I recently bought a 2005 Chey Impala, with around 225,000 miles on it. I have no idea of the history of the car, as I bought it at a sheriffs auction, as is where is. It seems to run great, gets around 30 miles a gallon, and all in all I am very pleased.
Can anyone tell me how much longer I can expect this car to last? I live in Wyoming, with lots of miles between towns, and I am wondering if I should trade it off now, while it is running well, or keep it for a few years?
Thanks
It’s worth very little now, so just keep driving it while it lasts. When it becomes unreliable or unsafe then you can sell it for parts or scrap it. If well maintained, my guess is that you could get it to 300,000 miles easily.
Highway miles in Wyoming are very easy on a car.
Nobody knows how well it was maintained. As Docnick said, just drive it and enjoy it while it runs.
Mileage means little compared to maintenance history. I have seen quarter million and even half million mile vehicles that were in far better shape, mechanically and otherwise, than 50k mile vehicles. If you like the car, drive on, enjoy it, and prepare for maintenance, repairs, and your eventual replacement vehicle. Keep in mind also the day you end up in the shop that needed maintenance and repairs on an eight year old, quarter million mile vehicle doesn’t make it a bad car, just an aging one, and a few hundred dollars (or more, even) in repairs and maintenance a year should be expected. No sense getting rid of it since you just bought it. Might as well at least keep it long enough to get your money’s worth out of it. Trading it in won’t do that.
You Have Discovered What I Consider To Be A Gem In GM History. These Impalas Built For The 2000 Through 2005 Model Years Were Fairly Bullet-Proof, Especially With The 3.8L V-6 And/Or The LS Version.
I have first hand experience with this machine. These are tough, reliable, roomy, comfortable vehicles with surprisingly good gas economy and very few bad habits. You don’t say whether or not this was a police car or just a conventional unit, but I assumed it was the latter.
As others have pointed out, not knowing the maintenance history of this particular car, predicted life expectancy is nearly impossible, but it has a better chance than many, many other lesser vehicles to go the distance. Enjoy your treasure !
CSA