Assuming your time has no value and you can miss work for extended periods and you don’t count the radiator repairs, transmission repairs, replaced water pumps, replaced alternators, replaced air conditioner compressors, replaced heater cores, replaced timing chains, replaced fuel injectors, replaced fuel pumps, replaced window motors, replaced struts, replaced ball joints, replaced CV joints, ad nauseam. And you don’t mind sitting on the side of the road with a broken down car. And you don’t mind driving a worn out car all the time. Been there, done that.
Preventative maintenance, good quality parts and catching problems while they are still annoyances goes a long way.
We have a 2005 Yukon with almost 200k miles on the clock. We bought it 8 years ago next month with ~90k miles on it.
In that time it has had oil changes once a year, a coolant change, a transmission fluid flush, a transfer case fluid change, a rear AC lineset replacement, a waterpump, a serpentine belt tensioner, a CV axle, 2 front wheel bearings, 5 wheelspeed sensors, plugs and wires, brakes and an airbag impact sensor.
Total cost, well under $3000 and its never come home on a wrecker or left us stranded (just took it on a ~6 hour each way trip last week) and its still very comfortable on the road.
It is due for shocks, probably about due for a rear diff and transfer case fluid change, need to look into the wiring for the front impact sensors (one is throwing a code) and get after some rust prevention.
Had a 2008 Taurus X with over 200k miles on it (bought with ~178k miles, sold with close to 210k miles) and other than a water pump/timing chain at $1400 (water pump is driven off of the timing chain), a rear spring that broke and consumables (fluids, shocks, suspension components, an engine mount, a muffler flex pipe that broke due to the engine mount and brakes) it was trouble free.
When someone hit it, insurance paid me what I had into buying it, bringing maintenance up to date and then some.
Aaron Z
