012 EX-L V6 with 60,000 miles. I bought it new and it has been flawless. Hope to hit 300,000 miles as well.

I've got the F23A4 4-banger and 4-spd A/T. The original tranny grenaded, like with many Hondas of this era.

Do you have VCM?

Originally Posted By: WylieCoyote
I'm glad to see mainstream auto makers moving away from timing belts. Nothing quite like a ticking time bomb under your hood, just waiting to bend all your valves.

Interestingly, when I had the t-belt changed recently, my mechanic showed me the old parts. They all looked to be factory Honda parts, which was was odd. Why? Because I gave this car to my father in the middle of its life. He said he took it to some chain shop at around 90K to have the t-belt & water pump done. I know for a fact this place wouldn't have used genuine Honda parts. So I'm wondering if this place ripped my Dad off and didn't change anything but the serpentine belts. If so, this car went 200K on the factory timing belt and water pump! Neither of us ever recall taking it to the Honda dealer for a t-belt job. The pump was in remarkable condition. No pits or scoring on the impellers, smooth bearing. Belts (both timing & balancer) also looked good but they could still snap without warning due to age. This means there was a ticking time bomb under the hood, and we didn't even know it! I'm going to post pics when I get a chance.

 

[Kuato]

Originally Posted By: Silverado12


Come down here to the South and you'll find a decent selection of cars w/o rust. It's almost like rust is an unknown phenomenon down here. I'm originally from northern WV (Morgantown) so I have experienced lots of rust issues.


Go Mountaineers! (WV Alum here)

 

[SirTanon]

Dunno about you, but my biggest joy in owning a car with 200,000+ miles is that I have 0 payments on it..

 

[Nick1994]

Originally Posted By: supton
Originally Posted By: Silverado12
Come down here to the South and you'll find a decent selection of cars w/o rust. It's almost like rust is an unknown phenomenon down here. I'm originally from northern WV (Morgantown) so I have experienced lots of rust issues.


Yeah, I probably will do that at some point. It'll cost an extra grand or so to acquire, but it'll have so many less issues.
I still think a 97-01 Camry would be good for you, even if you only kept it for 2 years.

Maybe buy the wife a new car and take over the 2011 and take it close to 300k. It really should do 300,000 miles with much less repairs than the Jetta.

 

[MiKe3o]

Originally Posted By: zzyzzx
Just imagine how much more joy you can have if you live someplace where cars rust.


Just hit 200k with a 5.0 mountaineer engine and trans great, but there is more rust and rust stains on the ground everyday. Dumb MD weather

 

[sciphi]

138k miles on my Cruze. I'm hoping to hit 300k miles. We'll see...

 

[dlayman]

Originally Posted By: mclasser
Originally Posted By: Chris B.
What engine and tranny does your Accord have? I have a 2012 EX-L V6 with 60,000 miles. I bought it new and it has been flawless. Hope to hit 300,000 miles as well.

I've got the F23A4 4-banger and 4-spd A/T. The original tranny grenaded, like with many Hondas of this era.

Do you have VCM?

Originally Posted By: WylieCoyote
I'm glad to see mainstream auto makers moving away from timing belts. Nothing quite like a ticking time bomb under your hood, just waiting to bend all your valves.

Interestingly, when I had the t-belt changed recently, my mechanic showed me the old parts. They all looked to be factory Honda parts, which was was odd. Why? Because I gave this car to my father in the middle of its life. He said he took it to some chain shop at around 90K to have the t-belt & water pump done. I know for a fact this place wouldn't have used genuine Honda parts. So I'm wondering if this place ripped my Dad off and didn't change anything but the serpentine belts. If so, this car went 200K on the factory timing belt and water pump! Neither of us ever recall taking it to the Honda dealer for a t-belt job. The pump was in remarkable condition. No pits or scoring on the impellers, smooth bearing. Belts (both timing & balancer) also looked good but they could still snap without warning due to age. This means there was a ticking time bomb under the hood, and we didn't even know it! I'm going to post pics when I get a chance.


Confession time: I let the timing belt change slide on my Civic after the first one, not thinking I'd be keeping the car so long. It went over 300k (almost 12 years)on the factory water pump and tensioners, and over 200k (almost 9 years) on its second timing belt. Honda seems to make these parts very robust. I won't push my luck like that again on the 03 I just acquired.

 

[B320i]

Parents had a 1993 Toyota Land-Cruiser with the N/A 1HZ Diesel engine.
Was purchased from a country doctor in 1995. Is now at 470,000km (292K miles), had an engine rebuild in 2012 at 433k km/270k miles, the transmission was overhauled in 2009 in the latter 300,000's (200-220k miles) and the original clutch replaced.

The vehicle has been used from anything from a country daily-driver in its early days, to suburban grocery-getter, road-tripper, to an "expedition" role related to my father's work. Its primary role now is towing a large boat, but also as a DD. The vehicle is mostly stock.

Only issues have been the front and rear middle seat-belts failing, and an A/C that could never hold a charge... Despite compressor replacement, evaporator, hoses, seals, leak indicators. Everything!

Unfortunately, the other higher-mileage vehicle we've had, a 1992 "Everglade" coloured Ford Falcon GLi ("EB" series) with the 4L inline-6, did not cope so well transitioning from the country/highway lifestyle to the city. It was in the "danger zone" mentioned by a previous poster.
Several head-gaskets, warped brakes and who knows what else (was too young at the time to really know).

Maintenance issues aside, plus the rather heft fuel consumption... It gave a smooth and very comfortable ride. Its not something that modern vehicles really achieve, or even my '93 BMW, which does find every bump. Great to drive, and presumably part of the experience, but not always desired.

Then there's my '93 BMW, my first car, bought off family. Now has 211,000km/131K miles after 3 years ownership. Have spent about AU$2K getting it "up to speed" on cooling system work (which was overdue), shocks/struts/springs, trans & diff oil changes. Servicing at an Indy twice doubled that, but not because of any work done as such... Its just that labour costs nearly $150/hr down-under.

Aside from a pinging issue at present, its economical, comfortable and fun to drive. unfortunately saddled with Siemens electronics rather than Bosch - increasing cost of replacement parts.

 

[69GTX]

Originally Posted By: supton
Originally Posted By: 69GTX
I've had a couple cars go over the 200K mile point....and neither was joyful to me. They nickled and dimed me for considerable money from around the 125K-150K mile point. Nice lower mileage used cars are so cheap today that it just doesn't pay not to move on well before 200K miles. Now if you do all the work yourself and enjoy it, that's one thing. But even new parts cost significant money. I've yet to own a car that I didn't regret keeping it past the 150K mile point. Start by buying a 20K to 60K mile cream puff 5-8 year old car at 1/3 of MSRP and drive it for 100K miles or 6-8 years. Repeat.


How many miles do you drive/year? I do 30k+, and my VW didn't nickle and dime me. Everything was big ticket items (struts, wheel bearings, clutch, turbo) or just routine maintenance (timing belts mostly). 314k in 11 years, although in the last year I started splitting the miles between two vehicles....


Both of those cars were highway cars doing 25K miles per year 5-7 days per week. I only do 8K miles per year now so my current 2002 daily driver at 72K miles will never even make it to 125K miles during my ownership. It will be 20 yrs old then. By "nickel and dime" I was talking $200-$500 per pop on AC, radiator, brakes, exhaust, emissions, window motors, suspension/steering parts, etc. When those cars were worth only $3K or less, I put another $1K-$2K into them which was foolish imo. I almost always pay cash for my cars so I've only had car payments twice in my 40 years of ownership...out of about 2 dozen cars. Never owned a new car. 22K miles is the lowest mileage daily driver I've ever purchased (7 yr old car).

 

[Robenstein]

Originally Posted By: zzyzzx
Just imagine how much more joy you can have if you live someplace where cars rust.


You would have to be a masochist to have any joy in that case. lol

 

[Chris B.]

Originally Posted By: mclasser
Originally Posted By: Chris B.
What engine and tranny does your Accord have? I have a 2012 EX-L V6 with 60,000 miles. I bought it new and it has been flawless. Hope to hit 300,000 miles as well.

I've got the F23A4 4-banger and 4-spd A/T. The original tranny grenaded, like with many Hondas of this era.

Do you have VCM?


Yes, my V6 is a VCM engine and burns zero oil using Mobil 1 0w20 and 5,000 mile OCI. Tranny is a 5 speed auto. Drain and fill every 15,000 miles...flawless so far.

 

[CBR.worm]

When I used to drive 40K a year, cars would last over 200K with minimal repairs. Now that I drive ~ 15K a year and minimal highway, they seem to need a lot more work.

I like having no car payments, but in the last 12 months (between 125K and 145K), I have spent a bit of money fixing little things on a relatively expensive 150K Japanese SUV. It averaged out to be almost $500 a month, not including oil changes, etc. I do all the work myself. Granted, in the previous 10 years it has required very few repairs aside from tires/brakes/oil, etc. Overall cost of ownership has been low, but if this trend doesn't reverse directions soon...

Door lock brain: $300 part
Front driveshaft: $500 part
Tires: $1060
Shocks/struts misc susp: $1250 parts
rear Differential bushing: $900
Starter: $450 part
Radiator fan and clutch: $300
Front wheel bearings: $350
Pads and rotors: $550
ABS Sensor: 214

Other than the door lock piece, everything is normal wear and tear for an 11 year old vehicle, but $500 a month could get me a decent vehicle.

By comparison, our 9 year old 100K BMW has required the following in the last year:

Cooling system (had a small leak due to a dealer manhandling a fitting, replaced everything as PM since they usually last about 105K miles) : $1,300

Big bill, but averages out to be ~$100 a month.

Previous years have been similar with the BMW.

 

[supton]

Originally Posted By: Nick1994
I still think a 97-01 Camry would be good for you, even if you only kept it for 2 years.

Maybe buy the wife a new car and take over the 2011 and take it close to 300k. It really should do 300,000 miles with much less repairs than the Jetta.


I keep my eye open for Camry's of that vintage, but that old up here probably needs steel lines and a fair amount of work to undo any fasteners. Head south and I have to tow home, and then do whatever repairs.

We looked into another vehicle for the wife, and the only thing that seemed ok was a Fit. Which was so-so, but worst of all, nothing was available in green. Has to be green and stick. Otherwise my wife isn't interested in changing cars. Me, I'm ok with most any color vehicle, although I would like to have a stick (again), as I'm getting fed up with my automatic. Silver or blue preferred, white or green ok. Forget yellow, red, black. And no all-black interiors.

 

[supton]

Originally Posted By: 69GTX
Both of those cars were highway cars doing 25K miles per year 5-7 days per week. I only do 8K miles per year now so my current 2002 daily driver at 72K miles will never even make it to 125K miles during my ownership. It will be 20 yrs old then. By "nickel and dime" I was talking $200-$500 per pop on AC, radiator, brakes, exhaust, emissions, window motors, suspension/steering parts, etc. When those cars were worth only $3K or less, I put another $1K-$2K into them which was foolish imo. I almost always pay cash for my cars so I've only had car payments twice in my 40 years of ownership...out of about 2 dozen cars. Never owned a new car. 22K miles is the lowest mileage daily driver I've ever purchased (7 yr old car).



Lucky you. I was usually out a grand whenever something came up on my VW. When I realized I was allotting about $4k I decided it was time--no matter how much I liked it, it wasn't a good move. Wound up selling it for a pittance ($1k), as I couldn't bear running it into the ground.

 

[supton]

Originally Posted By: CBR.worm
everything is normal wear and tear for an 11 year old vehicle, but $500 a month could get me a decent vehicle.


Yep, which is why so many quit before 200k. Small costs each time, but eventually it starts to look like a car payment. One just never knows if it's a trend or just a short term "all the MTBF's hit at the same time", and will then go a few years with nothing needed.

 

[DeafBrad]

We are at 256k or so with the Toyota Echo. It has been a very trouble free car, and still runs very good. With 256k miles, it may just be using 1 quart in 5000 miles. I do my own maintenance, so I probably have less than $200 in repair parts in it.

We bought it with 108k miles on it, so we drove the car almost 150k miles. I think we have gotten our money's worth.

 

[kschachn]

Originally Posted By: DeafBrad
We are at 256k or so with the Toyota Echo. It has been a very trouble free car, and still runs very good. With 256k miles, it may just be using 1 quart in 5000 miles. I do my own maintenance, so I probably have less than $200 in repair parts in it.

We bought it with 108k miles on it, so we drove the car almost 150k miles. I think we have gotten our money's worth.


My ECHO has been the most trouble-free car I have ever owned. Of course it is also one of the most simple as I don't have any accessories except A/C and a radio. Recently I had to replace the A/C evaporator and I had the exhaust welded in one spot, but that has been mostly it. Even the original Panasonic battery lasted 12 years. Unlike all my other high-mileage cars it has never had any gaskets replaced yet there are absolutely no oil or other leaks.

The clutch is starting to slip now though, so that's got to be replaced before winter.

 

[DeafBrad]

Originally Posted By: kschachn
Originally Posted By: DeafBrad
We are at 256k or so with the Toyota Echo. It has been a very trouble free car, and still runs very good. With 256k miles, it may just be using 1 quart in 5000 miles. I do my own maintenance, so I probably have less than $200 in repair parts in it.

We bought it with 108k miles on it, so we drove the car almost 150k miles. I think we have gotten our money's worth.


My ECHO has been the most trouble-free car I have ever owned. Of course it is also one of the most simple as I don't have any accessories except A/C and a radio. Recently I had to replace the A/C evaporator and I had the exhaust welded in one spot, but that has been mostly it. Even the original Panasonic battery lasted 12 years. Unlike all my other high-mileage cars it has never had any gaskets replaced yet there are absolutely no oil or other leaks.

The clutch is starting to slip now though, so that's got to be replaced before winter.


Looks like we are close in the total miles department.

My problems have been 1 bad coil, a dirty maf sensor, and water coolant temperature sensor. My clutch does shudder, but it has done that since we got the car and hasn't seemed to get worse.

This car gets awesome gas mileage. It isn't too difficult to get 50 mpgs.