Hey Scotty, I'm looking at a used 2008 Honda CRV EX-L AWD automatic with 172,000 miles for sale by owner. I got the service records for the last 36,000 miles and I saw that the oil change intervals were in the range of 7 months to a year (9 months, 10 months, 1 year, 7 months, 7 months, 1 year) , with mileage intervals of 4000-7500 between each oil change. Car didn't accumulate a lot of mileage and was used by their college student away from home, so I'm guessing that's the reason for the spotty intervals. I can't get my mechanic to look at it but at the last oil change, their mechanic did an inspection and didn't see any major problems. I'm guessing none of the fluids (brake, coolant etc) have been replaced. What do you think? Are the long intervals between oil changes a deal-breaker? Thanks!
the oil changes intervals sound perfectly fine. It's the rest of the car (suspension, engine, transmission, driveline etc.) that I would be worried about with that mileage. I wouldn't touch it without an inspection by a mechanic you hire.
Car didn't accumulate a lot of mileage
172k is a fair bit. Are there any records of the transmission being serviced? What about the AWD system?
No transmission service on record. I don't have first owner's service history. I also made a calculation error: one oil change was done after 7,000 miles and 2 (TWO!) years since the last one. (It was the lockdown year = little driving and no oil change is my assumption). Is this a problem?
Not sure about the other items. I believe only a visual inspection was done. For the last 36,000 miles, car has mostly highway miles and much of the first 130,000 is towed miles.
Follow up question: I'm getting this CRV checked out by a mechanic soon. Given age (15 years) and mileage (172,000 miles) what are some findings by the mechanic that would be dealbreakers? I don't know much about cars. Help! P.S. Seller is asking $6500
what are some findings by the mechanic that would be dealbreakers?
ask him the cost to repair whatever he finds. I wouldn't spend much more than a few hundred dollars on that old thing.
Normal maintenance ... OK. Maybe a control arm or engine mount here and there. Any serious engine or transmission problems ... walk away.
To clarify: normal maintenance refer to things like spark plugs, oil, filter, brakes, tires, alignment/rotation, fluid flush/changes?
exactly