Is 150,000 miles a lot for a car?
Discussion
It seems to me, most, if not all car dealers including major franchises think a car is old after two years and twenty thousand miles.
The car manufacturers spend countless millions on marketing to convince us to change our cars every couple of years, with their expert knowledge
they must be right, lol.
Unfortunately there still seem to be people around who think when a car breaks down it needs a service!
Proper servicing and mechanical sympathy should ensure modern cars can easily cope with one or two hundred thousand miles, unless it's a Renault
of course. To be fair though most people would have given up on their Renaults long before then if my experience with Renault franchise dealers is anything to go by! The same could probably be said for the majority of Ford dealers.
cheers
The car manufacturers spend countless millions on marketing to convince us to change our cars every couple of years, with their expert knowledge
they must be right, lol.
Unfortunately there still seem to be people around who think when a car breaks down it needs a service!
Proper servicing and mechanical sympathy should ensure modern cars can easily cope with one or two hundred thousand miles, unless it's a Renault
of course. To be fair though most people would have given up on their Renaults long before then if my experience with Renault franchise dealers is anything to go by! The same could probably be said for the majority of Ford dealers.
cheers
I've had three high mileage cars: 165K Volvo 240, a Mondeo at about the same and a 140K Austin 420. All were around 12 years at that mileage.
The only thing bought for the 420 was a new airdam when a hare overestimated its speed potential until at 140K and otter switch went. I replaced that and traded the car in for the Mondeo, then about 45K on it. As luck would have it, the 420 came back to haunt me. Someone local bought it. After a year or so I met the owner and said how nice it was to see a car in such great condition for its age; I'd looked after it with some care. It was a lovely car to own and drive. He was of a different opinion. 'Everything' had gone wrong with it, he said.
The Mondeo went without problems until a front anti-roll bar rubber went. That was a hell of a job to fit and I had to release the engine mounts to lift the engine sufficiently. Then the headlamp glass failed the MoT, then the water reservoir leaked, all this within about 3 months. I then sold it.
The Volvo had low mileage for the year when I bought it and it was immaculate. There were minor problems; The back windows wouldn't wind down and the rear seat belts wouldn't retract - no one had sat in the back seats for years if ever. They were easy enough to fix, although everyone said that the back squabs were 'bouncy'. About 120K later a rear disc brake seized. I changed it and checked the one one the other side only to find that had a problem. I checked the front calipers and one had a problem - uneven wear.
I sold it to a local Volvo specialist, at a knock-down price, who dealt in s/h parts and he said he'd get it back on the road. When I bought another Volvo and went to see him a couple of years later and asked after the other one, he said there were multiple problems and it was easier to strip the thing for parts.
I've got an 11-year-old Focus Estate. No problems with it apart from a broken exhaust support, courtesy of a road hump. The front discs, rear discs, and a knock that turned out to be a rubber on the front suspension. It's only done 78K but it's going to find a new home.
It's an age thing I'm sure.
My SLK is 12 years old, 50K. It has required a new light switch, £380, a real pain to fit. It has required a heater blower regulator, I've forgotten the price, probably something Fraudian, but it was somewhere north of £100, which was a doddle to replace and showed that I'd have to de-leaf the heater blower after every autumn. New headlights as they leaked, £40 each second hand, plus postage, and now I've got a leak in the autogearbox and as I have no idea how to top the damn thing up if I replace the sump gasket, it's £490 to include servicing the 'pan'. The documentation I got with the car over a year ago showed sod all being bought for it.
That's off to find a new owner at the end of the summer.
I'm retired. 'Things' that have never given problems before suddenly stop working for no apparent reason, and just when you need them. It's an age thing, not, unfortunately, mileage.
The only thing bought for the 420 was a new airdam when a hare overestimated its speed potential until at 140K and otter switch went. I replaced that and traded the car in for the Mondeo, then about 45K on it. As luck would have it, the 420 came back to haunt me. Someone local bought it. After a year or so I met the owner and said how nice it was to see a car in such great condition for its age; I'd looked after it with some care. It was a lovely car to own and drive. He was of a different opinion. 'Everything' had gone wrong with it, he said.
The Mondeo went without problems until a front anti-roll bar rubber went. That was a hell of a job to fit and I had to release the engine mounts to lift the engine sufficiently. Then the headlamp glass failed the MoT, then the water reservoir leaked, all this within about 3 months. I then sold it.
The Volvo had low mileage for the year when I bought it and it was immaculate. There were minor problems; The back windows wouldn't wind down and the rear seat belts wouldn't retract - no one had sat in the back seats for years if ever. They were easy enough to fix, although everyone said that the back squabs were 'bouncy'. About 120K later a rear disc brake seized. I changed it and checked the one one the other side only to find that had a problem. I checked the front calipers and one had a problem - uneven wear.
I sold it to a local Volvo specialist, at a knock-down price, who dealt in s/h parts and he said he'd get it back on the road. When I bought another Volvo and went to see him a couple of years later and asked after the other one, he said there were multiple problems and it was easier to strip the thing for parts.
I've got an 11-year-old Focus Estate. No problems with it apart from a broken exhaust support, courtesy of a road hump. The front discs, rear discs, and a knock that turned out to be a rubber on the front suspension. It's only done 78K but it's going to find a new home.
It's an age thing I'm sure.
My SLK is 12 years old, 50K. It has required a new light switch, £380, a real pain to fit. It has required a heater blower regulator, I've forgotten the price, probably something Fraudian, but it was somewhere north of £100, which was a doddle to replace and showed that I'd have to de-leaf the heater blower after every autumn. New headlights as they leaked, £40 each second hand, plus postage, and now I've got a leak in the autogearbox and as I have no idea how to top the damn thing up if I replace the sump gasket, it's £490 to include servicing the 'pan'. The documentation I got with the car over a year ago showed sod all being bought for it.
That's off to find a new owner at the end of the summer.
I'm retired. 'Things' that have never given problems before suddenly stop working for no apparent reason, and just when you need them. It's an age thing, not, unfortunately, mileage.
Jimmy Recard said:
Audemars said:
100k miles is where most if you should be buying your cars. Cars can easily do 250k without expensive servicing or repairs if you go for a Japanese / reliable car. You shouldnt be looking to dispose at 100k but actually the opposite. You actually then might have no debt and substantial savings.
"Most of you should be buying your cars"What about the minority outside that, for instance?
Bloody plebs don't know their place these days, going out and buying things, keeping the economy going and people in jobs. It was much better in the old days when most of YOU had nowt. Well nothing apart from substandard housing, a toilet that was outside and the odd case of rickets.
Everyone should buy a 100k mileage second hand car, only issue is if we all do that there won't be any factories to make new cars. So we'll all end up walking, which is our place, walking or on a push iron, but don't be late to the factory or Audemars will close the gates and dock you a days wages. (not sure what the factory makes as no one actually buys anything in Audemars world)
Learn your place and we'll all get along fine, well until the pitch forks come out.
AHUX said:
My old mans 520d (e61, 2006) has just hit 254k, no major issues yet and its still on the original clutch (manual)..... amazing cars.
Is that a different engine to the 2008 model?Our neighbour has a 520d touring. It's done just shy of 200k and he is thinking of getting rid. He had to change the timing chain last year (did it himself) and now it has started developing a puddle of water in the boot. It's doing other dodgy things too like messing around with the parking sensors. I wonder if the water has started wrecking things.
funkyrobot said:
Is that a different engine to the 2008 model?
Our neighbour has a 520d touring. It's done just shy of 200k and he is thinking of getting rid. He had to change the timing chain last year (did it himself) and now it has started developing a puddle of water in the boot. It's doing other dodgy things too like messing around with the parking sensors. I wonder if the water has started wrecking things.
I am not sure sorry, its pre LCI. I thought the chains were good for life too... Our neighbour has a 520d touring. It's done just shy of 200k and he is thinking of getting rid. He had to change the timing chain last year (did it himself) and now it has started developing a puddle of water in the boot. It's doing other dodgy things too like messing around with the parking sensors. I wonder if the water has started wrecking things.
raspy said:
I remember when I first passed my test hearing advice to look for cars under 100k as they are knackered/high risk of problems, after that number of miles. That was in the days of Ford Cortinas!
Back then, cars with anything approaching 100k miles used to smoke like shot Messerschmitts over the English Channel.Cars these days tend to wear that sort of milage and beyond very well - if maintained properly.
Personally, I believe that the push towards the electric car is heavily influenced by a desire to re-introduce that level of old-style built-in product obsolescence back into the car industry....once those batteries stop holding their charge, she's a scapper. No more petrol and diesel posh bangers that refuse to die.
mybrainhurts said:
2008 V70, just passed 401,000 and driving as though it's just left the showroom.
Brilliant!My diesel e39 is just three, and a bit, thousand miles away from 300k.
It doesn't require any oil top-up between services, and it drives really well. It does, however, have electrical gremlins. These are getting annoying.
Door actuators that can't make up their mind whether to actually to open the doors, or not. A boot which won't lock - usual boot wiring issue. An OBC that permanently shows the temperature.
I'm convinced that the engine is good for many more miles, but the little niggles definitely detract.
I
Higgs boson said:
mybrainhurts said:
2008 V70, just passed 401,000 and driving as though it's just left the showroom.
Brilliant!My diesel e39 is just three, and a bit, thousand miles away from 300k.
It doesn't require any oil top-up between services, and it drives really well. It does, however, have electrical gremlins. These are getting annoying.
Door actuators that can't make up their mind whether to actually to open the doors, or not. A boot which won't lock - usual boot wiring issue. An OBC that permanently shows the temperature.
I'm convinced that the engine is good for many more miles, but the little niggles definitely detract.
vsonix said:
Yup. This is where service history comes into play. I'd much rather buy a car on 120k+ that has been fully rebushed, new springs & shocks, clutch etc etc than pick up a car with only 80k that has had nothing other than scheduled maintenance.
I tried to explain this to a workmate a while back, he couldn't get his head around how a higher mileage car could actually be a far better buy than low mileage car. Then again, he did knacker the autobox on his 330d, trade it in for a TT then part ex the TT a few months later when he decided he didn't like it for a 325d losing way more in the process than what a gearbox rebuild would have cost on the 330d.....
Edited by njw1 on Saturday 22 April 22:50
Edited by njw1 on Saturday 22 April 22:51
Toyoda said:
gottans said:
Bodyshell corrosion protection has improved no end so seeing seriously rusty cars is much rarer than it used to be.
Someone tell that to Ford and Vauxhall. I've got a 55 plate Mondeo with no rust whatsoever, an 06 plate Mondeo I had last year was also rust free, rust isn't a killer of cars these days IMO.
wildoat said:
It seems to me, most, if not all car dealers including major franchises think a car is old after two years and twenty thousand miles.
The car manufacturers spend countless millions on marketing to convince us to change our cars every couple of years, with their expert knowledge
they must be right, lol.
Unfortunately there still seem to be people around who think when a car breaks down it needs a service!
Proper servicing and mechanical sympathy should ensure modern cars can easily cope with one or two hundred thousand miles, unless it's a Renault
of course. To be fair though most people would have given up on their Renaults long before then if my experience with Renault franchise dealers is anything to go by! The same could probably be said for the majority of Ford dealers.
cheers
The car manufacturers spend countless millions on marketing to convince us to change our cars every couple of years, with their expert knowledge
they must be right, lol.
Unfortunately there still seem to be people around who think when a car breaks down it needs a service!
Proper servicing and mechanical sympathy should ensure modern cars can easily cope with one or two hundred thousand miles, unless it's a Renault
of course. To be fair though most people would have given up on their Renaults long before then if my experience with Renault franchise dealers is anything to go by! The same could probably be said for the majority of Ford dealers.
cheers
My missus father had a very clean, very well looked after 55 plate Laguna and within a few weeks of each other the electric handbrake and the uch module failed, whilst I was looking into how to get these faults sorted it then snapped a front coil spring again and the mot ran out.
It was sold for spares with 101k on the clock for £180, he paid £700 last year for a new clutch....
ClockworkDog said:
I bought a 260,000 mile e39 540i. Had been well looked after, went like a scalded cat and still drove as smooth as a china teacup. Absolutely bullet proof cars!
My old 535i had 186k on it when I sold it and it was as tight as a drum, I had a few people comment that they couldn't believe how old it was and the mileage it had covered. I replaced it with a 150k e39 M5 and that was the same, having a 150k car perform as it it did shocked me a bit too to be honest, that was a f'kin awesome machine!
Edited by njw1 on Saturday 22 April 23:07
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