Who here is the original owner? (of a 10+ years old car)

[Kaervak]

I never thought people actually buy Saturn , what possessed you to do so in 1999?

Dirt cheap, excellent gas mileage, cheap repairs, five star crash rating, a GM product that wasn't a GM. There are things about the car I don't like, but they are far out weighed by the things I do like. They're great little cars. Keep them topped up on oil and they'll run forever. There's a guy on the Saturn boards, Luke, who has 500,000+ miles on his 95.

 

[Sust]

My car is a 2003 and I'm the original owner. Not quite 10 years but it is the longest I've owned any car in my entire life.

Nissan Maxima SE w/moonroof. It is pretty well equipped, reasonably quick, comfortable, and decent looking. I have 105,000 miles on it currently. I'm ready for something else but there is nothing wrong with this car so I'll probably hang onto it for another year or so.

Seconded. 2002 Maxima GLE which I got back then in 2001 b/c of the reliability stories which have all held true thus far. Now 125000 miles with mobil 1 synth oil changes every 4k miles and it still works. Major repairs included some valvular thing at 64k but otherwise nothing else except replacement of warped rotors and routine brake pads and tires. Oh and it burns oil a little bit more now.
Pretty amazing if you ask me.
/knocks on wood

 

[charrison]

Seconded. 2002 Maxima GLE which I got back then in 2001 b/c of the reliability stories which have all held true thus far. Now 125000 miles with mobil 1 synth oil changes every 4k miles and it still works. Major repairs included some valvular thing at 64k but otherwise nothing else except replacement of warped rotors and routine brake pads and tires. Oh and it burns oil a little bit more now.
Pretty amazing if you ask me.
/knocks on wood

Original owner of 2000 maxima with 195k miles. This car has held up incredibly well but has had to have some parts replaced over the last few years.

 

[WackyDan]

1999 Dodge Dakota club cab, 3.9 V6.
Bought December 16th, 1998 for just under $20k
115,000 miles currently
Highway MPG - 22

Major maintenance:

Lower control arms at 20k (Dodge had issues with the integrated ball joints back then)
New short block at 3850 miles - Piston knock.

Expected or unexpected maintenance items ( aside from the normal plug changes/tune ups):

Upper ball joints at 100k
Idler Pully at 60k
Wheel speed sensor at 50k
Rear shocks (replaced front struts while I was at it just for kicks.)

I got 85,000 miles out of my last brake job... though when I finally had to do the brake work we flushed the whole system, new pads all around, new calipers and wheel cylinders and rotors.

Still on original clutch - though I'm starting to get tell tale slave cylinder or throw out bearing squeak.

I have never had a single turn signal, brake, or headlight burn out.

I originally wanted a v8 Dakota, fully loaded, but I had just started a new job and decided to be sensible about the purchase. I loved the styling of the Dakota, and my previous truck had been an 88 Dakota. The Dakota was the perfect compromise between both small and full size trucks.

I'd like to keep it another several years, but I now have a family, and a full size V8 quad cab is in my near future for the back seat room, newer child seat mounts, and towing capacity for a camping trailer. Add to that the need to replace my wife's car eventually and the desire to stagger vehicle payments.

I'm leaning heavily on Ford F-150 with the turbo'd Ecoboost V6 at this point, but the Ram 1500 with the Ram Box is also a contender.

I've been very happy with my Dakota... Other than a few dings and scratches, it still looks great. It has fairly low miles given how long I've had it. Spent most of it's time at the airport garage while I've been out on business. I only put about 1500 miles a year on it now, and most of the miles came from long highway based trips to New England, GA, and KY.

 

[highland145]

Was. 1990 Prelude. 19 years, 203K miles. Honda, enough said for the 90's.

 

[Kroze]

I agreed with the Nissan Maxima reliability statement. They are nearly bulletproof

I got my 99 Maxima with 120k miles and it runs like a dream. After I did all of the maintenance of course

 

[Don Vito Corleone]

My car is a 2003 and I'm the original owner. Not quite 10 years but it is the longest I've owned any car in my entire life.

Nissan Maxima SE w/moonroof. It is pretty well equipped, reasonably quick, comfortable, and decent looking. I have 105,000 miles on it currently. I'm ready for something else but there is nothing wrong with this car so I'll probably hang onto it for another year or so.

I had a 2001 Maxima for about 7 1/2 years, purchased new, also the longest time I've kept a car. Not a bad car overall but the clutch was ultra-annoying (the engagement range was very small, and the pedal travel rather long) and the turning radius was so awful that it was hard to even park it straight in tight parking lots. Also, after about 4 years the mileage went to hell (from 23 MPG to 16 or so), and no mechanic could figure out why. Otherwise I was pretty happy with it and it was highly reliable. Still, I find it hard to believe I considered that car a sport sedan after driving a BMW for a few years now.

 

[Bacstar]

2000 Chrysler 300M on 125K miles so far. Bought it new when I was getting an oxygen sensor replaced on a Chysler Sebring...I was looking in the dealer lot at the 300M's when a salesman found me. Then 6 hours later, I was driving off in a new car...hehehe. Always wanted it when I bought the Sebring, but just couldn't afford it at the time.

Been pretty good to me over the years. Got me to Alaska from California in one piece in the middle of November. I had heater core go bad when it was under warranty, but other than that, just piddly stuff...new starter, battery replaced, and replaced all the automatic locks. I do have some leaks, but nothing major. Things I attribute to normal wear and tear. I will be getting rid of it next year though for my 45th birthday. I'm ready for a new car...

 

[cr2250]

93 del sol 88k miles

Love it so far!

 

[Vic Vega]

1996 Crown Victoria LX HPP (Handling and Performance Package).

170,000 miles. Original engine, transmission and rear end. No rebuilds. All original leather interior. No rips, tears or stains. No body or paint work of any kind. Clear coat is aging very well. Paint looks and feels new.

0-105,000 miles incurred no repairs for the duration. Only routine maintenance was done during this time. Synthetic oil changes at 7,500 miles since new. Tire rotations done at oil change intervals. Brakes pads all around every 15k miles. They didn't need replaced per say, I just like new brakes. Transmission fluid and filter changes at 25,000 miles since new. This is ahead of Ford's schedule but it's worked out well. This transmission is bullet proof and so is the torque convertor. One of the best Ford has ever made. It will outlast the car.

At 105,000 miles I decided to replace some things proactively, but there were no failures. New battery and alternator. Four new brake rotors, rear parking brake shoes (rear brakes are disk with shoes for the parking brake). Four new shocks. Two new upper control arms with bushing. All new front end bushings. Eight spark plugs, wires and two coil packs. Again, no failures, all proactive based on how I felt the car was doing.

At 112,000 the rear brakes quit working. There was a pinhole leak in the brake line which allowed the front brakes to continue to function but not the rears. New brake lines fitted.

At 135k miles a new pitman arm and idle arm were installed in the steering system.

I've had no additional issues since then. Car runs, drives and handles like new. It's quiet, comfortable, safe and gets very good gas mileage. Contrary to popular belief this is not a gargantuan car. I weighed it myself on two occasions with a full tank of gas and it returned 3,900 lbs and change. That's essentially when a new Camaro, Camry or crossover weights.

This car does 21-22 MPG around town and normally about 26 MPG highway though I have seen it as high as 30 on long trips with little slowdown. Of course, you can absolutely murder the gas mileage if you want. With aggressive driving in the mountains of West Virginia I think I averaged 11 or 12.

I have no plans to replace this car any time soon. What I'd like to do in the next year is replace the headliner which is sagging and replace the carpet which has grabbed some stains over the years.

 

[madoka]

I agreed with the Nissan Maxima reliability statement. They are nearly bulletproof

I got my 99 Maxima with 120k miles and it runs like a dream. After I did all of the maintenance of course

I just passed 272,000 miles on mine. Bought her new back in 95 when the Maxima won Car of the Year.

 

[GoSharks]

Contrary to popular belief this is not a gargantuan car. I weighed it myself on two occasions with a full tank of gas and it returned 3,900 lbs and change. That's essentially when a new Camaro, Camry or crossover weights.

212" x 77" is a huge car...

A Camry is 189"x72"

 

[Eli]

These stories are cool. I'd like to own a brand new car one day, but it's not a priority right now...

I plan on keeping my Insights forever, though I do want to add to the collection so I don't know how that will shake out.

 

[Vic Vega]

These stories are cool. I'd like to own a brand new car one day, but it's not a priority right now...

I plan on keeping my Insights forever, though I do want to add to the collection so I don't know how that will shake out.

I've owned two new cars and still have both of them. My other car is a 2002 Explorer XLT which I might do a rundown on later.

At this point in my life, I doubt I'll buy another brand new car. It has it's ups and downs. I think I would be perfectly happy with a 2-3 year old car with under 20,000 miles to start off.

 

[Vic Vega]

212" x 77" is a huge car...

A Camry is 189"x72"

 

[Kaieye]

I got a Mazda minivan back in 2000. It has 188k miles on it and still runs like new. I had to change the radiator(small leak) about 90k miles ago but still runs like new. But the van will soon be sold or bought by the insurance co. because I was in a car accident last month.

 

[Svnla]

Let see. I bought my current vehicle (my first brand new vehicle ever) because I wanted a small SUV. I tried to purchase a small truck first but the dealer did not want to deal.

Current milage is about 106K miles and so far, no problem, the engine is running smooth like silk, body is still in very good condition (no rust), and I am planning to keep it until the wheels fall off. I wonder if I could make it to 1M miles. Just regular maint. stuffs such as oil/filter change and did have the 100K timing belt change for $800, no major parts failing <crossing fingers>.

To me, a vehicle is just something that will take me from A to B and that's it. I am not into "fall in love with a vehicle and give it special name".

 

[Demon-Xanth]

I am now, bought my Dakota on 10/3/01. No plans to replace it. Haven't had to do much in 110,000 miles.

 

[thecoolnessrune]

My grandfather purchased a 1995 Ford Bronco 5.8L Eddie Bauer brand new off the lot. I can remember as a kid the day he got it. It's at only 140k miles now (he doesn't drive it that much). He's had the radiator replaced once (leak), the transfer case engagement mechanism replaced (dreaded rust out due to non-use since he rarely engaged 4WD), and the dreaded random dieing the 5.8L's got. Turned out to be the PIP module on the distributor although we didn't get to it until after replacing the Ignition module and Fuel pump. Fairly average reliability but he loves driving it and honestly I do to. I don't see him giving it up in his remaining lifetime. He loves it too much. Probably will end up with it after him.

 

[lac3513]

I may not count since my Jeep was in storage for three years while I was stationed in Japan. I bought it new in April 2001 and it has been a daily driver for the years it was not stored. It only has 66,000 miles on it and has been utterly reliable. The only thing it ever needed except for brakes, tires and oil is a transmission seal after being stored. I never understand why Consumer Reports always pans the Wrangler for reliability. Mine is bulletproof.

 

[TrueBlueLS]

I'm about 9 months shy... but 2002 Cavalier LS Sport Coupe. 138,000 miles with only replacing the battery. It burns some oil from the beating I've put it through and I'm thinking I will need a fuel pump soon.

 

[KGB]

1991 Ford Mustang GT Convertible.

140K miles and going strong. If I ever sell that car my wife will leave me.

 

[dandruff]

2001 X5 bought new ...
150k miles ... running strong - no suspension work done ever - still handles like new ... will prolly go on forever ...