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Looking at used GTI

Dog Dad Wagon

Autocross Champion
Location
Go Birds
Car(s)
16 Touareg TDI
I dunno about that. It's a lot, especially for a VW but I'd hardly call it upper limit.

It’s the upper limit where the cost of individual replacement parts + labor as the factory equipment begins to fail (heater cores, crap like that) gets awfully close to, or exceeds the value of the vehicle itself. And the worst part is, when a cars that high mileage, you don’t know whether this $1000 repair has another $2000 one right around the corner, or how long your car won’t be functional.
 

cb1111

Newbie
Location
Virginia, USA
200k miles on an unmodified, properly maintained car is no problem, but why is somebody selling it?

My wife has a 2013 Civic with 160k miles with zero problems and aren't really considering selling it until the expected cost of repairs exceeds any value. She obviously isn't a "car gal", looks at the car as an appliance to get her from point A to point B and her main goal is inexpensive and high gas mileage.

The same holds true for any high mileage cars - the cars get sold when there is a problem or a known impending problem.

I'd be happy driving a high mileage VW if I bought it from new, but I wouldn't buy a used one.
 

Dog Dad Wagon

Autocross Champion
Location
Go Birds
Car(s)
16 Touareg TDI
200k miles on an unmodified, properly maintained car is no problem, but why is somebody selling it?

My wife has a 2013 Civic with 160k miles with zero problems and aren't really considering selling it until the expected cost of repairs exceeds any value. She obviously isn't a "car gal", looks at the car as an appliance to get her from point A to point B and her main goal is inexpensive and high gas mileage.

The same holds true for any high mileage cars - the cars get sold when there is a problem or a known impending problem.

I'd be happy driving a high mileage VW if I bought it from new, but I wouldn't buy a used one.

Agreed. Like I said in my first response, he’s dumping it for a reason
 

jimlloyd40

Autocross Champion
Location
Phoenix
Car(s)
2018 SE DSG
200k miles on an unmodified, properly maintained car is no problem, but why is somebody selling it?

My wife has a 2013 Civic with 160k miles with zero problems and aren't really considering selling it until the expected cost of repairs exceeds any value. She obviously isn't a "car gal", looks at the car as an appliance to get her from point A to point B and her main goal is inexpensive and high gas mileage.

The same holds true for any high mileage cars - the cars get sold when there is a problem or a known impending problem.

I'd be happy driving a high mileage VW if I bought it from new, but I wouldn't buy a used one.

Not true in my case. Since I'm in the delivery business I've driven most of my cars to 200,000 miles and more and have generally got a new car just because I was tired of the car. One of them, a Toyota Matrix, I sold to a friend when I had 240,000 miles and he continued to drive it with the original engine and a rebuilt manual trans until 435,000 miles until someone ran a red light and totaled it.
 

GTIfan99

Autocross Champion
Location
FL
I'd take it for free. That's about it though.
 

cb1111

Newbie
Location
Virginia, USA
Not true in my case. Since I'm in the delivery business I've driven most of my cars to 200,000 miles and more and have generally got a new car just because I was tired of the car. One of them, a Toyota Matrix, I sold to a friend when I had 240,000 miles and he continued to drive it with the original engine and a rebuilt manual trans until 435,000 miles until someone ran a red light and totaled it.
Sure, there will always be exceptions to the rule
 

Acadia18

Autocross Champion
Location
The Greater Boston Metropolitan Area
Car(s)
2019 Golf R
200k miles on an unmodified, properly maintained car is no problem, but why is somebody selling it?

My wife has a 2013 Civic with 160k miles with zero problems and aren't really considering selling it until the expected cost of repairs exceeds any value. She obviously isn't a "car gal", looks at the car as an appliance to get her from point A to point B and her main goal is inexpensive and high gas mileage.

The same holds true for any high mileage cars - the cars get sold when there is a problem or a known impending problem.

I'd be happy driving a high mileage VW if I bought it from new, but I wouldn't buy a used one.

Agreed. Like I said in my first response, he’s dumping it for a reason

I don't think so. Not everybody holds on to cars until it's no longer financially viable to do so, i.e. the cost of repairs exceeds the value. Not everybody runs cars into the ground. The last car I got rid of was a 2013 Altima with 98k miles on it. Absolutely nothing wrong with it, but found it boring to drive. So it was traded in for the GTI. Prior to that, it was a 2007 Mazda 3, with something like 75k miles on it. Traded in towards the Altima because I needed something bigger. There doesn't have to be a mechanical "reason" for getting rid of the car.

This probably was an unmodified, properly maintained car. I'd understand the hesitation to buy it since you can't really know for sure, but take a step back and look at it objectively. The owner drove 10k miles every 6 - 8 weeks. And like clockwork, he was getting services done. There were 6 oil changes done in just over a year. Owner was probably on top of taking care of it since he knew he drives a shit ton of miles, and wanted the car to keep up.

He just rolled over 200k miles. 200,602. Now, there's no denying that's a ton of miles, which obviously wears down parts. At that mileage, you're approaching where things could start to fail, not necessarily that they did already start to fail. Owner probably got to 200k, said "I depend on my car for my job. I can't deal with the headache if something breaks. 200k was a good run, but I'm going to trade it in before that happens."

From the story the car is telling, I doubt there is something wrong with it, or that there was a car related "reason" he got rid of it. Most likely, the owner got rid of it before something happened, so he didn't have to deal with it. Because again, 200k is a shit ton of miles. But it could last another 100k without issue. Or the engine could just give up the ghost and die in 5k more miles. You never know. It's a gamble you take buying a high mileage $9k car. But to me, looking at the broader picture, I doubt there's anything inherently wrong with the car.
 

cb1111

Newbie
Location
Virginia, USA
I don't think so. Not everybody holds on to cars until it's no longer financially viable to do so, i.e. the cost of repairs exceeds the value. Not everybody runs cars into the ground. The last car I got rid of was a 2013 Altima with 98k miles on it. Absolutely nothing wrong with it, but found it boring to drive. So it was traded in for the GTI. Prior to that, it was a 2007 Mazda 3, with something like 75k miles on it. Traded in towards the Altima because I needed something bigger. There doesn't have to be a mechanical "reason" for getting rid of the car.

This probably was an unmodified, properly maintained car. I'd understand the hesitation to buy it since you can't really know for sure, but take a step back and look at it objectively. The owner drove 10k miles every 6 - 8 weeks. And like clockwork, he was getting services done. There were 6 oil changes done in just over a year. Owner was probably on top of taking care of it since he knew he drives a shit ton of miles, and wanted the car to keep up.

He just rolled over 200k miles. 200,602. Now, there's no denying that's a ton of miles, which obviously wears down parts. At that mileage, you're approaching where things could start to fail, not necessarily that they did already start to fail. Owner probably got to 200k, said "I depend on my car for my job. I can't deal with the headache if something breaks. 200k was a good run, but I'm going to trade it in before that happens."

From the story the car is telling, I doubt there is something wrong with it, or that there was a car related "reason" he got rid of it. Most likely, the owner got rid of it before something happened, so he didn't have to deal with it. Because again, 200k is a shit ton of miles. But it could last another 100k without issue. Or the engine could just give up the ghost and die in 5k more miles. You never know. It's a gamble you take buying a high mileage $9k car. But to me, looking at the broader picture, I doubt there's anything inherently wrong with the car.
There is a huge difference between a sub 100k car (bored with it, want new features etc.) and a 200k plus car. I think that in most cases, when somebody keeps a car that long, the only reason is because they know (or suspect) that things are going to fail soon.

There are, of course, exceptions, but they generally prove the rule.
 

XM_Rocks

Autocross Newbie
Location
Austin, TX
With Credit Union interest rates at below 2% for decent credit on used cars, I would buy a car with 20% of these miles for double that.

Thats only an additional $150 a month or $2k a year for a 40k mile car over 5 years.
 

XM_Rocks

Autocross Newbie
Location
Austin, TX
There is a huge difference between a sub 100k car (bored with it, want new features etc.) and a 200k plus car. I think that in most cases, when somebody keeps a car that long, the only reason is because they know (or suspect) that things are going to fail soon.

There are, of course, exceptions, but they generally prove the rule.

Could also be tax depreciation or an employer that requires cars under a certain year/mileage for a company car stipend.
 

Chogokin

Autocross Champion
Location
So Cal
Car(s)
GTI Sport | Audi A3
Crazy...that's a ton of miles. If you do get it...just make sure you have the funds to fix it when things do go south. I think the electrical components should be ok. It's the mechanical parts that I would be concerned about. If you can get the price low enough...even if it requires an engine rebuild...it still may be worth it.

I picked up a 08 Audi A3 6 speed in Nov 2019. It had 89k. Did some random maintenance. Put about 8k on it since then. Did a couple road trips with it. It runs great and everything works. These cars can last if properly maintained.
 

Gray_Panther

Drag Racing Champion
Location
NY
Car(s)
GTi
German cars can easily last hundreds of thousands of miles if properly maintained. I have no qualms about keeping my GTI till 300k miles but I know that the rust will eat it well before the engine fails.
I would love to see a forum member pick this up and keep driving a ton of miles just to see how many miles it can rack up!
 

Acadia18

Autocross Champion
Location
The Greater Boston Metropolitan Area
Car(s)
2019 Golf R
There is a huge difference between a sub 100k car (bored with it, want new features etc.) and a 200k plus car. I think that in most cases, when somebody keeps a car that long, the only reason is because they know (or suspect) that things are going to fail soon.

There are, of course, exceptions, but they generally prove the rule.

I agree there's a large difference between a car sub 100k miles and one at 200k. I disagree with the second part though. When you put that many miles on your car, it's usually tied directly to your income. Either you use it for work, or you have a hella long commute every day that you need it for. Regardless, a loss of your car in that case usually means a loss of income, and a major headache. A 200k mile car, even properly maintained, is at that point where every day is a gamble. Like I said in my initial response. It could last another 100k miles. It could explode after another 2k miles. You never know. And when you're that dependent on your car, sometimes it's worth it just to get rid of it before anything happens, just for the peace of mind knowing you won't have to deal with any problems should they arise. Not necessarily that something is happening, or you suspect something will fail soon.
 

cb1111

Newbie
Location
Virginia, USA
Could also be tax depreciation or an employer that requires cars under a certain year/mileage for a company car stipend.
Yeah, but I can't imagine any company that says "we'll deny a stipend if your car has over 206,000 miles..."

I agree there's a large difference between a car sub 100k miles and one at 200k. I disagree with the second part though. When you put that many miles on your car, it's usually tied directly to your income. Either you use it for work, or you have a hella long commute every day that you need it for. Regardless, a loss of your car in that case usually means a loss of income, and a major headache. A 200k mile car, even properly maintained, is at that point where every day is a gamble. Like I said in my initial response. It could last another 100k miles. It could explode after another 2k miles. You never know. And when you're that dependent on your car, sometimes it's worth it just to get rid of it before anything happens, just for the peace of mind knowing you won't have to deal with any problems should they arise. Not necessarily that something is happening, or you suspect something will fail soon.
You have a point, but then the owner is expecting a significant failure.

I think that most people that rely on their cars for work will either sell them with under 100k miles or drive them until something expensive is about to break.

It also depends on the car - a Civic, Corolla, 4Runner or most Lexus will last well over 200k miles, but European cars in the US have a far greater chance of needing expensive repairs when the odometer rolls over 100k miles. By expensive, I mean repairs that exceed the value of the vehicle.
 

jimlloyd40

Autocross Champion
Location
Phoenix
Car(s)
2018 SE DSG
I agree there's a large difference between a car sub 100k miles and one at 200k. I disagree with the second part though. When you put that many miles on your car, it's usually tied directly to your income. Either you use it for work, or you have a hella long commute every day that you need it for. Regardless, a loss of your car in that case usually means a loss of income, and a major headache. A 200k mile car, even properly maintained, is at that point where every day is a gamble. Like I said in my initial response. It could last another 100k miles. It could explode after another 2k miles. You never know. And when you're that dependent on your car, sometimes it's worth it just to get rid of it before anything happens, just for the peace of mind knowing you won't have to deal with any problems should they arise. Not necessarily that something is happening, or you suspect something will fail soon.

You have it exactly right. I drive my cars that many miles for work and at 200,000 miles you are approaching many costly maintenance items and possibly rebuilding the engine for a car that has a wholesale value of maybe a couple of thousand dollars even if it's in seemingly good condition. Because I use my car for work I'm not going to put the thousands of dollars into to it to maintain reliability which is essential for me. That's also why I way over maintain my cars with respect to fluid changes etc.

I wouldn't even consider buying the car we're talking about without a compression test and if it still has good compression I wouldn't pay more than $2000 for a car with that mileage knowing other major repairs are on the near horizon.
 
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