At what point is a domestic car/truck considered High Milage now?

[MudPies]

I know, this is somewhat related to a poll posted a few months back, but a statement in another thread inspired this one.

How many miles need to be on your vehicle before you start calling it a High Milage Vehicle?

100k?
130k?
150k?
170k?
200k?
More?

[SteveO]

My Mazda Diesel pickup isn't domestic, but at 175K it's still going strong with no issues.

[Targ]

Depends on age of the car.

Average is 15k a year anything under that is low miles. the quantitative number is what you are comfortable living with, and has nothing to do with the car.

[MudPies]

Hmm.

So you're saying a 15 year old car with 225k miles on it isn't high milage? (just clarifying)

[PVH5150]

15K a year is high for the majority of people I know.

I always go by 12K a year, 1K a month.

I don't drive a lot myself (10K a year, and thats pushing it) but I'd say anything over 100K is technically "high mileage".

Hell, Valvoline has their MaxLife High Mileage oil listed for cars with over 75K

[Hacksaw]

My guesstimation on the high milage mark.

In the 1970s it was 100k
1980 150k to 175k
1990 175-200k
2000s 225-250k < presuming, and what " I think" is a high milage car today.


Over the years I have had cars and trucks and each decade they lasted longer and longer. I am still driving my 1998 truck without issues and it feels stong still at 150k

The 2004 car we have seems even better.

[germs]

100-125K is where most pre-owned franchise (major brand dealer) will start to cut off potential vehicles.

i've seen them out on our lot with 150K. but i think that's the highest i've seen. personally i'm not comfortable with anything over 70K - i buy used for work/band vehicles for towing etc - but that's just IMO.

[conundrum]

Mileage isn't a real big factor in today's vehicles. If you can't get a modern vehicle to 200k you got a Friday afternoon special. I'd say total age is more important. Rubber degrades. Sealed suspension joints lose lubrication. But the engine.... that's probably the most reliable part of today's vehicles.

[Duster_Lefty]

Originally Posted by conundrum

Mileage isn't a real big factor in today's vehicles. If you can't get a modern vehicle to 200k you got a Friday afternoon special. I'd say total age is more important. Rubber degrades. Sealed suspension joints lose lubrication. But the engine.... that's probably the most reliable part of today's vehicles.

This is about right. Climate makes a big difference as well. 10 years in Arizona is a lot different from 10 years in Wisconsin.

--- D

[conundrum]

Originally Posted by Duster_Lefty

This is about right. Climate makes a big difference as well. 10 years in Arizona is a lot different from 10 years in Wisconsin.

--- D

Ugh, tell me about it.
I once bought a used car from Mass.
Never again my friend.....never again.

[Targ]

Originally Posted by MudPies

Hmm.

So you're saying a 15 year old car with 225k miles on it isn't high milage? (just clarifying)

No I'm saying 175K is low mileage for a 15 year old car.

Even if 175K puts the total mileage on the car out of your acceptable target zone.

Climate does affect a car as well, And in AZ we deal with our own issues that Wisconsin won't ever see. We get Dry rot, Dash board cracks, wiring drying out and shorting. Interiors that get baked, cloth will just turn to dust. Paint will oxidize to dust on the high sun angles. Our old Volvo hasn't had paint on the top in years, it looks like it was painted silver, but no, just metal.
But we don't get rust

Heat is very hard on some cars. others shrug it off. Cars on the east coast that are notorious for becoming rust buckets can be just fine here... unless some poor fool drove a rust bucket down here.

From what I can tell, the biggest difference is how well the car has been serviced.

[Duster_Lefty]

Originally Posted by Targ

No I'm saying 175K is low mileage for a 15 year old car.

Even if 175K puts the total mileage on the car out of your acceptable target zone.

Climate does affect a car as well, And in AZ we deal with our own issues that Wisconsin won't ever see. We get Dry rot, Dash board cracks, wiring drying out and shorting. Interiors that get baked, cloth will just turn to dust. Paint will oxidize to dust on the high sun angles. Our old Volvo hasn't had paint on the top in years, it looks like it was painted silver, but no, just metal.
But we don't get rust

Heat is very hard on some cars. others shrug it off. Cars on the east coast that are notorious for becoming rust buckets can be just fine here... unless some poor fool drove a rust bucket down here.

From what I can tell, the biggest difference is how well the car has been serviced.

True, but a car is still better off experiencing that kind of extreme heat as opposed to the heating/cooling cycles we see in the northeast. Here in Toronto we'll have 90-100 degrees for two months, bookended by 2 months each of intermittent sun, rain, and sometimes hail. The rest of the year is damn cold, with a sweet icing of road salt and sand.

Rinse and repeat, year after year. The expansion and contraction of every part of the car every year just takes its toll. That being said, today's cars are designed for it much better than cars of the past. I remember old jeeps, fords, and oldsmobiles my dad used to have, where you could stick a finger through the body in places where the rust had eaten right through...

--- D

[slipbeer]

I've got a 16 year old Audi with 151k on it.

Nobody wants it in trade because it's old and high mileage.

I only put 4k to 5k on it a year these days. That's low usage.

I haven't had a significant mechanical issue with it in years. That's reliable.

To me, high mileage as a negative is when they become unreliable for what you need them for.

I can't see any reason to get rid of mine, other than new car lust for the sake of new car lust.

A new 3 series BMW feels right.

[Dr. Tweedbucket]

My 02 Acura feels about the same as it did when it was new, and it has 110K. The leather doesn't smell new anymore, but it's in great shape as is the rest of the car. I'm hoping for 250K before I retire it.

The only thing I wonder now is, can I bolt across the USA carefree without worrying about the water pump or CV joint or something at this point?