I kind of endorse the school of thought that if it costs you $500 for a timing belt etc and the car lasts you another year or two, then fine. Its either that or $5,000 for a half way decent used Accord with 90-100,000 miles on it. Or $25,000 for a new Civic. I would just drive this thing until it falls apart like the scene toward the end of The Blues Brothers.
Accordion
I’m with most of the rest. if it isn’t burning/leaking an awkward amount of oil or in a way that suggests imminent massive failure, do the various belts and keep on driving until you have a major problem. It won’t be hard to find another decent older car for you to drive into the ground. At your current mileage it doesn’t make any sense to buy anything at all recent. If you can get a seven-eight yo car with 100k miles on it, you van probably get another five years and 150k miles out of it. Most modern engines are good for it, especially easy freeway miles. My brother got 250k out of a ten yo Honda Odyssey minivan. He did have to replace the tranny once (a known problem) and was going to need another, so threw in the towel. The engine and everything else was troublefree, and he"s a courier stopping and starting his way across cities. Those Honda engines are tough. So now he has a new Odyssey. Even with the transmission weakness he still loves his Odysseys. They are very comfortable to ride in.
275k is end-of-life miles for any car. Time to trade up to a newer Civic (07-up) with no timing belt!
275k is end-of-life miles for any car.
Says who? My current 05 4runner has over 260k miles and still runs PERFECT. My 98 Pathfinder which I gave to my oldest in 06 when it had over 300k miles…was still going strong at just under 500k miles when she sold it to her ex boyfriend. Last year I still saw it on the road
+1 Honda engines are tough. In college I had an 87 Accord, not even fuel injected. Around 195,000 miles the rest of the car was pretty much shot but the engine had no significant issues. The car was 22 years old.
I now have a 99 model Accord with around 208,000 miles and no engine issues with it either. Maybe have to add half quart of oil, here and there between changes. My goal is to get as close to 250,000 as possible before I consider something else.
Accordion
You have to consider the source. MikeinNH takes exceptional care of his cars and trucks. If anyone can get 300,000+ miles out of his vehicle! he can. Most of the regulars here can, too. It’s the casual poster with a car of questionable heritage that has trouble getting to 200,000 miles.
You have to consider the source. MikeinNH takes exceptional care of his cars and trucks. If anyone can get 300,000+ miles out of his vehicle! he can. Most of the regulars here can, too. It's the casual poster with a car of questionable heritage that has trouble getting to 200,000 miles.
I don’t do much beyond the normal maintenance schedule as outlined in the owners manual. If you buy decent vehicle … then achieving 200k or even 300k miles is doable if you just follow the maintenance schedule.
Jt, I agree with you.
Mike, it seems like doing the basic maintenance IS exceptional care in today’s world! {
Buy a car with a reputation for reliability and longevity, maintain it well, don’t beat on it, and you can expect it to surpass 275,000 miles. Granted, once it gets over 200,000 miles you should expect an occasional repair to a peripheral component, like an alternator or starter, but that’s no biggie.
GeorgeSanJose This sounds like excellent advice. I will definitely be doing this. It’s nice to know that some of the valves may be relatively easy to change and I appreciate the information.
I have heard of so many Hondas reaching such high mileage I have not really considered 275,000 miles on this one to be the end of it’s life. I appreciate all the advice on checking the valves and other tests that can be done to test them. I believe I take good care of the car. I don’t do jackrabbit starts or slam on the breaks and keep up on the maintenance/oil changes (a few times I have gone over the recommended mileage for oil changes. Not proud of myself for that!)
You have to consider the source.
Yes, and a whole host of other factors too. I hate to see these mileage based longevity claims as much as people who think because they bought XYZ car that it should last until 300k miles, regardless of the usage profile they will be subjecting it to. Mileage longevity alone is irrelevant unless you consider the rest of those factors.
For example, most of the claims made in this thread appear to be from people driving 30k to 40k+ miles per year. The national average is still just around 15k miles per year. That person will take twice as long to achieve that mileage target. That’s more starts and stops, shorter trips, and worst of all, twice the lifespan in years. That’s not to mention the rest of the people who accumulate far fewer miles per year than the average. Sure, you can accumulate 300k miles in 8-10 years and not have much fall apart in that time. It’s the best case scenario for high mileage accumulation with minimal repairs. Likely longer trips per use (including highway), fewer stops and starts, short time frame of environmental exposure… What happens when you start to approach 20 years old to achieve the same mileage milestone?
Then factor in geographical area. As extremes, take Arizona desert versus the rust belt. I don’t care how good of care you exercise in the latter region, it’s going to start rusting out from under you by 10-15 years old and perhaps much sooner…whereas the car in the Arizona desert may still look like the day it came off the line underneath…
I have an '03 Camry with only 55k miles on it that is rusting away to death underneath and in the engine compartment. However, the body still has very little rust. Mainly a couple dings from highway rocks on the hood. This car will never get to 300k miles at the current rate of accumulation no matter how diligent you are at maintenance. It’s well known that underuse is really hard on cars and I have seen it play out many times.
I think the comment from rattlegas is basically right on. On average, 275k miles is about where the car will start to rot out from under you, or nickle and dime you to death, if you are an average user. That’s an 18 year old car…
I think the comment from rattlegas is basically right on. On average, 275k miles is about where the car will start to rot out from under you, or nickle and dime you to death, if you are an average user.
rattlegas made no mention of how many years. His whole comment was MILEAGE…PERIOD.
Thus that’s the only thing I commented on. Doesn’t matter if the average is 15k miles and that it would take 20 years to reach 300k miles. rattlegas made no mention of that.
Yes a car in the north east will rust out after many years. And your 03 Camry will probably rust out long before you reach 300k miles. But based on your mileage you’re driving well UNDER the national average. And if I bought a vehicle knowing full well that it might rust out on me before the engine and tranny gave out…then I’d consider spending money up front to get it rust-proofed and/or undercoated. They actually do help.
As of last year my 98 pathfinder was still on the road. Wasn’t rusted out and driving well…and approaching 500k miles.
Mike, you and many others here change the oil at 5000 miles whether it needs it or not. Most people won’t do that, and many don’t even follow the manufacturer’s recommendations. That is exceptional care.
Mike, you and many others here change the oil at 5000 miles whether it needs it or not.
How can you say weather it needs it or not? 5000 mile oil change interval is what’s outlined in my owners manual. So I’m changing the oil EXACTLY when it’s needed.
Most people won't do that, and many don't even follow the manufacturer's recommendations. That is exceptional care.
As I said…that’s the manufacturers recommendations. So you’re echoing what MB said. That by following the manufacturers recommendations is “Exceptional Care”.