Opinion: at what mileage does the hassle and cost of maintenance exceed the value provided?

150k

 

I don't think you'd get a useful answer from the odometer alone.

I do think you can make some useful (though far from perfect) judgements from age alone.

 

i voted 150 because of the battery warranty, but there are so many different factors that go into making that decision.
i pulled the plug at 11 years and 86,000 miles. first major problem and i bailed.

 

Well if it's a generation 3 that we're talking about I'm not sure what forum this is written in the generation two or three for a three the $150 is about perfect because usually all the failures are starting to happen just above the 150 mark or I'd say between 1:38 and 170 somewhere in that kind of business and if you're paying for everything yeah you're coming up on stuff real quick I mean you're not doing anything not even oil changes or nothing I can't imagine even considering that kind of a life My dad live like that I don't know how he did it and he designed tanks for the military I'm talking about shining a seat with your nice person and drawing the things and the parts and drafting and all that old slide rule business but he wouldn't touch our old MG's or his plane or anything He didn't work on squat and I always gave him a lot of guff about that.

 

Lol, why is everyone voting for 150K? I mean I guess it makes sense because most of DIY folks who vote for 300K won't buy a car until it has 150K miles because that's the best price for a used one.

 

If It's a Gen 3 I say though 140 to 170 mark so you don't get stuck with engine replacement and all of the stuff that goes along with that and the generation two that's a completely different bunch of stuff unless you beat the poor thing to death and killed the one NZ you shouldn't have any problems like you have with the generation 3 head gasket and all that stuff of course you don't have that Atkinson cycle 1.8 2Z either..

 

I drive the car until it doesn't make any sense to fix it. How long that is depends on whatever the future brings. If it blows and engine and is no longer worth anything, it's scrap metal. If it just keeps going I usually just keep driving it.

I made the mistake of getting rid of my 1985 VW Golf with some 700,000 miles on it. It just kept running. I sold it to get something "nicer". Well, the Avalon has been ok, but there are a lot of things I don't like about it.

 

^ considering this, 150k is typical for head gasket failure. My 2 cents, EGR clogging will be coming along nicely by then.

Then there’s hybrid battery and brake booster waiting in the wings.

 

at least it's a 2015, which might survive the head gasket longer? idk.

 

This would also depend on: if the car is a highway runner/long distance commuter and how good your mechanic is. Does he/she know what they are doing and/or they just following factory recommendations; ignoring foot notes...
There's still a lot of value left in the car @ 150K; especially if you kept records and receipts. Above that point, the resale value drops exponentially.

Just my 2 cents.....

 

Easy, 300,000 mi +

With regular maintenance and no out lier one off repairs, the obvious answer is keep it long as possible. When my hv battery fails, I will
Replace it with a non-lithium battery and continue to drive it. It is trim
And interior color was rare to
Find so no way Going to
Sell

 

If dependability is paramount, I'd say 100,000 miles or 10 years, whichever comes first. At 120,000 I started having swaybar issues.

 

About 15 years.

And just to expand a bit:

If you consider yourself to be more risk-averse than average and live in a warmer climate, I'd suggest getting out by year 10.

Cooler climate? Willing to take more risk to extract value? Ride it out a little further.

 

The only real failures you would need to worry about are

hv battery
Brake actuator
Head gasket

the rest is all maintenance related, all cars will have them

 

11 years in and done head gasket...(£1000) Now at 368,000 miles. Reckon I will get rid of it in 2-3 years....or keep it as a spare.

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