I just broke the 200,000 mile mark in my 2008 Hyundai Sonata. The most amazing part about it is that after driving all those miles, this car has never broken down or needed any repairs other than basic maintenance (oil changes, tires, spark plugs once, battery once). I've known many people who drove their car more than 200,000 miles, but usually the car needed several repairs in that time.Not only that, but I haven't exactly treated this car very well. I've been good about oil changes, but let's face it: I have treated this car pretty roughly. It's primarily been a work vehicle and has had 6 foot ladders jammed into it, been driven off road, slammed into snow banks, and the front bumper is literally held together with wire ties (as a result of my snow adventure). Not only that, but I have also loaned out my car to several of the young whippersnappers at our church for thousands of miles on end for both church and business related uses. Some of them did not drive it as gently as I do . Yet, 200,000 miles later, it still runs great and has never broken down! Either God has supernaturally blessed this vehicle, the Hyundai Sonata is a super-reliable car, or both!
In addition, back when I was traveling a lot, I slept in my car approximately 200 times (one year I actually counted, and it came out to 65), usually with the engine running. That means that for hundreds of hours the engine was running in the "Hyundai Hotel" a.k.a. "Sonata Suites" without even logging any miles on the odometer! Yet the car still runs like new!
Well, this weekend I had my first car trouble with this car. However, it can't be blamed on the car or the Koreans who built it since it was completely my fault. I was stretching my legs on a long drive and accidentally kicked the sensor on the brake pedal and broke it. This caused the speedometer to go to zero and the check engine light to come on. It also would not allow me to shift the car from drive to park or vice versa without pushing the shift lock release button with a screwdriver. I tried to put it back together, but it was too broken. I continued to drive the car like that until I could get it to a Hyundai dealer. The replacement part was only $7.58! I installed it myself, replaced the fuse (the car came with 3 spares), and my car was back to normal.
When this car finally gives up the ghost, I will probably just turn around and buy another Hyundai Sonata because this car has been great.
I just bought a 2011 hyundai elantra and it runs great. My aunt has had a hyundai since 2002. she's put over 250,000 miles on it and has had no trouble with it at all. she says it's the best vehicle she's ever had. Hyundai is no joke.
ReplyDeleteMy husband and I have a 2003 Hyundai Sonata that has over 100,000 miles on it and we've only had to do major repairs on it just recently. ("major", as in $500 worth of repairs)
ReplyDeleteOther than that, we've only had to replace tires once and a few light bulbs. Our car hasn't been through as much as yours, but we have taken it across the country and on several long road trips without a problem.
I much prefer to support local companies. I have, so far, 125000 miles on my Chevrolet Malibu. The only issues I've had were a bearing in the wheel started to tick. I had the people I use replace it only for them to tell me that in reality it didn't need to be replaced and would have been fine. I've had no troubles and this car has driven cross country multiple times to visit family.
ReplyDeleteWhen this car goes I will more than likely stick to Chevy, as they are reliable and easy to fix if something does go wrong. And they are based in America.
~Me
Yawn. My dad's F-150 made it to 350K miles without major repairs. Write back when you hit that marker. >:D
ReplyDeleteFantastic choice! Awesome car; I hit 275 last month and she is still going strong!!!
ReplyDeleteMe,
ReplyDeleteChevy's and Ford (for the most part) are made in Mexico and Canada. Toyota, Honda, Hyundai - they are the real "American" cars. A little research and that would have become apparent to you. Also; studies have show that the quality and reliability of "American Cars" is steadily declining. That Chevy Malibu you are driving is going to toss a head gasket shortly if it has not already. You are also going to have issues with the oil gaskets and your EGR. That it has made it this far; is a testament to Chevy. Most are junked at 100000 Just a heads up. That is just the 30 of auto repair experience I have.
Funny post! Wow, the car is from 2008 and you have 200k miles on it? I have a Honda Accord from 1998 and I have 209k on it. You must have gained a pretty good amount of driving experience after so many driven miles! :)
ReplyDeleteWe just bought a 2012 Sonata and it broke down with just over 500 miles on it. Internal engine failure. Entire engine had to be replaced.
ReplyDelete@Stephanie:
ReplyDeleteJust because Honda, Toyota and Hyundai build their products in the US, that doesn't make them American cars. The cars are designed in the country where the company is based. Plenty of American companies assemble their products in China, but that doesn't make the company Chinese. The same goes for Ford and Chevy. They're designed in the US and were sold in the US long before Toyotas, Hondas and Hyundais. The place of assembly doesn't mean nearly as much as it used to.
We have an 08 sonata 4 cylinder with almost 90k miles. No issues so far with regular maintenance. Hope we are as lucky as you!
ReplyDelete> Slammed into snow banks
ReplyDeleteLOLWUT
This got me thinking... don't you live in ARIZONA???
Then, i realized that the phrase is a hyperlink, and checked out the back story. And i *still* didn't know there was snow - like, ever - near Amarillo, TX.
Pffft.... You Southwesterners.. neophytes at driving in snow!
God Bless you, Pastor Anderson!
If Škoda ever starts selling cars in USA, definitely buy yourself a Škoda Octavia. It's cheap, reliable, economical and very nice to drive, if you don't mind loud engines.
ReplyDeleteThere are specimens that have passed 500+k miles and it's very common to find ones with over 200k miles in my country.
My father's second generation Octavia has passed well over 110 k miles and the only thing we had to replace on it was one spark plug.
Plus, they look nice (except for the first generation, which is a bit ugly).