High mileage preventative maintenance

[beerhiker]

My 04 has 167K miles, are there parts I should start to consider replacing to avoid breakdowns in the field? All fluids have been replaced or are up to date, timing belt and water pump still good, spark plugs and wires recently done. Mechanic says all is good and doesn't need a thing. Is it silly to replace parts that are still working for a piece of mind that they are new? front end components, U-joints, starter, alternator, etc...

 

[bjp]

yes, it is silly. many of the parts you would replace are just as likely to make it to 250k or (likely?) more. if you trust your mechanic, listen to him. if you don't, find one that you do trust.

 

[mtnbike28]

I have 232,000 on my '02 and what you have done is all I have done. My thought is to grab a TPS as a spare one day (I had one go out on a 4runner) But I think if your mechanic doesn't say it needs it (and him getting your money) you are good to go!

 

[fog cutter]

hoses/ flushes

new battery

 

[stioc]

Depends if you travel solo and out in the middle of nowhere for days in which case spending a thousand in parts that will give me 20k-100k worry free miles is worth it, to me. I replaced most suspension components, hoses, belts, spark plugs etc on mine at 120k miles I'll be replacing the alternator, starter, water pump and fuel pump as I get to approx 160k miles. I keep the known-working old parts as spares.

 

[Stoffregen Motorsports]

There are three key factors that play a part in what goes bad and when. Age, mileage and heat cycles.

Rubber parts are more sensitive to heat cycles. Bearings, gears and rotating assemblies are more affected by mileage, etc. Mileage alone does not denote when a part gets replaced. If you drive a car every day and it has 300K miles on it, it's likely that it is in a lot better shape than a low mileage car that sits for extended periods of time. And 170K miles is not a lot these days, especially if it's exercised regularly.

I would agree with the consensus here and leave well enough alone. If I had to make predictions, I would say your tie rod ends and ball joints will be the first to go. Also atop the list is power steering pump and hoses, diff seals and water pump.

 

[beerhiker]

Thanks all, I'll double check the rubber parts..everything thing else is tight, so I will let it fly.

 

[98tcoma3rz]

I had 210k on my Tacoma and I started to replace a few things to be sure. I took my alternator to a shop. (friend of mine owns it) Said it was on it's last leg. Rebuilt it for me. I've heard a lot of the Tacoma radiators fail after about 200k miles. The end caps leak. Replaced mine with a koyo rad for 90 bucks. kept OEM as a spare. Other than that they're pretty stout. I might bring my starter in as well to have it checked out. I would definitely replace idler bearings as well...or carry a spare if you're in the back country.

 

[2scars]

Same truck with 260,000 miles on it. The PO hadn't taken care of the truck well though and the oil pickup in the engine clogged and starved the top end causing a catastrophic engine failure. I replaced the engine with a low mileage, JDM import engine. The pinion bearing was also going in the rear and I replaced the third with one from ECGS (solid pinion spaces now). Trans pump is whining and one day, probably around tax time, I will be acquiring a lightly used trans. But, I drove that pig 6 hours over two ranges (WVa) to go on weekend trip with my wife and I drive it 500 miles a week commuting to work. It still gets 18-ish MPG. A buddy of mine that works for Honda says that these cars and trucks these days don't die of heart attack, they die of cancer. Meaning, if you pay attention to your vehicle, you will notice if something is going to go. Don't just turn the stereo up. I would drive my truck to Moab tomorrow, whine and all.

Brandon

 

[Applejack]

I would definitely replace the radiator if you do a lot of solo travel, and especially if you have an auto trans. Other than that I think you've done well enough.

 

[98WhiteT4R]

Im a firm believer in preventative maintenance, when I bought my '98 4Runner it had 169k miles on it. It was stock and had been taken care of but nothing besides fluid changes had ever really been done to it. I knew I wanted it to be reliable for trips to UT, CO, NM, etc. but also for local 4x4 trips and DD. So I basically wanted to baseline it for piece of mind, while also building it the way I wanted it. I replaced the major components that could end in a catstrophic failure like LBJ's and radiator which gave me some piece of mind. At the time I lived around the corner from a dealership ( and quickly became friends with the service manager and techs) so every time it was in there it was getting inspected for my text trip. I would always ask if there was ANYTHING they noticed that could be replaced, I was always worried something would break on the trail or in the middle of nowhere. The only thing's that ever "gave out" without much warning were the starter and alternater (actually in the same week) and both could be remedied with a jump.

Im ovbiously ranting now but I guess my point is if you need to replace parts for piece of mind then do it, I like piece of mind on the trail:sombrero:. Otherwise just keep on top of regular maintenance (which it sounds like you have) and replace stuff when it breaks.