[floridaorange]

Just curious. What's the highest mileage car(s) you've ever bought? What was your ownership experience with them?

Heard every opinion from: "just depends on maintenance, each car is different, taxis in nyc get driven routinely > 500k miles, and on and on."

I had a client with a 2020 Hyundai SUV, looked nice, not sure what model exactly, engine had to be replaced after 10k miles.

I bought a civic xe in college with 120k miles, had zero issues until I sold it a couple yrs later.

[S1nner]

I bought my first BMW - F10 with an N55 engine. 1 owner, clean carfax, maintenance, etc.
The mileage was almost 100k. This is the highest mileage car I have bought so far (feel the desire to own a BMW, lol).
The experience was good, just routine maintenance - brakes, tires, coolant, etc.
Ofc had a leaking valve cover gasket, filter housing, etc.
When the transmission started jerking (around 125k miles), traded it in for an F15 with the same engine but much fewer miles.

[ASAP]

I had a 335i at 65k miles and a 135i at 90k miles... both were falling apart at this mileage... I mean everything you can think of... these were the E90 gen but anyone that tells you those cars are reliable is a straight up liar.

I also had a Civic that I bought that was only 2 years old and only had 26k miles... somehow it was my 3rd most unreliable car ever after the 2 above.

Outside of that -

Mazdaspeed 3 - bulletproof at 70k
Audi S3 - Very reliable at 40k... (diff failed and gas tank vent pump failed but these were known issues and repaired under warranty)
Mazda Protege - 110K miles - only alternator failed
My M2 Comp was driven like a racecar on the streets for 13k miles and was absolutely bulletproof. I think if any car was driven like this, it would have fallen apart.

All other cars were low mileage...

[ASAP]

I will make one other comment - if we are talking BMW reliability... everything late F series (2016 and UP) or G series is for the most part very reliable... prior to that, best of luck. Once BMW went to the B48 / B58 combos and the S55 / S58 for the M motors, things became bulletproof... I would still stay away from any N63 powered cars as those are still old gen.

[chassis]

Took possession of a hand me down 13 yr old RAV4 with around 120k miles, dealer maintained on time. That thing was perfect, maintenance wise. It has some corrosion but nothing that would have prevented another 200k miles. Rear ended and totaled, sadly.

[careyd38]

Bought a '77 Celica GT right before I got out of the NAVY in 1986. Had 85k miles and drove it for 3 years when I traded it in on a pickup. Took me from L.A. to Huntsville, AL when I was discharged. Had the 20R engine which ran flawlessly. Unfortunately the dash had large cracks, headliner was falling down, seats were worn and body/paint were very rough. The drivers seat frame even broke and I had to move the passenger seat over...so the last year I had it anyone riding with me sat in the back! Good times

Had 135k miles when I traded it.

[dradernh]

1959 VW Bug convertible with 120K on the clock. It wasn't much fun over 30 mph (it needed new king pins badly). I traded a '59 Bugeye Sprite for it that was in even worse condition. I mostly just used the Bug to get around in San Francisco and Marin.

The brake system wasn't in good shape, either. A roommate once borrowed the car and parked it on a hill, despite instructions to the contrary. After pulling out and discovering the problem, he and a passenger managed to jump out and bring it to a halt just before it plunged down Jones St between California and Pine. That would have made the front page of the Chronicle, with or without them in it.

I gave the Bug away and paid $75 for a '59 Rover 100 with 70K, which at least was in halfway decent shape. The Rover's engine ran and sounded like a sewing machine. It was a cool car, and I got 20K out of it before it threw a rod due to lack of maintenance.

[3.0L]

My little 1952 Piper puddle-jumper airplane had 280,000 miles on it when I bought it. I've put 50,000 miles on it for a total of 330,000 miles. It's still in good shape and only on it's 2nd engine.

[hubbahubba]

Originally Posted by 3.0L

My little 1952 Piper puddle-jumper airplane had 280,000 miles on it when I bought it. I've put 50,000 miles on it for a total of 330,000 miles. It's still in good shape and only on it's 2nd engine.

Pics?

[Nuckle]

My first truck was a Datsun 4x4 with 280k miles. It was a pile of dog crap and I loved it. Extended cab with a pair of 15" subs in the second row lol. Looked like this one.

[mecheng77]

250,000km on 98 Volvo S70 T5 - so comfortable and quite fast. Engine was very smooth

280,000km on 96 Prelude SR-V, loved the handling engine power/noise and GT nature of the car but it drank oil

[Tommy-G]

When I lived in Wisconsin I had a (nutty) customer with a SAAB 900 Who would pull over on the side of the road if he hit 3k miles and change his oil. He also used airplane wax, said it gave him better gas mileage. However, the car turned 1 million miles and He donated it to a museum. SAAB ended up giving him a brand new 9-5

https://www.saabplanet.com/1989-saab...d-to-a-museum/

[NeverL8]

Not mine, but my old boss bought 2008 Tundra when it first came out. We drove that thing until 420k miles. Poor truck got beat on daily with very, very minimal preventative maintenance. First spark plug change was at 230k miles lol….rumor has it, it still starts

[Turkish Pickle]

Bought a lincoln mks at 90,107.8 miles and drove it until it was totaled in a rear ending at around 145k miles. Both the highest mileage car I've ever bought, and (so far) the most mileage I've put on a single car. This was over April 2018-July 2021.

It was the best car I ever owned, and even though I have a better car now I still miss it dearly. Absolutely bulletproof, to the point of coping with my abuse and broke student maintenance schedule of $30 oil changes with the student discount and occasional filter changes with $5 filters from rockauto. Other than those I only did brakes once (pads+rotors), and got new tires.

If/when I have a surplus of cash and garage space, I want to hunt down either my old car, or a super clean MKS and paint it green like mine was.

[UncleWede]

Sold my son the 06 E90 at about 175k 2 years ago. He's driving my truck this week as they replaced the alternator, serpentine, and some pulleys since the A/C compressor bearing froze, then day after he got it back it started leaking coolant.

I have no idea how many times the odo rolled on the 77 Beetle I bought 6 years ago. It's in a good situation now, and I've driven it all week while my son borrowed the truck. The speedo cable broke about 6 months ago, so I've been stuck on this rotation at 68k

[mecheng77]

Originally Posted by Tommy-G

When I lived in Wisconsin I had a (nutty) customer with a SAAB 900 Who would pull over on the side of the road if he hit 3k miles and change his oil. He also used airplane wax, said it gave him better gas mileage. However, the car turned 1 million miles and He donated it to a museum. SAAB ended up giving him a brand new 9-5

https://www.saabplanet.com/1989-saab...d-to-a-museum/

Originally Posted by Tommy-G

When I lived in Wisconsin I had a (nutty) customer with a SAAB 900 Who would pull over on the side of the road if he hit 3k miles and change his oil. He also used airplane wax, said it gave him better gas mileage. However, the car turned 1 million miles and He donated it to a museum. SAAB ended up giving him a brand new 9-5

https://www.saabplanet.com/1989-saab...d-to-a-museum/

He couldn't wait the extra 100 or so miles, that's so absurd and what a waste of oil to change it at 3k

[nicholasn]

Not really an actual purchase but when I started driving, my dad essentially gifted me his old car which was a 1995 Audi A6 Quattro. Don't remember how many miles it had when I started driving it, but it crested 315k before I moved on and bought a GTI. Still had the original engine, clutch, and trans at that point. GTI had 217k when I sold it, and my BMW currently has just under 185k.

[MKSixer]

My Merkur XR4ti and my Acura Legend each with 45K miles.

The M6 was 21K miles.

[mthused]

Used to have a long commute for 26 years(!), about 100mi logged total each work day there and back. Bought a '99 328is in 2001 with 44,000 on it as my first BMW- by the time I sold it it had around 210,000.

Replaced it with an E46 M3 that I still have in 2008, it had ~65,000 on it when I bought it, now has 324,000+. Don't daily it anymore, but it is still running well- with lots of maintenance and a few repairs over the years! Now it needs some paint work just due to wear, but otherwise good.

Between then and now, had a 2018 M2 (bought new) and put 60,000 on that as daily.

Since then, commute is much less crazy, so normal-ish mileage now on my 2023 G80. I can only hope it will last like the E46 has!

[e90Dawg08]

Bought a 2006 Ford Ranger as a beater to putz around town in a few years ago. It had ~220k miles on it and needed a little work, but now it's tough as nails and serves it's purpose perfectly. 4wd, sport suspension, standard cab with the longer bed.

I did have the rear diff, brakes, and all the electric replaced so now I have to keep it. Works great on those rainy days when the e90 hides in the garage.

[jmack]

2002 F-250 diesel with 370k miles. Put another 100k on it before selling it for more than I bought it for. Other than bearings & hubs and replacing CMP & ICP sensors multiple times, it was solid.

[vbb]

Originally Posted by mthused

Replaced it with an E46 M3 that I still have in 2008, it had ~65,000 on it when I bought it, now has 324,000+.

That is impressive.