Where do people get the idea that cars just suddenly fall apart?

"JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7" (jayzayeighty)
12/29/2014 at 21:40 • Filed to: None

The whole idea that high mileage is the worst thing regardless (or largely regardless) of maintenance—that cars have a lifespan depending on what they are, and that things are worth selling rather than fixing—can get old. Cars are made of parts. Parts break. And unless the frame suddenly splits (which does not tend to happen), the car will go for as long as you refresh/maintain parts. Thank you for tuning into this public service announcement.

tl;dr meticulous maintenance>low miles when limited-lifespan parts have reached their age limits.

DISCUSSION (37)

Cherry_man1 > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
12/29/2014 at 21:42

See my 1973 Gran Torino. Pulled it out of a garage after it being parked for 20 years fired it up and left with a broken master cylinder, radiator, and bad choke. Now it's a fricken unstoppable monster that turns over every time and has 0 problems *knock on wood*

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
12/29/2014 at 21:42

And unless the frame suddenly splits (which does not tend to happen),

Well, yeah...

About that...

Kinja'd!!!

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > Cherry_man1
12/29/2014 at 21:45

Time to take that "roadtrip" m8! :D

I kid.

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
12/29/2014 at 21:46

I didn't say it doesn't happen altogether! But I doubt that had much to do with miles so much as abuse.

Slant6 > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
12/29/2014 at 21:46

rust belt problems. my southern taco has a nice frame.

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > Cherry_man1
12/29/2014 at 21:49

Where's the fun in buying a low miles or perfect car and trying to keep it that way? If you have a car that you're comfortable using as a car and has been taken care of as it should, then you have the right car. Especially with an older car where original "supporting" components will have been replaced over the life of the car. And awesome that you brought the Gran Torino back to life!

dogisbadob > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
12/29/2014 at 21:51

Drive until the wheels fall off....

because the kid at the tire shop forgot to tighten the lug nuts :p

EDIT: Shit, it doesn't let you have lots of spaces between lines!

Diesel > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
12/29/2014 at 21:53

Nevermind done.

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > dogisbadob
12/29/2014 at 21:53

Actually it was just a high mileage car. They are clever enough to do things right after a scapegoat can be found.

OPPOsaurus WRX > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
12/29/2014 at 21:54

Exactly what i thought when i read that

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > Diesel
12/29/2014 at 21:58

I am consulting with the other mods, will let you know what decision has been made.

Tohru > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
12/29/2014 at 21:58

Yo dawg, I heard you like tacos so we taco'd the frame on your Taco.

The frame on my dad's D21 did this. Took the bed off, straightened it, ground off the rust and welded in new steel. The frame on my D50 is about one more winter away from doing the same thing.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
12/29/2014 at 21:59

Only age and road salt.

Diesel > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
12/29/2014 at 21:59

The poster removed it. Thanks.

 > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
12/29/2014 at 21:59

Rust it really the only thing that will kill a car. Or and accident. Everything else can be replaced.

Cherry_man1 > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
12/29/2014 at 21:59

I mean it was the guys daily sense 1973 when he bought it with 8700 miles on the clock now its at 74k and at 61k the engine was rebuilt and the car repainted but after that it has been sitting just being driven around the block to keep the battery charged. Still has said battery in it.

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > Slant6
12/29/2014 at 22:01

It wasn't just the rust belt, some model year Taco's have a recall on them to replace the frame.

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
12/29/2014 at 22:02

One exception: Communist cars.

Tohru > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
12/29/2014 at 22:03

Cars do sometimes just start falling apart. For proof of that, I need to go no further than my childhood neighbor's '98 Plymouth Breeze. It worked just fine and needed very little unexpected maintenance, until in one year it ate a water pump, steering rack, all the motor mounts, and the transmission. It was scrapped.

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 >
12/29/2014 at 22:04

Exactly. I think that's one of the best things about cars—you can keep them going as long as you take care of them and aren't unlucky. Then someone comes along talking about how great their low mileage example of (enter old car here) is.

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > Tohru
12/29/2014 at 22:06

This is true. Although if it were fixed, in many ways it would be better than a hardly-driven... Breeze that hasn't had aforementioned parts replaced.

Jedidiah > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
12/29/2014 at 22:12

Only thing that will kill it will be rust or an accident.

If you get a good body on frame vehicle and rhinoline the frame, rust and low speed accidents will only hurt non-structural sheetmetal.

TheOnelectronic > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
12/29/2014 at 22:14

A car is a really expensive thing, all told. Sure, after a while a part breaks, and you replace it.

But then another part breaks. And another. Soon you're having several parts failing at once, or a part like a timing belt that can wreck a lot of other parts if it breaks.

It costs way more to replace all those parts than to just buy another car.

Slant6 > Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies
12/29/2014 at 22:21

I'm aware. Previous owner of mine got a notice (included it with other documents). Frame is still fine. I'm wondering if I should undercoat it. I'm moving to a snowy area for college.

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > Slant6
12/29/2014 at 22:23

If it hasn't rusted by now, it shouldn't be any more of a problem than a normal frame. Just keep it clean, and I think it should be okay.

ranwhenparked > Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies
12/29/2014 at 22:23

In their case, they will fall apart immediately after purchase, then proceed to work perfectly for decades, after you've re-assembled all the pieces yourself with proper attention to detail.

PyramidHat > Slant6
12/29/2014 at 22:28

CA checking in with a good frame....

PyramidHat > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
12/29/2014 at 22:37

I think there was an article on Jalopnik a few weeks back on where the 100,000 mile threshold came from...and I don't think anyone had a good answer.

My uncle got rid of two cars at 100,000 miles: A 1984 Cutlass Supreme and an 1989 Corolla SR-5. To be fair, the Olds apparently needed a new timing chain, but other than that, I think the car was fine. Probably needed some suspension work, but I think that's not unreasonable at that mileage. As for the Corolla, knowing what I know now, that was just getting broken in. But it had 100,000 miles and to him that meant the car needed to be replaced.

Remember that we're sort of conditioned to believe that we need newer cars and that there is a stigma with driving older cars. Save for advances in safety technology (ABS, Airbags, traction control, etc...) if the car is solid and reliable, I can't see a reason to replace it.

The counterpoint to this is that sometimes we hold on to vehicles longer than we should - there's a financial tipping point where it's no longer cost effective to keep fixing what breaks until we ultimately wind up rebuilding the car. For me, I figure if I got a new car, it would be about $500/mo payment and insurance - so if a car starts costing me that much on average to keep running, then it's time to replace.

PyramidHat > Tohru
12/29/2014 at 22:39

That was about 1999 0r so, wasn't it?

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > PyramidHat
12/29/2014 at 22:43

You summed it up perfectly. I don't have any of those aforementioned safety features, but I completely agree—although I'd rather keep my car going than get a newer car that costs less money having a car that I enjoy owning.

Birddog > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
12/29/2014 at 22:44

High mileage and severe frame/unibody rust go hand in hand in my area regardless of maintenance.

At some point you have to cut your losses.

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > Birddog
12/29/2014 at 22:46

Yeah, it also depends on how a car is used (whether snow and salt/sand are avoided or not).

The Transporter > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
12/29/2014 at 23:23

Cars don't suddenly fall apart, people just suddenly stop wanting to drive them. Honestly, you have to really be in love with a car to want to throw a continuous stream of parts at it ad nauseam just to keep it on the road. It can be done, but it requires dedication. It's like the difference between dating someone on the long term and actually being married. When you're dating someone over the course of several years, you may be in love with the person but in the back of your mind you always have an escape plan for if shit gets too crazy. When you're married, the idea is that you are more hesitant to give up the relationship because you've got too much invested. Most people never stop dating cars. They never move on to a serious, committed relationship with one car. They're constantly searching for the newer model.

Chuck 2(O=[][]=O)2 > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
12/29/2014 at 23:29

That happened to mine, I had a nice 2000 TuRD. But, Toyota gave out a nice check.

gogmorgo - rowing gears in a Grand Cherokee > Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies
12/30/2014 at 01:54

This is true. My Jeep and my Lada are in fairly similar states of (dis)repair, the main difference being that the Jeep's main bearings are fubar. However, the things that are wrong with the Jeep are due to the components wearing out... with the Lada, it's cause they're coming apart. The Lada has 48,000 km; the Jeep has 498,000 km.

Tohru > PyramidHat
12/30/2014 at 10:08

2004, around 100k miles

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > The Transporter
12/30/2014 at 16:28

The marriage analogy is great. Most people never set their minds on owning a car to the highest level as they do in pursuing relationships.