Thursday, June 14, 2012

150,000 Miles and Still Going Strong



On June 12th of this year, my beloved 2007 Toyota Yaris hit 150,000 miles!  When I purchased the car brand new in August 2006, I told Todd that I wanted to drive the car until she hit 150,000 miles!  Two years ago, when Bianca (yes, I name my cars) hit 100,000 miles with not a single mechanical problem, I revised my goal to 250,000 miles!




I have never owned a vehicle with this many miles on it.  At just 6 years of age, Bianca has taken me 45 miles each way to and from work, to the Smoky Mountains, Appalachian Mountains and several road trips in between!  She has been nothing less than reliable and a complete thrill to drive.

In just 6 years, this vehicle has only been in the shop once due to a check engine light while under warranty.  When I started the car, one of the cylinders misfired which caused the check engine light to appear.  Since then, we (meaning Todd) have done nothing more than routine and preventative maintenance on this vehicle. Instead of waiting for the belt to break, we replaced it at 145,000 miles.  Instead of waiting for the spark plugs to rust out, they were replaced at 100,000 miles. Though Bianca didn’t need a new battery, we replaced the battery at 145,000 miles (Toyota has a 7 year 150,000 mile battery life!). 

We found out early-on that it is best to buy genuine Toyota parts for Bianca even though it costs a bit more.  We learned this quickly when we replaced a headlight with an off-brand equivalent.  Within a year, the $9 headlight burnt out.  Toyota’s headlights last over 4 years.  So, we decided to pay $25/headlight versus $9/headlight to make the part last longer and actually save us money in the long-run!

When Bianca hits 250,000 miles (approximately 4 more years), we have plans of purchasing a new vehicle for my commute to work.  Assuming Bianca is still running like a champ, Todd will drive her to and from work (70 miles round trip).

We started looking at vehicles to replace Bianca in case anything catastrophic happens in the upcoming years.  When we went to a dealership on Memorial Day Weekend, the salesman understood that we were doing our research to make an informed decision….in 4 years!  The guy was amused that we plan on seeing our car hit 250,000 miles and more!

There is no new car fever in our home!  We both love the vehicles we drive, and look forward to growing old with them!!!

I would love to hear about your vehicle(s)!

What year/make/model?  How many miles?  How many miles do you want to see the car hit before it’s time to even begin to look for another?

6 comments:

  1. Woohoo! That's awesome!

    I drive an 02 Ford Escape with 135,000 on it! We plan to keep it for awhile.

    We are planning on selling my hubby's 10 year old truck and using that money plus savings to purchase a van soon. I never thought I'd drive a van but I'm excited! My hubby will drive the Escape to work and the van will be our family car!

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    Replies
    1. Yay for 135,000 miles! I remember reading the post when your Escape hit 100,000 miles. :-) That seems like a while ago.

      And that's awesome about getting a van when the truck sells. :-) Hubby is a van-guy. He drives a Kia Rondo and loves it.

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  2. I have a 1999 Jeep Cherokee with 237,000 miles on it. I love the car and it drives really well. The downside is that it is starting to rust (gravel roads clogging up drain holes) and the a/c went out- the entire unit, which would cost more to replace than the vehicle is worth. It's hot and humid in the St Louis area. I only have three working speakers. I drive it 40+ miles one way to work, about an hour from the house, and need 4WD to get up the hill in the winter. Mileage is about 19-20. It's paid for so I don't want to get a new car, couldn't afford it anyway with only one of us working (me).

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    Replies
    1. Wow, Kathy! 237,000 miles is awesome!! Congrats! I'm right there with you on the commute. It doesnt take long to rack up the miles with the daily commute, eh?

      I am praying that your Cherokee will keep on keepin' on!

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