Parts Replacement

Now that would be a dream come true to have such a list..:nut: . I believe the manufacturers have that failure rate built into a lot of general components; Such as, how many 2.2L engines didn't need a headgasket replacement, similarily the 2.0L and many 2.4L. The early electronic transmissions must have made someone money, and lost some customers in the end. Or why is it a 5 yr old Ford Focus has had 3 ignition cylinders replaced by Dealer at $385 a pop.?? A lot of worn out or broken parts can also be attributed to how vehicles are driven, maintained, and some parts are poor quality products manufactured for a price... :jpshakehe

 

Life Expectancy of parts?

Today my 2002 Grand Caravan Sport turned 90,000 miles and it made me wonder what the "life expectancy" is of the parts in my van. Sure, the manual and other books tell you to change this and that at certain miles etc. but I know they have to have a database that tracks the failure mode of all parts.

So, on average, how long will my fuel pump last? My starter? etc etc. Does anyone know how to get a hold of a "list" that itemizes these items? Sure would be nice to have an approximate idea when something will fail so you can possibly try to prevent it before you're stranded on I-80 at night in a major blizzard.

Life expectancy depends on driving habits, mileage, and age. Most parts will wear out in about 90,000 miles or when the vehicle is 8 years old....EVEN if the vehicle has a magic H or T in the name.

 

Every single thing manufactured by human beings has an average time before failure. This concept is often presented with the acronym MTBF, or Mean Time Before Failure. This is sometimes advertised with some parts (such as computer hard drives), but often not with others.

The good thing is that most modern cars are so reliable, being stranded is ALMOST a thing of the past. But of course it can happen. There's really no good answer to this question. You could spend a LOT of money pre-emptively replacing parts that may realisticly "never" go bad in the time you'll own the vehicle. A starter is sometimes a good example -- most people will never have to buy a new starter in their life. Alternators are more commonly replaced, but you can never really anticipate their lifespan.

My wife's old '97 Saturn needed a fuel pump at 51k miles, its only repair. Our '97 Cadillac still has its original fuel pump. Same age of vehicle, but triple the miles, and still going. Can't really tell.

 

Drive belts and hoses and water pumps are items you must keep an eye on and change when signs indicate they need retirement. Belts crack, hoses get soft spots and pumps make noise or leak and thermostates stick.

You must keep your eye on the condition of rotors and drums and pads and shoes. If you keep the calipers properly lubed, including the pins and inner bushings they can last the life of the vehicle, especially if you change the brake fluid every few years.

Also rear shocks and struts are wear items, but can also last the life of the vehicle. These should be checked by driving over a bump and observing the motion of the wheels.

Lastly, the radiator may start to leak or even get clogged up if you don't attend to regular coolant changes.

But, other than changing out a water pump at high milage in some vehicles, there is not too much you should do until signs appear.

Richard.

 

That is a good point, especially about belts and hoses. I read somewhere once that rubber has a 7-year shelf life. So when my car gets to be close to 7 years old, I begin to worry, especially about heater hoses.

I would recommend changing all of the rubber hoses in your vehicle when you change the coolant, which is either at 100K or 120K, I can't remember which. Or if you get to 7 years and you haven't hit the maintenance threshold yet, change the hoses (and the coolant too, while you're at it).

Make sure yout get ALL of the hoses. There is one small length of heater hose on the front of the 3.3 in the 2nd Gens, from the top of the water pump to the front of the engine. It was about 8 inches long. I wish I had noticed it when I changed the rest of my heater hoses. It burst and left me stranded one day.

 

Our area is what usually is called the boonies. Lots of trips in sparsely populated areas, so I don't want breakdowns in the middle of nowhere because of worn out components. Here is what I changed at the 90-100k point without a failure causing the change. Belt( 3rd one), Water pump, Fuel Pump,O2 Sensors,battery,plugs and wires. Replaced for cause, Swaybar bushings,belt tensioner, timing chain(did this one because we were into the timing case anyway to fix a small leak). Also did an Induction System cleaning with a BG machine, Trannie flush at 90K, brake fluid flush about 100K(fluid in back brakes so bad, had to do it twice). presently have about 119k on it. Can hardly hear the engine idle. Uses no oil. Thinking about bypassing the coolant lines to the rear of the car to avoid a leak on that problem. Mine is a 2000 GC 3.3. Works so far for me.

 

Trips in the "boonies"?

Our area is what usually is called the boonies. Lots of trips in sparsely populated areas, so I don't want breakdowns in the middle of nowhere because of worn out components.....

We have travelled many miles in areas considered the boonies....across southern Wyoming;... Las Vegas Nevada to Barstow California;...Billings Montana to Bismarck North Dakota;...Provo Utah to Albuquerque New Mexico;...Boise Idaho to either Portland Oregon or Seattle Washington;...and even more.

That is why we like to drive NEW vehicles.:thumb: (Our Impalas 1963 with 283 CID V8, 1967 with 327 CID V8, 1978 with 350 CID V8, 1980 with 267 CID V8...and all were excellent vehicles altho our 99 GC SE 3.3L or 02 T&C 3.3L would have served our needs better)

 

Carl--I also am using the new van now for most of the longer trips. Went to Northern Minnesota ice fishing this week, got back, the red van was all a nice salty white. Into the car wash before even unloaded.