What amount of miles is too high?

BlueC said:
I wouldn't instantly write it off, but I'm not a buyer at that price. If it's in good condition, and you're comfortable with it after checking it out, make an offer. The worst they can say is no.

Also, when someone says something like an engine or trans has been replaced, that throws red flags to me. I'd want the story, then receipts documenting everything. If anything doesn't line up, I'd run.
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Same here. When I see engine or trans replaced and reasonable mileage, I wonder what they did to ruin the old one. I've had well over 100 vehicles and never blew an engine in any of them, regardless of mileage. I've had three transmissions go bad on vehicles I used for mail/newspaper deliveries. ALL three were FORDS. :unsure:
 
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TheBoogieman said:
Same here. When I see engine or trans replaced and reasonable mileage, I wonder what they did to ruin the old one. I've had well over 100 vehicles and never blew an engine in any of them, regardless of mileage. I've had three transmissions go bad on vehicles I used for mail/newspaper deliveries. ALL three were FORDS. :unsure:
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So he said the old owner changed the engine because of a clanking sound in the engine not because it blew. Of course he could have just been telling him that.
 
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skinnyguinea said:
I’m on a tight budget or else I would! If it’s still available in the near future then maybe but I doubt it will be.
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Honestly the best thing would be to keep saving, and save a couple of grand more than you are wanting to spend.

That way if something comes along that's really nice, you got the Cha-ching!!!!!
 
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hear said:
If you're on a tight budget then you need to lower your target jeep price by a chunk to account for the repairs that will be required.
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Yeah I've thought about that. I dont mind buying something to fix up over time and I expect that honestly with these vehicles. I just wasnt sure if buying something with over 200k miles on it is a dumb purchase.
 
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skinnyguinea said:
Yeah I've thought about that. I dont mind buying something to fix up over time and I expect that honestly with these vehicles. I just wasnt sure if buying something with over 200k miles on it is a dumb purchase.
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I bought one last summer with 220+ on the clock (and a bad transmission) for $4k*. Paint wasn't as nice as the one you posted, but otherwise it was solid. Best you can do is look & listen, check for oil or exhaust gas in the coolant, & water in the oil. And compression/leakdown. A 100k mile engine that's been abused might spit the bit sooner than a 250k mile engine that's been well maintained. It's all a crapshoot, but the cost of replacement isn't all that much.

* Transmission cost me $250 to replace the pump & rebuild.
 
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hear said:
I bought one last summer with 220+ on the clock (and a bad transmission) for $4k*. Paint wasn't as nice as the one you posted, but otherwise it was solid. Best you can do is look & listen, check for oil or exhaust gas in the coolant, & water in the oil. And compression/leakdown. A 100k mile engine that's been abused might spit the bit sooner than a 250k mile engine that's been well maintained. It's all a crapshoot, but the cost of replacement isn't all that much.

* Transmission cost me $250 to replace the pump & rebuild.
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This is awesome advice thank you!
 
IMHO, you are asking the wrong question.
I say this because a poorly maintained vehicle or an abused vehicle with low miles is still a poorly maintained or abused vehicle.

CONDITION is far more important than mileage.

One way to look at it is that if the vehicle has a lot of miles, that means that it has been running and on the road rather than sitting in the shop.
 
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skinnyguinea said:
I just wasnt sure if buying something with over 200k miles on it is a dumb purchase.
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As with anything, yes Higher Mileage and unknown maintenance is a HUGE risk for a daily driver

However, it isnt a dumb purchase for a spare toy that you can keep around to tinker on as time and funds permit

I would steer clear of 4 bangers and autos personally
 
skinnyguinea said:
I am trying to find a TJ for less than 9k and a lot of them have high milage (200k-250k). If I find a rust free TJ with a lot of mile like this, should I still consider it? Not really sure how well jeeps long term. Thanks!
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Just be prepared to do a lot of maintenance. High mileage TJ's with an asking price like $9k is really not reasonable. I think people should stop buying them at those prices and drive the prices down. Too much maintenance required.
 
CreepinDeth said:
Thats not too bad if its a CLEAN 4.0L, manual
Toss the engine, get a replacement and all new TB , fuel rail, injectors sensors, etc

I could rebuild that Jeep and still be under $10K with everything new under it and in the bay. End of the day it always comes down to - HOW much can you do mechanically on your own, and do you have the liquid cash
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The body is clean. Zero rust! Checked it out today. It’s an automatic 4.0L which is what I’m looking for. I already got a manual gti for when I feel like driving that. I don’t know much mechanically but I got some friends who can show me stuff. Are you saying to replace the engine?? Is that reasonable if needed?
 
JMT said:
Just be prepared to do a lot of maintenance. High mileage TJ's with an asking price like $9k is really not reasonable. I think people should stop buying them at those prices and drive the prices down. Too much maintenance required.
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Thanks that’s good to know! I figured as much.
 
So I checked this jeep out today. Very clean body with NO rust. The check engine light was on and the owner said it’s a p0301 error. It also needs to be primed a few seconds before starting. Something about the fuel injector or fuel pump he said. Also the tires are awful so they will need to be replaced. My gut feeling is that the asking price of 8250 is too high but curious if these are easy fixes
 
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