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THANK YOU Tim for posting about the 1M mile Honda, that was a VERY cool story!
 
That reminded me of this story I'd heard a number of years about Irv Gordon and his 1966 Volvo P1800.   He made the Guinness Book of World Records in 1998, for most miles driven by a single owner in a non-commercial vehicle.   How many miles?  1.69 MILLION!
 
Well he is still going strong today and the most recent info I've been able to find is, as of November 2011 he was at 2.92 MILLION MILES!!    

Kevin

This video aired on PBS in Jan, 2011
<object width = "768" height = "432" > <param name = "movie" value = "http://www-tc.pbs.org/s3/pbs.videoportal-prod.cdn/media/swf/PBSPlayer.swf" > </param><param name="flashvars" value="width=768&height=432&video=1754492120&player=viral&end=0&lr_admap=in:warnings:0;in:pbs:0" /> <param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param > <param name = "allowscriptaccess" value = "always" > </param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param ><embed src="http://www-tc.pbs.org/s3/pbs.videoportal-prod.cdn/media/swf/PBSPlayer.swf" flashvars="width=768&height=432&video=1754492120&player=viral&end=0&lr_admap=in:warnings:0;in:pbs:0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" wmode="transparent" allowfullscreen="true" width="768" height="432" bgcolor="#000000"></embed></object>Watch Can My Car Live Forever? on PBS. See more from NOVA scienceNOW.

revvinkevin++2-4-2012-12-53-54.jpg
 
My current cars don't have very high mileage but they are getting quite old. My daily drivers are a 19 years old Toyota 4x4 truck with 171,000 miles and a very similar 22 years old Toyota with almost the same mileage (271,000 km). I got both of them used 3 years ago with 124,000 miles on the 1993 it and it's been quite reliable since. I replaced the timing belt on the V6 at 130,000 for the first time and did the valve cover gaskets and replaced the original radiator at the same time but it's been pretty trouble free. The a/c and every accessory still works. Even the power antenna does! The 1990 Toyota has no power options or A/C and I replaced it's 4cyl engine with a better one that I already had a few years ago at 257,000 km and I had to repair some rust on it's body since it spent all it's life in Canada. Next spring, I should replace both box sides as I have new ones waiting to be installed.

My older cars have lower mileage than that but I had to replace the 430 engine on my '67 Buick Riviera at 74,000 miles after mine self-destructed on the highway. I wanted to go to the service station at the next exit and have the car towed from there but I didn't make it, even after slowing down! Just a minute after it started to knock, the bottom end exploded and a rod went out with a big chunk of the block and it even did a small hole the frame where it punched it! The only clue that something was bad before that day was the low oil pressure reading on the gauge and a few seconds of bearing noise when I started the engine. And I had a similar Buick 455 (which I thought was worse than the 430 when the 430 exploded!) rebuilt at 85,000 miles on my '75 Electra as I felt the same was going to happen soon! I was aware of this before I got the car with 64,000 miles on it as the oil pressure switch didn't work when I went to test drive it. I asked to the owner if I could replace it before buying the car and when I did, the oil light came on at idle as soon as the engine was getting warm!
I still managed to do 21,000 miles with this tired engine after I negotiated the price of the car 1500$ below the asking price.
The original engine and transmission are still fine in my '65 Buick which now has a bit more than 100,000 miles on it. On these cars, I think that age, lack of maintenance and long storage periods did more damage than the mileage. My '75 Buick had been stored from 1981 to 2001 and I'm wondering if they did a single oil change during these 20 years. But the Buick 350-430-455 and early V6 engines were clearly not as good as the older Buick Nailhead engines or even newer ones (the V6 got much better in the late eighties but I still had to replace a 1991 3.8 V6 at 145,000 miles when it's bearings went bad).

I think that more precise fuel systems, better design, alloys and other improvements like roller lifters and rockers really made most newer engines much better. The newest ones even work with 0W20 and 5W20 oil in hot weather. But I don't think that transmissions got that much better than older ones. They are now more efficient but I doubt they are more solid than a GM ST 400/TH 400 from the 1960's.
 
buick oil pump design

PhilR,didn't buick have kind of a bad design for the oil pump on their '67-later
engine designs-something like a gear type pump with it's aluminum case cast as
part of the timing cover-the main fault being the side thrust from the pump gears
wears the aluminum bushing surface for the pump gear's shaft,letting the gears
cock in the housing and gouge it up-greatly reducing pump output...I might be
thinking of pontiac or oldsmobile too,can't remember which one had this faulty
oil pump design.
 
My 91 Ford Escort G.T.(Mazda Protege Engines and Chassis body by Ford) the  door panels and everything fell off that car but I put 490,000 Miles on it.I ragged that car out.Worked at Pizza Hut while in High School and college,drove it to Alaska,Maine,all over the place..That Mazda 1.8 Dohc Engine was bullet proof never did nothing to save for water pump,Timing belt,clutch.It took a telephone Pole and myself in November of 1998 I had a Seizure at the wheel and slammed into right past the Ringold G.A. weigh station on North I-75 hit the pole 120 M.P.H.+ that killed it,the Seat-belt and that fact that I was not conscious saved me... The reason that engine lasted soooo long was it was designed for  the Mazda 323 Turbo all-wheel drive rally car from the start .That was a new everything for the 91 Escort the normal Escort had a 81 H.P. Ford engine in it but the G.T. had that Mazda screamer in it and it would fly red line was 7500That engine is highly sought now and very rare.I did things I would never do now,That car  never once did it leave me stranded ever...It was a beautiful blue color,Mom bought that car for me new behind my Dads back,LOL he made her mad cause he bought another boat for him, but fussed at her for buying a Channel Purse.I was a spoiled kid better rephrase that I am a spoiled kid..
smiley-laughing.gif
 
120 M.P.H???

Is this not sensationalized a bit? First you are asking us to believe that a Escort could get up to 120, then it would take an impact of that magnitude.

Sorry, the skeptic in me has seen too many crash test videos to buy.

 
<a name="startPOSTER_38639.32"></a><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;">cfz2882</span>

 

You are right, it was Buick's design.  First introduced on the aluminum V8, then on the V6 and the small block 300-340 and then on the 400, 430, 350 and 455 engines... Olds and Pontiacs had other problems but the Buick had a badly designed oiling system. The oil pump was a bit small, the aluminum timing covers which integrated the oil pump had wear problems and also expanded at a different rate than oil pump gears which caused even lower oil pressure when hot. Some longer aftermarket gears with spacers and aftermarket timing covers (also with higher volume oil pumps) are supposed to help but... The newer 3.8 V6 had this problem corrected by having a crankshaft-driven oil pump.

 

The older Buick Nailhead V8 engines (322, 264, 364, 401 and 425) had a strange design but they were usually more durable (and their oiling system was ok!). And like many older engines, they had forged crankshafts.

Later engines like the 430-455  had "nodular iron" crankshafts which were supposed to be a bit better than basic cast cranks but still not as good as old forged ones. I had a '76 Electra which still had relatively good main bearings (I expected them to look much worse) but the thrust bearing grooved the crank and the crank had so much play that it digged every main cap and the block on both sides. The oil pump housing and gears were still good on this one but the crankshaft play caused very low oil pressure. I dismantled it at 96,000 miles to have it rebuilt but when I saw what had happened, I decided to scrap the car and buy another one instead.

 

 

[this post was last edited: 2/5/2012-03:38]
 
none of the Olds engines

had any of those issues as the Buicks did...I started the Blue & Gray Chapter of the Olds Club of America in 1984 and have had over 20 vintage Oldsmobiles 1936 to 1977. All the Rocket 303, 324, 330, 350, 371, 392, 425, 455 V8s were as tough as nails, 200k+ easily with any kind of decent maintenance. Some of the HydraMatics were less than bulletproof however.

All of our SAABs since 1974 have gone 300k+ no problem. We keep driver cars until they are no longer economical to repair. Still have '84 and '87 SAABS going strong.
 
i found an '87 saab 900 16v turbo at the junkyard with 375000 miles-engine had
water in the oil,so looks like it blew head gasket or something.Car had been in the
northeast for most of it's life apparently,and was badly rusted-big,gaping holes-
even under the hood lots of screws and bolts were seized.Among the big hoard of
parts i was able to salvage were the two radiator fans-both had bad motors from
salt spray exposure,car may have gotten hot at idle and blew the head gasket.
The engine in my '71 99 saab is from an '80 900,had 100000mi when i got it-was in
almost perfect condition other than some wear to the chain guides.
 
Yes,it is very true and that car was 80% Mazda Protege with a Ford Escort G.t. sticker on it, but I was going doing a long  hill  and that engine pushed out 160 H.P. I had it boosted and other things .My Civic V-tec will do 120M.P.H. easy  ....The Power pole snapped and hit the back of the car and the passenger side tire was next to me.I broke my back,ribs,and legs in that wreck that pole after it broke caused chain reaction and the power wires came down on I-75 and had traffic blocked for hours..I got sued for Millions of dollars and even the City of Ringold was suing me for the POLE,That ..I had to file  bankrupt,I should be dead but I was in the middle of a Epileptic seizure and remember nothing but getting on the I-75 and the next thing I recall is that Jaws of life cutting me and and somebody saying my name over and over.I don't know how I lived,but it's the same way drunks live and the others die in wrecks..I have had SO many terrible accidents and should have been dead many times because of the Epilepsy,but I just look at it when its your time its your time...
 
Roger, When I talked about Olds engine problems, I was first thinking about their 350 Diesels... I'd take any Buick engine before one of these! Buick 455 engines had better heads than Olds 455, at least in the early seventies...
 
vols

Your saving grace was that the power pole snapped and you didn't stop abruptly. 120MPH is only about 90 MPH above that car's designed crash worthiness and it scored moderate at that level.

You were very lucky. Was Lex Luther with you, and did Lois take pictures for the Daily Planet? :-) Really, I'm glad you are ok. [this post was last edited: 2/5/2012-21:36]
 
"Buick 455 engines had better heads than Olds 455"

 

Yeah, but either one is gonna breathe better than a nailhead! On the other hand if the main priority is just tons 'o torque with which to slosh a Dynaflow around then the nailhead is probably more than adequate.

 

Those old Saab fours are really quite stout, my '87 900T was still running great at 160K + and using no oil. Unfortunately at around the same time the a/c quit, headliner fell, clutch or gearbox began to make some very strange noises, and then it was rear-ended. The hit was minor but did kink the fenders slightly and made the hatch hard to open and combined with the other issues I decided agaist repairing it. From what I can tell, gearbox problems are what usually kill old Saabs. The Borg-Warner automatics used in the 900 are typical B-W junk, and although the ZF in the 9000 is somewhat better it can be fiendishly expensive to fix if it ever goes bad. Manuals are stronger, but even those are a little weak in 900s. Overall though they are good cars.
 

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