I want to run my civic to 1,000,000 miles - please help!

Discussion in 'Civic' started by Crandall009.5, Nov 20, 2005.

  1. I want to run my civic to 1,000,000 miles - please help!

    I have a 94 honda civic dx 4 door sedan with a manual transmission and
    156k miles on it. I want to see how many miles i can get out of it
    before it is more cost effective to simply buy a new car.

    So far I run high mileage vavoline synthetic (their 75,000+ stuff)
    I am going to park it for about 2 weeks so I can repair the rust spots
    creeping up the fenders and repaint it.

    Some questions:
    What oil is the best to use?
    How many miles should I change the oil?
    What sort of things should I replace before they go bad?
    etc...

    Thanks!
     
    Crandall009.5, Nov 20, 2005
    #1
  2. I should mention why I want to do this:
    I drive about 200 miles a day 5 days a week (plus or minus) so that
    would equate to about 1000 miles a week, 52,000 miles a year.
     
    Crandall009.5, Nov 20, 2005
    #2
  3. Crandall009.5

    SoCalMike Guest

    until its crashed or rusted through so badly that its unsafe, its almost
    ALWAYS cheaper to fix what you have. even if you have a junkyard
    tranny/engine tossed in every year for $1000 a pop by pedros auto
    salvage... thats only 4 payments on a hyundai.
    does it burn any oil? if not, i might go with a walmart synthetic, or
    even rotellaT 5w40synth and keep it in for 7500 miles. thats about 3
    months, the way you drive :)

    otherwise, just a regular dino oil every 5k should suffice. your pick.
    its kinda crazy to spring for $24 worth of oil every 3 months if youre
    on a budget.
    for regular oil, pick a mileage... 3k? 5k? for synthetic, if i was going
    to spend the bucks, id leave it in as long as possible
    timing belts/waterpumps and suspension bushings/balljoints are the 2
    that come to mind.
     
    SoCalMike, Nov 20, 2005
    #3
  4. Oil that meets or exceeds the specs as outlined by Honda, changed
    frequently enough by either time or mileage, whichever comes first.

    Oil changes are hands down the cheapest form of insurance. Use decent
    dino oil and change it frequently--don't worry about synthetic in a car
    like this.

    3K miles/3 months, whichever comes first, is very cheap insurance.

    Rubber rots--timing belt is always good to keep ahead of. And have
    someone go over the front suspension, and be prepared to replace things
    there.
     
    Elmo P. Shagnasty, Nov 20, 2005
    #4
  5. Crandall009.5

    Elle Guest

    To toss in one more point to the fray: Do you have an
    owner's manual or Chilton's manual for your car?

    One can often buy a Chilton's specific to one's car from
    Ebay pretty cheaply.

    Use the maintenance schedule in these manuals and follow it
    precisely.

    Or print out a maintenance schedule from the autozone.com
    site.

    There is some debate on synthetic oil vs. conventional oil
    in older cars. Last time I read up on it (earlier this
    year), it seemed the chances of there being a problem with
    the synthetic oil were slim, but it was still a gamble.
    Typically the chemistry of the synthetic oil causes old
    seals (impregnated with the older oil) to fail.
     
    Elle, Nov 20, 2005
    #5
  6. Crandall009.5

    Misterbeets Guest

    What sort of things should I replace before they go bad?

    Things that can leave you stranded: batteries, hoses and belts.
     
    Misterbeets, Nov 20, 2005
    #6
  7. Crandall009.5

    SoCalMike Guest

    hes gonna get REALLY good at it, cuz thats 3 WEEKS worth of driving to
    him :)
     
    SoCalMike, Nov 20, 2005
    #7
  8. hey, there're quick oil change places everywhere.
     
    Elmo P. Shagnasty, Nov 21, 2005
    #8
  9. Crandall009.5

    Rob B Guest

    then the OP will get about three oil changes out the car

    i now loath those crap quickie oil change places

    two different places over-tightened the oil drain plug on two different cars
    of mine, used crap fram oil filters, i had to buy oversized drain plug for
    one car and re-tap other to fit with oversized drain-plug that had
    practically been stripped (stripped = upon tightening to normal torque the
    plug would slip to no torque before half torque reached) then file the face
    of the drain hole flat due to lip created from warpage causing bad seat and
    oil dripping

    but YMMV
     
    Rob B, Nov 21, 2005
    #9
  10. Crandall009.5

    ass Guest

    "What sort of things should I replace before they go bad? "



    like muffler camshaft.
     
    ass, Nov 21, 2005
    #10
  11. Crandall009.5

    weedram58 Guest

    You do realize that you'll need to drive this car until 2020 or2021 to
    reach a million miles. An ambitious goal thats theoretically possible,
    but I predict you'll get sick of this car long before this goal is
    reached. And be prepared to replace just about every mechanical
    component on the car. Perfectly acceptable if you love working on your
    own vehicle, but prohibitably expensive if you get it done
    professionally. Personally, if I had to drive 200 miles a day, I would
    want something more luxurious. Don't forget, you are aging too, not
    just the car. Trust me, the older you get, the more ammenities you
    want. And I'm not slamming Hondas. I've driven nothing but Hondas for
    the last 15 years.
     
    weedram58, Nov 21, 2005
    #11
  12. Not to mention, the luxury cars are better built.

    This weekend I had a chance at a 99 Lexus LS400 with 44K miles, for only
    $21K or so. THAT baby would last until 2021, no doubt.
     
    Elmo P. Shagnasty, Nov 22, 2005
    #12
  13. Crandall009.5

    SoCalMike Guest


    ive got a co-worker that bought a 91 LS400 with 200k miles on it for
    $9,000. hes got over 300k on it now, and it still runs strong.
     
    SoCalMike, Nov 22, 2005
    #13
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