Note: This was originally (accidentally) posted in the "New Members" forum. My apologies for double-posting. I hope I won't be hung for it.

Howdy, folks.

I'm here because I've recently discovered that my appreciation for my vehicle has reached a height that may soon, if not already, be considered fanatical...and to make some contacts with other Montero owners because I may eventually need help keeping it alive...eventually.

I'm just thoroughly amazed with this machine. Let me know if any of you have similarly aged Monteros. Here are the stats:

1995 Montero LS 3.0L
215,000+ miles
22+ mpg hwy with 89 octane and Castrol GTX 10w30

non-wear items replaced:
3 ignition coils
catalytic converter
That's it!

What amazes me is how well this vehicle runs and holds the road (and the mud and snow) with this many miles. It feels just as powerful as it did when I bought it with 100,000 miles. What amazes me even more is that I replace less than 1 quart of oil between changes - which are commonly performed about every 5,000 miles.

Really, I am amazed daily.

See you all around!

Adam

 

welcome glad you are happy with it

 

I hope I can get as many miles with my 03 montero. Im happy as well, but about to spend some major $$ on my 60k service. Not complaining however, still cheaper than a new car payment!

 

Yeah, service can get pretty expensive - especially tune-ups. You can save quite a bit of $$$ if you learn to do them yourself, which I did after paying $450 to have someone else do the first one.

Thanks, Dave!

 

I am spending about $550 for the 60k service. This includes new water pump, belts, tranny fluids. Most of this is not required, but since Im spending the time on the DIY labor Im going to do it. Anyway the dealer quotes $1200 and that does not include new water pump, tranny fluids and other things that you might as well replace (serpentine belt) since you are there. I would imagine the bill would be >1500 - 1700 if they did all the things Im going to do for $550.

BTW, I got a quote for $180 for both differentials and transfer case fluid change from one of those lube places. That is replacing with Dino lubes. I will replace with sythetics for ~$90 using boutique FULLY synthetic fluids. When I asked the guy (manager - for sure) if they use GL4 or GL5 fluids, he had now idea what I was talking about. This is the guy who is trusted with your $35k SUV?! - I dont think so!

 

Wow is the $550 for just parts? Are you buying mitsu only parts from the dealer?

$180 for dif's & x case change? So what place was that? I personally avoid Jiffy Lube. Those are nothing more than high school/college kid's who aren't technically adept at auto mechanics. I have had good luck going to several Speedee Oil and Tune Up's. They seem to be much more technical. I take mine there for regular fluid changes (oil, coolant, & xcase/diff's). Being a conciencious consumer, I don't just throw my fluids away so I take it there to make my life easier.

 

The $550 includes: wires (110) plugs (6x12 each iridium), water pump (110), timing belt (70), seals and gaskets (10), syn diff and xfer case fluid (90), serpentine belt (70), idler pulley - bad bearing - (20), air filter (15). All OEM. The lube place was goodyear express. I know that half the stuff does not absolutely need to be replaced, but Im going to since Im spending the labor to rip it all down....

 

Lowred,

I have a 95 ls too. However, it "only" has 166k miles on it. It is very impressive that your engine only burns one quart per oil change. However, how often do you change your oil? My truck burns about 1 qt per 2k miles.

 

Howdy Shawn.

I change my oil (Castrol GTX 10W-30) every 4-5K miles, depending on use. I change the filter every time.

At around 150K miles, I tried a couple of other brands (Valvoline, which I had always used in my Subaru, and some generic brand) and I noticed that my Montero used more oil with those brands. I've stuck with Castrol since then.

I guess this is kind of an anomoly, but then again, I've always been quite fond of this vehicle and have always serviced it religiously. I also only drive aggressively when necessary.

By the way - I am not a Castrol representative.