w1n78

Ok here's my situation:
I drive around 120 miles a day (work commute). In 16 days of owning the car I've put a little over 1400 miles on it already.

What I don't care about:
1) Maintenance cost (oil change every 1.5 months or so)
2) Gas prices (fill up every lunch break about $13 a day)
3) Resale value of the car (purchased not a lease)

What I do:
1) Clean my car every weekend
2) Haven't redline but do a couple of 6000-6500 RPM
3) Use only 91 gas and either Mobil or Chevron

My Questions/Concerns:
1) Do people try not to drive their car as much because of resale value?
2) Should I try to drive my old Civic (given to my younger brother)
3) Are there more ways to maintain my car besides the usual oil change and whatever the MID shows?

I just want to keep my car in excellent condition but I drive over a 100 miles a day. What do you peeps think? Thanks in advance

Ron A

That's 30,000 miles a year, give or take, plus what you drive on the weekends, so you could be up to the warranty coverage period in a little over a year. Sounds like the extended warranty might be a good thing.

You just have to decide how much you enjoy driving the TL versus the miles put on it. I think I would consider this carefully and weigh the advantages and disadvantages. Acuras have alwaus been dependable and there are lots of Legends with 150,000 to 200,000 miles on them.

I never worry about resale value. If I want to drive the car, I drive it.

w1n78

thx Ron A. My family has/had 2 CRVs, 1 Civic and 1 Odyssey. So as you can see we have been comfortable with Hondas. None of which gave as any major problems and all have been driven the same way. I was thinking about the extended warranty even during purchase at the dealer but many of my friends who own Hondas and people here say it's not worth it and I feel the same way.

As far as maintenance goes, I guess be on time right? :p and that should keep my baby running like new?

Also was gonna drive the Civic 2-3 times a week and the rest the TL but man I don't have as much fun as I do in my TL. :banghead: :lol2:

Xerxes480

Sounds like you have the commute from hell - drive the TL man! You should try to make use of that time any way you can. Your sanity is worth more than stressing about trade-in value years down the road. My $.02...

-X-

Aegir

I have a similar commute. I bought the TL precisely because I was sick of spending so many hours of my life in an econobox! No way I'd drive another car to save on mileage. That would defeat my primary reason for getting the TL in the first place.

I don't think this car will need anything beyond the scheduled maintenance to provide many years of dependable service.

berlinrl

Drive the TL.

You bought it because you loved it, and if you drive that much, you deserve
the luxury.

Also, you bought an excellent Honda product that should prove to be very reliable
over time . . . even with high mileage.

That's my $.02.


Rachel

caball88

i have the same commute as you but i car pool with another co-worker to drive keep the miles and gas cost down. i change the oil when the MID tells me to and always use synthetic oil. i don't go by a monthly rule because the miles usually rack up way earlier. Mobil 93 every fillup but i don't go every day, i try to wait till it goes to empty. this gives me an idea of how many miles i am getting out of every tank. plus i don't want old gas in my car(i've always done this not completely sure why). i was the car every other weekend because i don't really have that much free time on the weekends. i check the fluids every week to make sure i am not leaking or low. are you planning on selling the car? if so then the resale value will be important to you. i am planning on keeping car and using it for hundred of thousands of miles. i'll probably keep the car for a good 4-5 years and then giving it to my lil bro when he goes to college. but if you plan on selling it i would use the civic a couple of times a week to keep the miles down. it doesn't always sound comforting because you spend 35K on a car you want to drive and not sit and look pretty.

w1n78

very true! had fun time today too. on the way to work saw a fellow 04 TL'er NBP - oh it was chick! she look pretty cute then again it may just be coz she's in a gorgeous car and it was tinted :toothless . anyways drove side by side took up 2/4 lanes :devil: on the 60 FWY Diamond Bar/Nogales area for about 10 miles. damn! wonder what others were thinking seeing 2 TL's on the road side by side enjoying the damn time. well if one of you was driving next to me 04 SSM this morning holla back

seems like everyday it just gets more fun than ever. never had experience like this on any car. then again this is my first "real car"

w1n78

thx caball88. ya same as you i won't be selling it and my bro will probably be getting it once my payments are done, 60 months, by then i'll probably have a little over 150k on it. and "it doesn't always sound comforting because you spend 35K on a car you want to drive and not sit and look pretty" is a very good point.

well after 5 responded i know what i'll be doing - adding to that 48 hours that the trip computer already calculated me driving

keep the post coming as i wanna see if there are more people who have similar commutes like me, caball8 and aegir

Euliscool

If you've purchased the car, i would drive it for 10 years and get your money's worth. Drive it till the tranny shuts down, the navi is old news, and the headliner starts to fall again :smackhead hahahaha

i'm gonna give it to my children when they turn 16, that'll be at least another 20 years. hahahaha

CdnTL

I've got a similar commute - about 200km (or 120 miles) round trip each day. Like caball88, I'm lucky enough to have a colleague who makes the same trip, so we trade off on alternating weeks.

When I was looking at cars, I agonized over the decision of whether I should go with the TL that I loved, or something cheaper that I wouldn't mind rackin' up the miles on. In the end, I decided that either way I was going to be spending a whole lot of time in the car, so I might as well spend it in something that I genuinely enjoyed driving.

Every now and then I watch the odometer climbing and get a little worried, but it's nothing compared to the fun of driving this car. So I guess I'm gonna agree with the others here who advise you to keep up the service schedule, get yourself something to protect the car from those inevitable stone chips on the freeway, and then hit the road and enjoy your TL!

w1n78

i've been told that it's not good for a fuel injected car to fill up near empty because it increase the chance of air getting into the "whatever that thing is called where the gas travels through" . but then again it sounds logical about the old gas thing.

myths, thoughts, truth, opinions? i'm confused

maecrispy

I used to do a commute just about that long. One thing that I found helped a lot was to hose the car down a couple times during the week, even if you do clean it on the weekend.

Crap doesn't get a chance to accumulate and stick. Quick dry (towels permanently live in the trunk) and you're good to go.

I too would drive the TL. It's part of the reason you bought the TL, right?

w1n78

i would do that if i had time in the morning, but i do use a CA duster and use it before i leave for work everyday. and yes i totally agree w/ your last sentence