tex2670

KBB says $19,000 for a Platinum Sequoia for that MY with 177k mi in "Excellent Condition" is market value for a private purchase (I don't care how well maintained it is, there's no way it has 177k mi and is "Excellent"). That was not what I was expecting; I still would pass.

UDel

Those Honda/Acura transmissions are not nearly as bad as has been put around the internet, my parents had/have 2 Acura's with those transmission and never had any issues with well over 100K miles, I still have not met anyone who had a failed transmission with those models and I have talked to a lot of people who had cars with those transmissions and driven many cars with them. If the transmissions have no issues in 40 to 60K miles and they added the extra lubricating kit/inspected them they should be as reliable as most other transmissions, the reason why it seemed like a bigger deal was because so many Honda/Acura models had those transmissions, Honda's/Acura's are expected to be extremely reliable, and if even 1% have issues it would mean you hear about it a lot if those people are vocal on the internet about it. Many of the problems stemmed from Type S auto models that were abused.

SW17LS

I have a good buddy who's transmission failed on his Accord at 65k miles. Definitely does happen.

UDel

Transmissions fail on all cars, I am not saying it never happens to Honda's or Acura's or that you should not look further into it when possibly buying, just that the issue has been pretty overblown on the internet, most Honda/Acura transmissions don't have any issues. If the recall inspection/extra lubricating kit was done and everything checked out I would not be every hesitant to own a Honda or Acura with those transmissions based on personal experiences. The transmissions are warrantied to 100K miles too.

My Mitsubishi Eclipse Transmission failed at 60K miles, 2nd transmission was failing at around 100K miles when I sold it, blew the engine in that car too. My cousin's 2001 Toyota Celica transmission blew at 55K miles, know a guy who blew his motor in his ES300, my uncles's Grand Prix blew 2 trannies within 60K miles along with a engine, ex gfriends BMW 3 series transmission just blew, friends Camaro had to have tranny replaced but the car had 100K miles, friends Firebird blew its transmission which he had nothing but problems with, my dads co worker just blew a piston in his less then 2 year old Audi A6. That is just off the top of my head.

carguy75

No car is failure-proof.

However, some cars are built better than others as an whole which usually means less repairs while owning it.

Toyota and Lexus have a great reputation of being more reliable that most other auto makes, however even they have a service department in every dealership because crap happens.

cwall1914

It depends on how the car has been kept, and the record. Miles are really not a factor

carguy75

Yes and no.

When buying used a potential buyer has to look at what type of repair is likely to happen and if they can cover it.

Like anything,car parts will need to be replaced over time no matter how well the engine has been taken care of.

When a car reach over 100k miles of use, then the owner has to be prepared to replace some major components like timing chains,water pumps, engine seals,transmissions,electronics,etc.

To make matters worst, those components could failure at anytime over 100k miles without warning and leave a owner stranded.

But I do agree with you that if the car with high mileage have a good service history then it should be a safer bet than a car with a dodgy service history even if the car with the poor service history had less miles.

However, there is no covering up the fact that higher mileage on an engine still means a engine has more wear from use.

When parts are used they eventually break.

With that being said, like you mentioned if the car has records showing that major components like the water pump has been replaced after 100k miles then it would make that car more desirable in my opinion which means that the mileage would not be that much of a factor overall.

Toys4RJill

I am assuming this is 177k in miles right? That is a lot.

mmarshall

While good maintenance obviously helps, I disagree on the miles.......The type of miles predominant on the car can often indeed be a factor. Cars driven primarily on uncrowded or Interstate highways are obviously going to have a lot less wear on the brakes and transmission (and perhaps engine) than cars subjected to constant stop/go and accelerate/stop conditions. Cars driven mostly on straight roads will often have less wear on the steering and tires than those on curvy roads. And cars driven on mostly smooth roads (in general, the farther south you go in the U.S., the smoother the roads, though there are some exceptions) will have less wear and (possible) damage to the wheels/tires and suspension system. Cars that are lightly loaded most of the time will have less wear, overall, than those heavily loaded. And, of course, cars driven gently by Grandpa or Grandma will usually have a lot less wear than from Junior trying to impress his friends on Friday or Saturday night.

Toys4RJill

Its is quite rare to see a low mileage vehicle in outstanding condition that was used in a lot of severe use methods. Even rarer for a luxury car.

A car with high miles is not worth having IMO.

SW17LS

Yes...things happen on all cars, but its well known that those generation Hondas suffer from an issue of premature transmission failure. There are plenty of pre-owned options out there...I would just avoid those cars, as I would avoid Toyota/Lexus engines that are in the range where they suffer from engine sludge. Why take a chance? Just buy something else.

blacksc400

iTrader: (4)

1UZ FE, the most bullet proof engine of all time, if the earth blows, only things that left alive are cockroach and 1UZ motor...

carguy75

LOL.

I told my wife that we would probably only sale the RX350 because we get tired of looking at the RX in the garage, not because of any engine related failures based on most older Lexus cars that are still running like a champ with over 200k miles and just regular maintenance/small repairs.

Sometimes simpler is better, and Toyota/Lexus has that recipe down to a science.

Top grade power-train and chassis components over high-tech eye candy.

Yes, cars like the Ford Edge have better looking tech goodies than our RX models however the Ford Edge will not be as simple to own as the Lexus if you keep both cars the same amount of time pass the warranty period.

Fancy tech alone will not make up for a dodgy drive-train and cheap components on the chassis like on my last 2011 Ford Edge AWD.

The car only had 30k miles(wife worked close to home) when we traded it for the 2011 RX350 AWD and it needed a transmission-cooler replaced, rear wheel bearing, and developed a power steering hose leak.

To make matter worst, I read that the Ford six-speed transmission was prone to valve-body failures around 100k miles as well as the AWD PTU, so some makes are not built to last without breaking the bank.

tradosauru

I think there are too many good cars to be bought with under 150,000 miles for under $10,000.
Case in point. I have bought following used cars in the past 10 yrs
1) 1998 Mazda 626 - 90,000 miles ($3500)
2) 1996 Ford Ranger (4 cyl) - 96,000 miles ($3200) (one owner)
3) 1996 Honda Civic - 120,000 miles ($3800) (one owner)
4) 2001 Ford Mustang - 130,000 miles ($3200) (one owner)
5) 2008 Ford Mustang - 70,000 miles ($10,000) (one owner)

carguy75

The engines in those older Toyota cars was bullet-proof, however the recommended oil was not up to the task of the recommended oil change intervals at the time.

I believe that Toyota was still using Dino-based oil for the extended oil changes which broke down and created sludge in the engines.

Since then Toyota have completely revamped the type of oil used and the oil filters to prevent sludge to build-up during it current recommended oil changes.

I used to own a 1999 Toyota Camry XLE V6 and never had a engine issue and i had the car until about 110k miles then traded it.

However, i always changed the oil at 3k miles with Castrol GTX oil at the time and changed the transmission fluid/filter at 60k miles.

I learned from a mechanic that oil is cheap, while engines /transmissions are not.

So now I still change my oil well before the factory recommendations(every 3-4k miles for engine oil and 30k for transmission fluid), and never had any real transmission/engine issues with my older cars when I follow that practice.