Just read that modern car engines are designed to run 200,000 miles before major repairs, but most mechanics I know see failures around 150k

I was flipping through a SAE paper my buddy left on the counter and it had a chart showing durability targets for 2024 engines, but in my 22 years turning wrenches in Portland I've hardly seen a turbo or timing chain make it past 150,000 without giving trouble, so who's really testing those numbers?

2 comments

2 Comments

morgan.cameron4d ago

you're onto something but i think the disconnect is even bigger than that. those SAE durability tests are run on a dyno in a lab with perfect oil temp and controlled fuel quality. out here in the real world i've seen an engine grenade at 90k because the previous owner ran it 5k miles over on oil changes with cheap gas and then got stuck in stop and go traffic every day. the 200k figure assumes ideal conditions and a perfect maintenance schedule which almost nobody actually follows. also those tests probably don't account for the exact turbo failure i just had on a 2021 ecoboost where the coolant line clogged from sediment and killed the bearings at 140k even though the owner was religious about oil changes.

sam_harris687h ago

That 2021 Ecoboost turbo failure you mentioned @morgan.cameron really hit home for me. I used to be one of those guys who thought "just follow the manual and you're golden" but your point about coolant line sediment changing the whole game just clicked. I had a 2018 F150 with the same engine and blew a turbo at 115k, always ran synthetic oil every 5k like clockwork. The dealership couldn't even figure out why it failed, just said it was a "fluke." Now I'm wondering if it was the same issue with sediment buildup from the coolant system. Makes me think these modern engines have too many weak points that the lab guys never test for. The 200k mile thing is basically a fairy tale for anyone who actually drives their truck hard or lives where the water has minerals.