Real talk after school special - how many miles is too many?

"Chairman Kaga" (mike-mckinnon)
09/15/2015 at 16:27 • Filed to: None

Arguing with the wife last night about an ‘08 Acura TL-S I’m looking at got me to thinking. It has about 120k miles, but all maintenance was done at the dealer and on schedule. Realistically the 3.5L V6 in that car should be good for at least another 100k before you’d even have to even think about any major maintenance. Right?

But it’s a crap shoot, isn’t it? I mean, it is with ANY used car, but it seems with every year and every 15k miles you tip the balance more into the “Oh shit, what was the noise?” side of car ownership.

I’m reasonably handy in the garage, but this would be my DD, replacing a car with only 52k miles, although it’s the same age. I know we all tend to say, Oh yes, a properly maintained engine will run a million miles with nothing but regular oil changes! But what about the rest of the car?

Is it worth the potential hassle? How many miles is too many? Does the fact it’s a Honda change that assessment (of course it does) and if so to what degree?

What say ye?

DISCUSSION (21)

crowmolly > Chairman Kaga
09/15/2015 at 16:31

Engine? Probably fine.

Trans? EHHHHHH. Might not have ever even been serviced.

jariten1781 > Chairman Kaga
09/15/2015 at 16:33

Major mechanicals will be likely be fine if it was truly maintained, but you’ll have to deal with the non-maintenance items like window regulators, blower motors, dying electrics, cracking plastics, etc. Frankly, those things busting bug me significantly in a daily so I try to stay <10 years <~150k. In a third car? not an issue, but no one buys a TL as a toy.

HammerheadFistpunch > crowmolly
09/15/2015 at 16:34

This. The engine on modern cars (at least good ones) is not typically the first thing to go on high mile examples.

LongbowMkII > Chairman Kaga
09/15/2015 at 16:35

an Acura with 120k miles is probably the second safest used car bet after a 120k mile Lexus.

duurtlang > Chairman Kaga
09/15/2015 at 16:36

7 or 8 years old, 120k miles. Probably a lot of highway miles. I wouldn’t worry too much, as long as you pay less than what an equivalent condition but lower mileage vehicle costs. Just have it checked out properly before purchase.

120k miles most certainly isn’t too much for a reliable DD.

Ash78, voting early and often > jariten1781
09/15/2015 at 16:38

But being just 7 years old, hopefully that won’t be too bad yet. Most of my failures (from personal experience) have been age-related far more than mileage.

I ditto the tranny service — if it was serviced at all (with proof), probably a safe bet. That’s more miles than my 2001 DD.

deekster_caddy > Chairman Kaga
09/15/2015 at 16:40

I usually buy my cars at about 100,000 miles and immediately change all fluids, expecting that the previous owner has fully neglected them (besides oil I hope). Full tune-up, and you basically have a new car. Then they usually last a long time. Save a lot of money this way.

*Other than my most recent purchase - the only new car for me I’ve ever bought. My 2013 Chevy Volt. Otherwise we tend to get new cars for my wife, but keep them for a long time. She’s nervous about high milage/older cars.

Chairman Kaga > LongbowMkII
09/15/2015 at 16:42

(also looking at an ‘05 IS300)

Future next gen S2000 owner > Chairman Kaga
09/15/2015 at 16:43

Want to know the one thing you will have to deal with on a high mileage car? Squeaks and rattles from the interior components.

If you can deal with that, you should be fine.

mazda616 > Chairman Kaga
09/15/2015 at 16:43

Transmissions and suspensions are surprisingly less durable than engines nowadays.

Chairman Kaga > crowmolly
09/15/2015 at 16:44

Yeah, this is my worry, and is really the crapshoot I was referring to. Honda doesn’t call for trans fluid until 60k, but they also have a wickedly specific procedure for doing it. A lot of shops ignore the manufacturer’s process and just do a power flush, which causes all sorts of problems. I worry about these things... but how do you know if it’s not in the Carfax?

duurtlang > jariten1781
09/15/2015 at 16:44

Do things like window regulators an plastics really get significantly worse due to mileage ?

Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo > Chairman Kaga
09/15/2015 at 16:45

Due to my taste in vehicles, high odometer readings are not a turn off for me. The only thing I’d worry about on that Acura is the transmission.

HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles > Chairman Kaga
09/15/2015 at 16:46

Well all cars are ticking time bombs, that will someday have catastrophic failure, so bad it’s not worth it to fix them again. I think that partly depends on the amount invested and how much you drive. Myself I only drive 6-8,000 miles a year on my car, because i live in town and like to bike, or walk when I’m going less than 3 miles away. So for me if I buy a car with 160,000 miles it could take me 5 years to hit 200,000. However if you drive 12-15,000 miles a year (the national average) then it would take 2.5 year to accumulate the same mileage. Also if you bought a car for 2,000 dollars and it only lasts you 20,000 miles with a another 2000 invested in maintenance you still not doing so bad, but if you bought a car for 10,000, and invested 1,500 in maintenance and it only last 10,000 miles then you’re taking a pretty big hit.

Then there is of coarse other factors like the amount of time you have to spend fixing the car, and or getting it fixed, on top of the money spent doing the same. Also how long to you want to have the car? If your like me and enjoy the hunt for something “new” and might find yourself looking fro something else in 8 months then it really doesn’t matter how much life the car has left in it, your not going to see it through anyway.

In the end I’ll say what I told a lot of customers when I was selling used cars, “any modern car, can and should last at least 200,000 miles. so although not that long ago 100,000 miles may have seemed like a lot, in today’s cars, it just means it has another 100,000 miles to go.”

Personally I’ve never really let mileage scare me, instead look more at how the car has been taken care of, even down to how clean the carpet looks. If the Previous Owner didn’t take the time to clean the car, there are signs they drove a lot of dirt roads, or lots of dings n the outside, whatever it may be. Condition is more important than mileage.

crowmolly > Chairman Kaga
09/15/2015 at 16:47

Carfax will only report what they are told.

If there is paperwork from a mechanic/dealer with the procedure listed, that counts as “work done” to me. No paperwork? Then who knows.

desertdog5051 > Chairman Kaga
09/15/2015 at 17:36

I know a couple of people with earlier 2000-2006 Honda cars. Both had transmission problems. I would not trust that vintage of Honda product. Anything else, yes.

I get my truck trans serviced every 18K by a reputable transmission shop (because truck hauls stuff regularly). None of that reverse flush stuff. They pull the pan and change the filter and show you the pan and anything on the magnet. 237k and still going strong.

Chairman Kaga > desertdog5051
09/15/2015 at 17:39

I’ve read up on the transmission woes of the mid 2000s. From what I can tell they introduced a redesign in 2007 that resolved most if not all of thos eproblems. I have an ‘08 CRV with the same 5-speed auto and it’s fine. I mean, it sucks. But it’s fine.

jariten1781 > duurtlang
09/15/2015 at 18:17

Yep, not as much as by age for sure, but with more miles/same age they’ve likely had more heat and use cycles and they’ve definitely experienced more shock and vibe.

Urambo Tauro > Chairman Kaga
09/15/2015 at 19:46

I TOLD YOU SO is the first thing she’s going to say when something fails. Even if it’s just an alternator or a starter, she’ll give you the ol’ eye roll. If you can handle that, it’s probably a good buy.

It sounds like it’s been well maintained, and you’re probably going to continue that maintenance. But with that many miles on it, actual repairs will be necessary at some point.

MM54 > Chairman Kaga
09/15/2015 at 20:20

I watched my odometer roll to 177,777 (miles) on the way home from work today. This is my only drivable car. I don’t worry about it.

(Okay the trans is worrying, but only just a little, like when there’s a weird bump on your hand that goes away in a day. It’s not on the level of clearly-a-tumor).

pip bip - choose Corrour > Chairman Kaga
09/16/2015 at 06:15

when the odometer hits 300k get rid of it.

just buy it & drive it.