Preparing A High Mileage Car For A Long Trip - Any Advice?

[Lizey]

Hello all,

I have recently accepted a job in Barstow, CA and will be driving my 2004 Chrysler Sebring (Sedan, 2.7L Automatic) there from Michigan. It has 159,XXX miles on it...so obviously I am concerned about it making it that far. Other than the obvious things like changing the oil/getting decent tires on it...what would any of you recommend I take care of on it before I go? I have a month before I go so I have some time to make sure it is 100%

[Dino]

Any engine in good shape can do numerous times those miles.  I wouldn't worry about it.  If the car doesn't overheat sitting in traffic then it'll do just fine.  Where in Michigan are you?

[A383Wing]

I suggest a transmission fluid and filter change if one has not been done lately

[Lennard]

Check the condition and inflation of your tires. Check the condition and levels of your fluids, check your belts and hoses and you're ready to go.

[skip68]

What Lennard said.       
Go the southern route cause It's winter.   

[c00nhunterjoe]

A 2.7 with 150k..... touch nothing because its a ticking time bomb. Air the tires, make sure the fluids are topped, and charge your cell phone.

[Lennard]

A 2.7 with 150k..... touch nothing because its a ticking time bomb. Air the tires, make sure the fluids are topped, and charge your cell phone.

That's exactly what you want to hear before a road trip.   

[skip68]

I agree with that also.   I'm not a fan of changing tranny fluids especially on that kinda mileage.  Especially doing a tranny flush in my opinion is a no no.   Seems like cars that have that done start having problems shortly after.   If it's running good now then don't worry about it.   

[Daytona R/T SE]

Sell the car.

Take the $250 you get for it...  

Buy a bus ticket, and a couple of Subway sandwiches.

Foot longs.  

[stripedelete]

I agree with that also.   I'm not a fan of changing tranny fluids especially on that kinda mileage.  Especially doing a tranny flush in my opinion is a no no.   Seems like cars that have that done start having problems shortly after.   If it's running good now then don't worry about it.   

I agree.  Make sure fluid level is good and leave it alone.

[Mytur Binsdirti]

Hello all,

I have a month before I go so I have some time to make sure it is 100%

If I were you, I'd leave now because with all the breakdowns you're likely to have, you need to allow yourself plenty of time.   

[wingcar]

I got well over 200,000 miles on my Lincoln Aviator "Kittyhawk" before the engine needed a rebuild.   The condition of and the miles you will get out of an engine are directly related to how you took care of the engine in the past.  I did regular oil changes and tune-ups, etc.....  Of course there is always the exception to the rule and in that case all bets are off and it's just plain bad luck.   
I remember reading a letter to the editor in a major car magazine many years in which the owner of a very high mileage Dart asked about changing the oil as it appeared as if it had never been changed throughout the life of the car.  The answer was....don't touch it, as it will only create problems at that point.  In High School I had a friend that owned a 1965 Dart with a high mileage 318 and the oil looked like mud.  Plus, it was getting no oil to the rocker arms.....while noisy, it ran and ran.....so you never know.

[Aero426]

I agree with that also.   I'm not a fan of changing tranny fluids especially on that kinda mileage.  Especially doing a tranny flush in my opinion is a no no.   Seems like cars that have that done start having problems shortly after.   If it's running good now then don't worry about it.   

I agree.  If you can drive the car across Michigan today, it's probably good to go.    If you have good fluids,  good brakes, belts and hoses and nothing readily apparent,   load it up and go.     

[stripedelete]

I got well over 200,000 miles on my Lincoln Aviator "Kittyhawk" before the engine needed a rebuild.   The condition of and the miles you will get out of an engine are directly related to how you took care of the engine in the past.  I did regular oil changes and tune-ups, etc.....  Of course there is always the exception to the rule and in that case all bets are off and it's just plain bad luck.   
I remember reading a letter to the editor in a major car magazine many years in which the owner of a very high mileage Dart asked about changing the oil as it appeared as if it had never been changed throughout the life of the car.  The answer was....don't touch it, as it will only create problems at that point.  In High School I had a friend that owned a 1965 Dart with a high mileage 318 and the oil looked like mud.  Plus, it was getting no oil to the rocker arms.....while noisy, it ran and ran.....so you never know.

Slant Sixes just didn't seem to care.   It's not hard to find a "boomer", car guy or not, who doesn't have a couple "only a slant six" stories.  Amazing motor.

As to the OP, you don't have a slant six, but, if you weren't worried about your car failing in local traffic in the next two thousand miles, don't worry about taking it to CA.   

However, when I lose confidence in a high miler, I carry the title in the glovebox.

[ws23rt]

Drive fast. --If something is about to go wrong don't waste time.

[skip68]

Just remember, if something's gonna happen, it's gonna happen out there on the open road.     
Enjoy your trip.   

[Lizey]

Thanks for the replies! Putting some second hand tires on it (better than what I have now) and changing the oil/filter and the front brakes otherwise I think Im going to let it be. Car has been in the family since new and has only needed an alternator replaced in the last 50k miles so Im not worried about it. Drove it from Grand Rapids to Muskegon and back every day last summer for work and from Grand Rapids to Escanaba and back every other weekend so I have a reasonable amount of confidence in it...although my 2004 Neon blew up in Tecumseh, MI last summer with less miles so how confident can I really be!

[ws23rt]

Road trip   It can be looked at as a hazard or an adventure.

[el dub]

Barstow?

[67440chrg]

Good luck on the road and in your new job. Take a jug of 50/50 antifreeze and a couple quarts of oil & trans fluid & a good spare or two with you. Highway miles aint hard on old cars. Keep it nice and steady.

[flyinlow]

We have a Sebring conv. with the dreaded 2.7 .

The water pump is inside the engine and when they start to leak they can pollute the oil .There is a weep hole  for anti freeze to get out and leak on the ground. If it leaks to much or the weep hole is plugged it puts antifreeze in the oil. This is what causes many of the engine failures.

If you change your oil regularly and are not showing signs of water pump leakage,  head west young man.