Turned 150,000 miles yesterday

[disneysteve]

My 98 Camry hit 150,000 miles yesterday. That is the most miles I've ever put on a car. My last car, a 91 Camry, had 127,000 when I replaced it.

Our van, a 2000 Sienna, is at about 142,000 so not far behind.

[photo]

Originally Posted by disneysteve

My 98 Camry hit 150,000 miles yesterday. That is the most miles I've ever put on a car. My last car, a 91 Camry, had 127,000 when I replaced it.

Our van, a 2000 Sienna, is at about 142,000 so not far behind.

Your Toyotas should have a lot more life left in them. It's not unusual for them to reach 250,000 at least according to our mechanic.

[bjl584]

Congrats.

Just keep up with regular maintenance and you should get a lot more life out of both cars. My friends girlfriend has a 89 Toyota Corolla with over 200K on it, and it's still running strong.

[Like2Plan]

That is really sweet to have a car that has provided good reliable service for so many miles!

I'll never catch up to your mileage, unless I have some help. I've driven my car about once a week since I retired. I've filled the tank up once in the last 81 days and the gas gauge is sitting on 3/4 full.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by bjl584

My friends girlfriend has a 89 Toyota Corolla with over 200K on it, and it's still running strong.

My medical assistant recently replaced a 98 Corolla with 330,000 miles on it.

[bjl584]

Originally Posted by disneysteve

My medical assistant recently replaced a 98 Corolla with 330,000 miles on it.

Toyotas are known for going and going.

At what point do you think it will be time to replace your cars? Do you have a mile target, such as 200,000? Or, are you planning on keeping them until you feel it isn't safe and reliable anymore?

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by bjl584

Toyotas are known for going and going.

At what point do you think it will be time to replace your cars? Do you have a mile target, such as 200,000? Or, are you planning on keeping them until you feel it isn't safe and reliable anymore?

I don't have a specific target. It is more about safety, reliability and expense.

You may recall I posted a little while ago that it might be time to replace the Sienna. I had taken it for service and they wanted $2,500 to make the repairs (at the agency). I procrastinated for a few weeks and then took it to an independent mechanic recommended by AAA. They did the basic work needed for $540. That wasn't everything included in the $2,500 quote but it was the major part of it. Had it truly needed $2,500 worth of work, I probably would have considered replacing it. $2,500 plus the sale/trade value would have been a nice chunk of the cost of a newer used van.

[snshijuptr]

Good to know cars last that long. We are about to turn in my lease in April, and I'm hoping to get another, more baby friendly car in August (we already have the cash saved). I'm going to transfer our lease payment toward saving for future cars, but I'm debating how much more I want to add to that. I figured new cars every 10 years minimum would be a good estimate. It looks like if I figure on that then we will have enough by the time the cars die at 12-15 years old.

[Shewillbemine]

Nice! My beater car is at 160,000 miles. I want it to last even longer but she's stalled a few times and I'm not sure it'll be worth it to pay for repairs.

[dawnwes]

Glad you finally broke it in!

Our Sequoia just turned over 100,000 miles (I think we are almost at 105K now) and it drives like the day we bought it (ok, other than a battery dying in the Disney parking lot but that is another story and just a battery.)

Dawn

[97guns]

the cheapest thing you can do for your car is change the oil. i laugh at these somewhat newer cars i see on the road that are spewing smoke, probably never ever had an oil change.

one time i looked at a co workers oil level and the oil was like a light grease on the dipstick, i asked her when the last time she changed the oil and she said never, she just adds a quart every year and the car was 12 years old.

[seen]

Grats. My '04 Civic hit 150k last month, and it still purrs like the day I first got it.

[MonkeyMama]

Originally Posted by 97guns

the cheapest thing you can do for your car is change the oil. i laugh at these somewhat newer cars i see on the road that are spewing smoke, probably never ever had an oil change.

one time i looked at a co workers oil level and the oil was like a light grease on the dipstick, i asked her when the last time she changed the oil and she said never, she just adds a quart every year and the car was 12 years old.

So true!!

[greenskeeper]

The best thing for an engine is to run for long periods of time. Once up to operating temp there is virtually zero wear. What kills engines is cold starts and not doing required maintenance.

I would buy a higher mileage car with good records than a lower mileage car with none.

[elessar78]

about 160K on my 2003 Accord!

[wincrasher]

My 2009 Hyundai Genesis is the only car I've ever had that I didn't want to get rid of after 3 years.

It's the general condition that makes me want to get rid of them - the rock chips, the door dings, the little pieces falling off.

Just about any car today can last for loads of miles. It's the rest of the car that's usually a problem.

At my last service, the technician recommended I go with the 60,000 mile service - almost $700! Bunch of checks and fluid flushes/changes. Seems like a lot, so I'm mulling. Got 5,000 to go until it's really necessary, so I may shop it around.

My Hyundai is not without issues - sometimes you get the weird noise, or the Nav/electronics pop and then reboot, sometimes it hard shifts. All these seem like electronic "glitches" every once in a while and nothing to really worry about. But the drivetrain is exceptionally smooth and it get's terrific mileage, so I'm going to keep this one.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by wincrasher

My 2009 Hyundai Genesis is the only car I've ever had that I didn't want to get rid of after 3 years.

It's the general condition that makes me want to get rid of them - the rock chips, the door dings, the little pieces falling off.

Just about any car today can last for loads of miles. It's the rest of the car that's usually a problem.

One look at either of our cars and you'd know that we aren't about the appearance.

Both front door panels on my Camry are stretched so that you can see the inside stuffing along the window button panel. The seat belt lights flash on our van. The sensor went bad but I was assured that it had nothing to do with the safety or effectiveness of the belts. It's just the light, so it keeps flashing because I'm not spending $400 to replace it. With a 12 and 14 year old car, there are loads of scratches and dings that have accumulated over the years. Who cares? As long as the car is mechanically sound and drives well, it's fine with us.

[kork13]

I can't imagine keeping a car that long. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to, and I plan to keep my next car (once I return to the states) for as long as reasonably possible... but a 13 year old car is (relatively) ancient!

My only experience in this respect is my first car, which was an '89 Mitsubishi Galant with 240k miles on it. The thing was a piece, and everybody knew it. But it ran, right up until (and technically after) a truck hit me -- it was 15 years old at that point. Although it worked, it was in terrible shape, and destined for the junk yard.

I can respect the desire and motivation to keep a car for as long as it continues to work, but I think most cars (and/or perhaps their owners) simply aren't built to last more than 8 years or so... just from my limited experience.

[uRabbit]

Get excited when you hit 200k. IMO, cars should last at LEAST 250,000. Mine do/will, because I hypermile.

[bjl584]

Originally Posted by uRabbit

Get excited when you hit 200k. IMO, cars should last at LEAST 250,000. Mine do/will, because I hypermile.

hypermile? Is that like hypercommuting, driving a long distance to work?