2001 Dodge Caravan that I bought with 108,000 miles. I have really no history before that time, but since I have changed oil at 3,700 mile intervals, and have changed out the transmission fluid. I put on 1,000 highway miles per week (light duty.) How many miles can I reasonably expect out of this automobile before the trans or motor give out?
Without a history, who can guess? But 1000 miles of highway driving a week is pretty easy on an engine and transmission. If you change the transmission fluid every 50,000 miles, I would guess 250,000 provided it isn’t burning any oil now or shifting funny.
Hope for 200,000 miles, every mile beyond that will be a bonus. Hope for a big bonus.
I dont’ mean to sound pessimistic, but if you bought it with 100,000+ miles and no idea what maintenance was performed before you bought it, it could die any day for any reason. Timing belt is at the top of the list (pro-actively replace this if it is a belt and not a chain), A/C is on the short list (if you live in a climate where it is a must have), electrical system, drive train, engine gaskets are next.
Your best bet it to continue with the preventative maintenance, start saving the downpayment for your next car, and pray that you get to use it for a vacation rather than a down payment.
To be clear, I’m not saying that this car IS going to crap out on you, but under the circumstances, you should be preparred for the worst.
Good Luck!
I got 225k on a '90, 225k on a 96 and currently have 175k on my '01. The '85 and the '93 were not as good, but had the smaller engines.
In my experience, the body will probably go before the engine if you have the 3.0 L.