Hi Guys.

I have a 2006 Acura RL (Tech package/Navigation). I bought it from an Acura Dealer in 2011 when it had about 63k miles on it. I drive mostly highway miles and put 20k miles every year. Its at about 131k miles now. I have started to wonder how long can I or should I keep this car before I sell or trade it with another one? I luv this car ! Before this one I had an Accord and kept it for few years before I upgraded to the Acura. It has a similar but better or more luxury feel compared to the Accord. I got the timing belt changed around 100K. Other than tire, brakes, regular oil changes, havent had any major issues. The navigation system/screen quit on me few months ago. I had the original CD in the car, and upgraded the 2013 navigation system through the CD I purchased from Acura. Few months later, it starts to act funny and then just quit. I use my Iphone for navigation. AC and thermostat is a little hard to work with without the screen but it does the job. How long should I keep this car ? Has anyone gone beyond 200k without major issues? I would like to keep it for few more years ...3-5 years. Should I take it to the ground ? I have about 2.5 years car payment left on it. Plz share your thoughts. Thanks ! J.D.

 

what an odd question.
you do know that cars last longer than 200k miles, right?
you do know that Honda's especially the J-series engines are VERY reliable, right?
you do know that as long as you maintain the car, it will last you more than 10 years right?

its just a matter of finances.
can you maintain this car for 10 years?
because as long as you maintain it, it will run.

 

Thanks for post. I will just be honest and plead my ignorance about these issues. Thats why I posted it.
Your input helps. My main concern was is it worth the maintenance & repair costs vs getting a newer one that does not involve major repair. I assume many Acura owners havent had major cost repairs.
I would like to keep my RL and have it serviced regularly.

 

right, finances play apart.
it will feel like your RL is nickle and diming you, but in the end, keeping a car is WAAY less expensive than buying a new car.

my 2006 TL has 70k miles on her. I plan to keep her for 10 years or more, and she will last that long because I take care of her.
if anything is broken, i fix her right away.
I change the oil regularly and keep a fresh set of tires on her at all times.
the little things will start to go out before the car will stop.
at that point, you will have to re-address your position, to either keep pouring money into her or buy a new car.
so, it all depends on your finances. are you financially able to take care of her?
if you are, she'll last for a long long long time.

 

You more than likely need a new DVD drive to fix your navigation issue. It's possible the problem is elsewhere, but unlikely. They sell on eBay all the time for around $300.

Plenty of RLs have surpassed 200k. A handful have gone past 300k. Keep the car as long as you feel it makes sense to do so either from a financial or happiness perspective. If it makes you happy to avoid investing in depreciating assets, maintain the car, pay it off, and run it to the ground. If it makes you happy to have a new car, interest and debt be damned, then buy something else.

The car will not implode at some given mileage. You will need new shock absorbers and another timing belt eventually though.

 

I'm at 97k on my 05, which I've owned since 2008 No plans to get rid of it. I drive about 9k per year, figure I can go 5 years easy. Only expense I see are shocks and struts, damn potholes in nj are awful. I haven't had any car payments since 2011 and besides the timing belt ($800) it's needed nothing but tires, fluids and brakes, which have all cost less than $1k combined, the equivalent of about 2 months of car payments. It will need plugs at 105k, but that's like $80. Something major would have to go wrong for me to reconsider, but by that time it will likely be worth very little.

The only draw back to holding a car for a long time and running up the mileage is that it's worth nothing at the end whereas today, my car could probably fetch $10k trade in. But, car payments over the next 5 years at $500/month is $30k so not much of a drawback.

 

130k is nothing on the RL. You got the most expensive maintenance items out the way already. Also, you have an 06 which is less prone to problems compared to the 05.

+1 on getting a used NAV unit. That'll solve your A/C and NAV problems right there.

 

Could you elaborate on the used NAV unit? How would it affect the A/C?

 

Well, I'm about 5,000 miles behind you in our '06 and I have also done all the major maintenance items. I've kept the car in good shape and intend to keep driving it past 200k.

 

His screen went blank so it's most likely the NAV unit located in the trunk. It's cost effective to buy a used one from ebay/junkyard for $300 instead of buying new.

As for the A/C, he's unable to access the climate control screen since his screen is blank due to the NAV unit, making it difficult to control the function. He still can use his A/C by hitting the AUTO button etc.

 

Exactly what was mentioned above -- get a used NAV unit on EBay -- they are the same for 2005-2008. It should just plug right in -- disconnect the battery from the car first before you do it!

As far as longevity goes, the RL is a tank. It will go 300k easy as long as you take care of it. Change the fluids, that's key.

Chris

 

The screen that displays the AC /thermostat does not start and shows the message " check you CD" or something like that. It didnt start out like that. It would be take longer to load up when I started the car and some times disappeared here and there but now never starts. Acura dealer told me its $700-800 replacement job. I can use the lever of up or down to control the temperature on each side but not the big round lever in the center. It stopped working with the settings in place that are acceptable on most days but I cant change air flow to different areas (legs, dash etc) .Radio and CD player works fine. I just use google maps on my phone to navigate. If I can get this on ebay and have a mechanic change it for $300 or so total cost, I will do it.
I really appreciate all the folks who have given their input. Its very helpful !

 

You don't need a mechanic. Pull down the top trunk liner, unplug and remove old unit, install and plug in new unit, replace trunk liner, drink a beer. That's essentially the service manual verbatim.

 

Makes sense! Thanks.

 

This is the route I am going with mine.

2005

 

When I bought the RL my plan was to keep it for 4 years then trade up. Here it is 7 years later. Just turned 90K and virtually trouble free. To me, my car still looks better than majority of cars I see on a daily basis. Just the other day had a compliment on the car from a guy at work.

I have no plans to "trade up" any time soon.

 

It helps that you got the best colors.

 

I have 2005 with over 210K and the car drives better than some new cars I been in! I plan on driving the until the wheels far off!

 

I am the first owner from 25miles. i drive to work highway long miles. this car is bullet proof if you maintain it. i have not put any money into this car but normal
maintance.

 

I plan to keep mine until the wheels fall off. Just invested in my first timing belt and plugs change, in fact, so I'm set to 200k.

Only way I'd opt out is if the complex electronics shat the bed, but the evidence of multiple owners seems to be mounting that if that doesn't happen early (it hasn't happened to me), it probably won't for a long time.

 

I plan to drive my RL until the wheels fall off, but that's how to drive all of my cars. I have three Acuras, and one of them is a '99 TL with 245,000 miles so far.

 

I have 122kms on mine and I don't plan on getting rid of it. In fact I like mine so much, as soon as I can, I will try to import a RHD Legend.

 

There is no maintenance or service you will need to do on this car that will cost you in range of $3600 / year. That puts you at $300 (roughly about 15k for some sort of a car).

It WILL cost you $3600 a year if you run into problems with transmission or engine issues, and you keep fixing it and then run into more problems even after you fix it.

I personally plan to keep it as long as transmission or engine is good. Everything else will always cost me CHEAPER than buying some used car for 15k and paying $300 next 5 years

I recommend keeping the car until it dies!