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Longest Lasting Car On The Road
I thought I would start this topic title for us to
discuss what is the longest lasting car on the
road (with the original engine and transmission) in
terms of miles. I think this is the ultimate
tribute to an automakers success and commitment.
Too often it is just brushed off to Hondas and
Toyotas but are they really what they are made out
to be? Perhaps, but can they or others not only
exceed 150k or 200k but 300k miles? The longest
lasting car I've had was a 1987 Ford Escort with
167,000 miles on it when the water-pump seized and
the timing belt snapped. It was running quite well
up to then but the body was gone so I did not fix
it. Perhaps I could have passed 200k but I don't
know. My dad's 1993 Ford Escort just passed
140,000 and he has vowed to keep it forever so I
guess I'll see if maybe his will pass the 200k+
mark....
discuss what is the longest lasting car on the
road (with the original engine and transmission) in
terms of miles. I think this is the ultimate
tribute to an automakers success and commitment.
Too often it is just brushed off to Hondas and
Toyotas but are they really what they are made out
to be? Perhaps, but can they or others not only
exceed 150k or 200k but 300k miles? The longest
lasting car I've had was a 1987 Ford Escort with
167,000 miles on it when the water-pump seized and
the timing belt snapped. It was running quite well
up to then but the body was gone so I did not fix
it. Perhaps I could have passed 200k but I don't
know. My dad's 1993 Ford Escort just passed
140,000 and he has vowed to keep it forever so I
guess I'll see if maybe his will pass the 200k+
mark....
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Comments
.030 6 mos ago. All new parts..i should be so
lucky with my '00 Chevy 2500.
My last car died at 122,000, but it was 22 years old. (1978 Grand Marquis with 400M engine and FMX trans) The engine still runs, but barely, but the transmission is as dead as Elvis. I still have that car, looking to do some major ressurection work on it after college. Maybe eventually it'll get to 300K ;-) (though not w/the original trans.)
I asked him why? They are quite wealthy. He says, "Anyone can get 150,000 miles on a Taurus, but a Chevette?"
He has had, in the past, a twenty five year old Corvair that had the floor literally rot away, and a CHEVETTE DEISEL(!) that he also got many, many miles on it. I would like to add he drives slower than molasses in January.
My next high-miler was a 1979 Newport that I bought from the junkyard in 1996 for $250. I thought it only had 130K miles on it, but when I received the old title, it stated the previous owner bought it in 1986 with 105K miles on it. So I'm guessing it was more like 230K. It needed a new tranny, but after that lasted to about 250K miles, and I finally got rid of it after the water pump went and I wanted something newer. I remember the speedometer was off by a wide margin. I got clocked once doing 88 mph, but the speedometer only read 73! This car had no problem burying the speedometer needle and then some. By the margin it was off, 85 mph was actually 102. And, for having as many miles as it did, it had no problem passing the emissions test. In fact, the numbers were so low that it would've almost passed by current (1997) standards! Say what you want about 70's cars, but if your typical modern American car was built as sturdy as this Newport, you'd be hearing about the Asians struggling to catch up to us in quality, instead of the other way around!
Currently, I drive a 2000 Intrepid that already has 30K miles on it. At the rate I'm driving, it'll be a high mileage car in no time!
-Andre
My wife had a 1988 Taurus we bought off a friend with 100K miles a several years ago and we gave it to my son with 195K this summer. It used a quart of oil at oil changes - 4K miles. It always started and ran well, but the previous owner had the transmission fixed at 60k and I had some electrical problems that were a nuisance, replaced the alternator and had the heater core replaced 3 years ago. The last straw was that the A/C went and we did not want to put the money into it. That car should go well over 200K.
My daughter, the one who did the Camry in, has a 1986 Camry with 240K miles on it. She's had it almost since new. All she ever did was have the clutch replaced at 225K miles - last year. It burns oil but that's because she never took care of it until recently. She's now feeling the challenge to see how long it will go before it dies. Also, she's married and does not want a car payment. The car keeps on going despite her lack of care.
We favor Toyotas. My wife and I have a 2000 Sienna we use for our business, and a low mileage 1996 Avalon we got to replace the 1990 Camry. We also got an excellent deal on a low mileage 1993 Sable wagon to replace the Taurus wagon. I expect to get well over 200K trouble-free miles on each of these vehicles, especially the Toyotas.
You hear of some old American cars with unbelievable miles on them but they are rare. I expect that you'll find more and more newer high mileage cars (American and foreign)on the road today than ever before. They are generally made better, in my estimation, and the lubricants and filters are outstanding. Paint jobs are much better (remember the horrible GM cars of yesteryear?), rust protection is superior to anything before and there are many more maintenance-free items on a car - 100K mile plugs, electronic ignition, no mechanically connected distributor, etc.
Happy driving.
There are a couple other discussions here that may have some help for
you. Check out the "Board Search" at the top left of this page. Look
for sable problems and also airconditioning (no space for that last
one!) and you'll find at least two discussions here on the Maintenance
and Repair Board that may have some helpful comments.
Good luck and again, welcome!
Pat/Roving Host.
would you rather be driving the corolla or the Q?
-Chris
My personal Honda CRX has 180K on the body. the timing belt let go at 120K and I put a junkyard engine in but still have the old block and it would run if the head were rebuilt. the pistons are fine. maybe someday...
I believe the 2.3 4-cyl they used in the Tempo/Topaz was basically just a Falcon inline 6 with 2 cylinders sawed off, so the basic engine dated back to around 1960 or so...plenty of time to get it right!
I used to hate that car with a passion, mainly because it was a Ford and I thought it was ugly and small, plus it was my stepdad's, and I came from a mostly GM family...but I have to admit, it held its own over the years. BTW, the Stanza only lasted to 120K miles, and needs a new transmission and enough other work done to it to exceed its highest blue-book value.
-Andre
I remember reading somewhere, awhile back, that a Canadian cabbie with a '62 Fury (forget what engine, but it was one of those "downsized" ones for 1962 that didn't sell too well) set the record for highest mileage on an original engine.
The guy was in an accident which totaled the car. And he didn't even think anything of the mileage at the time, but when converting kilometers to miles, it was discovered that this thing had broken some kind of record. Anybody know anything about it? I heard about it over a year ago, but can't find any info now.
-Andre
Highest car mileage
Who: Irvin Gordon
When: 1999
Where: East Patchogue, United States
What: 1,690,000 miles
The highest recorded mileage for a car is 2,719,800 km. (1,690,000 miles), for a 1966 Volvo P-1800S, owned by Irvin Gordon of New York, USA, as of February, 1999.
Irvin Gordon bought his red Volvo P–1800S for $4,150 from a Volvoville dealership in New York, USA, one Friday in 1966. The following Monday, he was back for a 1,600-km. (1,000-mile) service! When he reached the 2.6-million km. (1.6-million mile) mark in 1998, he said the Volvo “still handles like a new car. It's never been garaged.” The retired teacher – who used to make a daily 201-km. (124-mile) round trip to work – does his own car maintenance. While clocking up his record-breaking mileage, Gordon traveled through 48 US states, Canada, and five European countries. The P-1800S, a two-seater touring car with a sweeping hood, went into production in May, 1961, and was made until June, 1973. The car was made famous by the TV series The Saint, in which one was driven by Roger Moore.
Guinness World Records are governed by certain rules and regulations. There are general rules and regulations that apply to most records and specific conditions that apply to particular records.
Leo
and brakes.
central test station so I see numerous
high mileage cars coming in for tests.
Without a doubt the Volvos have the best
track record for high mileage vehicles.
I see many Volvos with 250-300K miles
that pass the tests no problem. I sure
this is due in part to the good care their owners give them. Surprisingly,
one of the best cars are GM cars (mostly
Buick and Pontiac) with a 3.8 liter V6
engine. This engine has been around for
decades and most of them still seem to
run well. And you can get them used cheap!
Steve
Host
SUV and Vans Message Boards
Also if anyone can recommend a decent mechanic in the Boston, MA area who knows these cars that would be great.
Well, the Dart over the course of those 85,000 miles, cost me about .11 a mile. That doesn't include insurance, which has ranged from over $700 a year when I was younger, to $258 a year now, as part of a multi-car policy. Also doesn't include gasoline, which, considering its 318 got anywhere from 12 to 17.8 mpg, really hurts. I didn't keep good track of fuel costs. Still, averaging $400 a year for ins and .10 a mile, it comes out to about .24 a mile. And that's assuming I gave it away and got nothing for it.
The Intrepid, on the other hand, has gone about 39,500 miles in 15 months. Insurance is about $560 a year, and gas runs about .065 a mile. Couting the down payment, monthly payments so far, and miscellaneous stuff, I figure this car comes ou to .19 a mile, and about .27 a mile with gas/ins added.
It'll be interesting to see how this car ends up comparing to the Dart over the long run. In all fairness, the Dart would cost more like .11 or .12 a mile in gas now, the way fuel prices have gone up.
Anyway, Steve, congrats on that .18 a mile to own and operate over 17 years. Sounds like that Tercel was a good little car!
-Andre
Steve
Host
Vans, SUVs, and Aftermarket & Accessories message boards
In theory, if my Intrepid can go 210,000 miles without ANYTHING breaking or needing maintenance, it'll come out to about the same .11 a mile the Dart did. Considering things like brakes, tires, tuneups, tranny services, it'll take a lot longer. Throw in a transmission failure there goes any hope at all of EVER reaching .11 a mile!
-Andre
PS: Pat, you should see the spreadsheet on the Dart's repairs over the 85K miles I've had it! It's lengthy, but at least most of the repairs were cheap! I just wish I'd kept better records...I've been trying to recall most of it from memory, and then just estimating high to cover for anything I may have forgotten.
But it was a great car:-)
Steve
Host
Vans, SUVs, and Aftermarket & Accessories message boards
I used to have an 87 Honda Accord DX with the same carb problem. It costed me about $5 to fix it. The problem is so common that when I simply mentioned it to a Honda service manager he said, "Yeah that is the choke diaphragm." I bought a new diaphragm from Advance auto for under $5 and fixed it myself. You can buy the whole assembly from Honda for about $50.00 or just buy the rubber diaphram, take the part off of the carb. and replace the diaphragm on the inside. Mine had about 170,000 miles when I noticed it. After taking the old one out you could tell it was worn out with a small pinhole in it. Hope this helps.
I know a guy with an '88-92 generation Corolla. If you roll the front passenger window down far enough, it will make the door pop open!
-Andre
mine is a 1981 C10, original tranny went out at 330,000 original engine at 250,000 or so. The truck has about 333,000 on it now. Daily driver, about 16,000 miles a year.
MY uncle (who has asphalt business as well as ranch) had an 82 K20 with the diesel in it, had to replace head gasket at 40,000 but then the engine went to 400,000 , dont' know about the tranny it was a manual.
Another uncle has a 75 GMC with 186,000 on it, no rebuild 350V8/muncie 4speed....he never changes the oil either, but it is starting to have carburator trouble
Friends dad had an 79' Chevy 1/2 ton, went 276,000 before rebuild.
Some people may not like fit and finish of American vehicles, or that they squek to much but there powertrains are rock solid.
No other repairs. Never got stranded and always started on the first crank. This one has the best drivers seats EVER.
I had '78 Corolla with 135K before insurance totalled it when a rogue Chevy Blazer turned left in front of me.
My '86 Legend has 150k on it and runs good, but has some things not working. Rt rear door windows come down from drivers side but can't go up, have to do it from the rt door. Same with rt front except its the opposite from drivers side goes up and down but not from door.
Other than that the car looks new with no major problems.