Someone hit my blog today searching for "used car problems after 100k miles".
Well, Anonymous Searcher, those problems can vary depending on the used car in question. For instance, an older diesel Mercedes Benz or American pickup truck rarely has much in the way of problems at 100k miles, unless you count "stinky exhaust" or "a tendency to spontaneously sprout rebel flag bumper stickers" as a problem. Meanwhile, some brands of Yugoslavian cars or older Korean imports will frequently suffer GEF, or "gratuitous existence failure" before hitting the six-digit mark on the odometer. There are certain special categories too, such as 1970s Datsun Z-Cars, which could theoretically have lifespans measured in jillions of miles if their bodywork didn't succumb to rust in dozens of months.
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Dear Tam:
My Ford F-250 just went over 190,000 miles. Is there anything I should do differently as far as maintenance or upkeep as it approaches the end of its break in period?
Thanks.
A glowing "Check Engine" light is so worrisome. It is good to know you're out there to help, Tam. You make the Internet a kinder, gentler place.
Standard northland joke:
"Why did Yugos have an electric rear-window defroster?"
"To keep your hands warm while you were pushing it."
Was there ever a clever reverse acronym for Yugo a la Fix It Again Tony or Fix Or Repair Daily?
temporary break with my wife in '78 at age 24 led to leaving a good rural factory job for west palm beach and a weird new career...got a curly perm, big gold chain, opencollar silk shirts...and a new datsun z...yessir i was bad...
got family and sanity back after about a year...still miss that little black bomb, though...it's probably still runnin' somewhere...
jtc
btw, i stole your "reagan in a skirt" comment for a post...couldn't find it on your site so i linked back to your homepage; you are a talent, ma'am.
but it is a bit disconcerting to realize that a forty year old punned-it wasn't eligible to vote for the original; damn i feel ancient.
but let me just say that it was revolutionary then (that coming from someone who believed and voted for jimmy...once). truly, the scales fell from my eyes.
viva la revolution 2012.
jtc
My Daewoo was well on the way to what seems like a 200K+ mile life had I not smeared it all over the inside of the interstate at speed.
EDIT: What I mean is, and you know this but everyone else may not, 94,000 miles and ran like new.
Big difference, though, between your Daewoo and an '85 Excel.
Yeah, Hyundai thought they'd save some money by dropping in a Mitsubishi 1.5 liter four. Oops!
Heck, my '79 RX-7 rotary got up to 232,000 before I had the engine rebuilt... It was down a little in power and burning a little extra oil, but I was still getting good mileage....
Somerled- A neatly trimmed bit of black electrical tape can help with that distracting glow. Just until you can find a contortionist willing to grope for the bulb holder.
Yugo -- no nickname. But it does have the singular distinction of being the most famous case of The Country Went Out of Business.
M
Here's what I learned last week:
A 2001 GMC Sierra transmission is good for almost exactly 341,500 miles. And it's just over a penny a mile for a new one.
My early '71 240Z with Zeibart rust proofing was 6 years old when I sold it, and there was one small rust spot on it. Hope it's still out there, running strong. [Is Nissan still re-manufacturing the early Zs, something they were doing a few years ago?]
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