What total mileage would you be comfortable with on a QX56/QX80/Y62 Armada?

[MarcusBrody]

I'm very intrigued by the idea of picking up a Y62 based vehicle and using it as my adventure vehicle in the desert Southwest. Depreciation seems to have hit these trucks hard and there are a lot of trucks out there that seem to have never been driven off pavement. What's the upper limit of mileage that you would be comfortable with on one of these vehicles? If you've been in the market lately, where do you see the sweet spot between mileage and depreciation? What are things to check on higher mileage (or any) model?

This would be a secondary vehicle for us. It wouldn't be my daily driver, but we would likely road trip in it. I'm unlikely to modify it too much. We are mostly driving on rutted desert roads to explore or get places to mountain bike/hike/kayak rather than rock crawling as an activity in and of itself.

Thanks!

 

[PirateMcGee]

Sweet spot to me for most rigs is around the 40k mile mark and running it up to 98k.

 

[MarcusBrody]

Thanks!

I tend to keep my vehicles a long time (my current daily driver has 197k), but I'm not sure if I'd own this one very long term. I'm interested as theyvseem a good value right now and I want something that can serve as a bridge between old school internal combustion and the next gen of hybrid or electric vehicles. So maybe a few years of ownership then buy one of the new Land Cruisers or - if infrastructure really takes off - an electric vehicle.

I've read a good bit about the quirks on these trucks - mostly electrical gremlins - but I wasn't sure if there were milestones where particular systems tend to fail or general ranges after which they end up being more trouble than they're worth.

 

[Sooper Camper]

172k and counting on my QX. It's the lowest mileage vehicle I own, by a long shot (bought at 150k in fairly rough shape). I prefer to buy the cheapest used cars possible (within reason) knowing full well they'll get shocks, brakes, tires, and the common gremlins per model fixed when I own them (since I'd either upgrade or PM those items anyway). Mileage doesn't really mean anything to me, you can kill a vehicle in 2 miles easy if you want to; and low mileage really has nothing to do with maintenance history in my experience. I recently bought a 94 or 96 Bronco off a farm kid locally, it's crusty on the outside, obvious signs of a motor (or body?) swap. The fluids were all great, fresh, anti-seize on bolts etc. There was 1 credit card receipt in the glovebox for a throttle position sensor, that was the maintenance history lol.

Go test drive a brand new one (or a few), then use that as your basis to compare the used ones you're considering.

 

[plainjaneFJC]

Personally I’d buy one of those with 50k or less on it absent any really maintenance history- you know it hasn’t missed much up to that point.

 

[Ozarker]

Generally, average miles of 15,000 per year for up to 6 years old, but;

Who owned/drove it, where is it from, are there maintenance records, what does it need now and what may it likely need in the near future?????

 

[plumber mike]

Personally I’d buy one of those with 50k or less on it absent any really maintenance history- you know it hasn’t missed much up to that point.

I’d been shopping them and have found dealerships near me had several from a rental fleet that had not had their oil changed(or documented an oil change) in almost 60,000 miles. Pulled the dipstick on one and sure enough…black as night. The prices were excellent but the condition of such a new vehicle was quite poor. I ended up spending a little more and bought new Titans. Excellent warranty for 100,000 miles and I personally like the 9 speed better than the 7.

 

[MarcusBrody]

172k and counting on my QX. It's the lowest mileage vehicle I own, by a long shot (bought at 150k in fairly rough shape). I prefer to buy the cheapest used cars possible (within reason) knowing full well they'll get shocks, brakes, tires, and the common gremlins per model fixed when I own them (since I'd either upgrade or PM those items anyway). Mileage doesn't really mean anything to me, you can kill a vehicle in 2 miles easy if you want to; and low mileage really has nothing to do with maintenance history in my experience. I recently bought a 94 or 96 Bronco off a farm kid locally, it's crusty on the outside, obvious signs of a motor (or body?) swap. The fluids were all great, fresh, anti-seize on bolts etc. There was 1 credit card receipt in the glovebox for a throttle position sensor, that was the maintenance history lol.

Go test drive a brand new one (or a few), then use that as your basis to compare the used ones you're considering.

Driving a new one and comparing is a good idea that I somehow never thought of. Thanks.

I bought my current daily driver with ~175k and am about to hit 200k, so I'm not necessarily afraid of high miles in the right situation. I've been trying to decide here whether it makes sense to get an older vehicle with higher miles (e.g. QX56) and use the extra money for an overhaul of the parts you mention or go for a newer version and run it closer to how I bought it for longer. I know that the V8 on these is well thought of for the most part, so I'm not as worried about mileage on that, but as you say, I'd like some maintenance history if possible. I don't know about the other systems though, so was curious to hear what people had to say.

One factor is that I doubt that this will be a forever car for me. It's just more inefficient than I want in the future. But I'd be excited to have one for the next 3-5 years while the next gen of hybrids come online/get their kinks worked out or maybe longer and see if the US is more fully electrified. If I was planning on keeping it forever, I'd be more inclined to buy lower miles AND overhaul it a bit.

Thanks all for the input!

 

[MarcusBrody]

Also, unrelated to the OP, but are any of you guys 6'1"+? I feel like I remember one Armada/QX review where the reviewer complained that they couldn't lower the seat enough. This is one of my complaints with my father's Gladiator. I hate when I feel I'm looking down out of the windshield. I'm curious if it would be an issue here.

I meant to just check it myself by stopping by the dealership this afternoon while running some errands, but a late but desperate desire to find a foam soccer ball was called in by my wife and I had to reprioritize. Ha

 

[Sooper Camper]

Also, unrelated to the OP, but are any of you guys 6'1"+? I feel like I remember one Armada/QX review where the reviewer complained that they couldn't lower the seat enough. This is one of my complaints with my father's Gladiator. I hate when I feel I'm looking down out of the windshield. I'm curious if it would be an issue here.

I meant to just check it myself by stopping by the dealership this afternoon while running some errands, but a late but desperate desire to find a foam soccer ball was called in by my wife and I had to reprioritize. Ha

I am 6'2". Have spent countless hours in Rams, Sprinters, etc and other large full-size vehicles. The Armada/QX is honestly one of the most comfortable vehicles I have ever sat in. Have spent numerous 10+ hour days in the drivers seat, with minimal fatigue.

 

[MarcusBrody]

That's great to hear. I'll manage to sit in one someday, but that reassures me.