Anybody with a high mileage 3.4?

[Texfinn]

I have a chance to buy a 94 Camaro with 3.4 engine at a very low price. :D

The car has 175K miles... :eek: It is a few hours away from me, so I have not seen it yet, but at least in the pics it looks fine.

Any experiences with high mileage 3.4's? I know the 3.8 can last well beyond 200K+, but I have no idea about the 3.4 as to what to expect and if there is anything special I need to check on it before making an offer.

Any ideas? Thanks in advance for your input!
[img]graemlins/fluffy.gif[/img]
TS

[southern94]

i have a 94 3.4 with almost 126k miles on it and it runs strong very dependable nice daily driver.

[Brian Dieckman]

My 95 had 78K on it, and I've only had very minor problems all related to general engine maintenance.

The only reason I would be wary of this purchase is the fact that you don't know how the car was treated under the hood for those 178K's.

Even two or three missed oil changes can cause undue wear. Here's the good part though, rebuilding a 3.4 is a piece of cake. If you're getting the car dirt cheap, put a grand into a rebuild and presto!

Good luck!

-Brian

[RoyalBlaze]

Well, I got a 3.4L with 117k on it. I bought it just a month or so ago, but the person I bought it from said it was a dream car maintenance wise, and indeed, it still has almost all original parts.

I agree with Brian, though. All depends on who was driving that car. So try to meet the owner before you make an offer. My car was driven by somebody's wife mostly on the freeway, which might explain its nice condition. :D

[Texfinn]

Yeah, of course it's hard to tell how the maintenance was done, but if I go and see it, it'll already tell a lot. The car is a few hours away, though...

It is at a dealer, so they will not know anything about it. But the overall condition usually tells right away wheter somebody took care of it or not.

And, like Brian said, if it breaks, it's pretty easy and inexpensive to do. Or just buy another engine and drop it in.

I'm trying to figure out here wheter there are any common problems for the 3.4's. I'm sure the bottom end will last pretty well, or...? How about the top end? Head/head gaskets? Valves/valve seals?

Anybody else?

TS

[nova]

Mine has 134,000 on it. It was very well maintained and has given me little in the way of problems.

The only major problem I've had was the crank sensor broke off and chewed the harmonic balancer up.

[Fullagar]

i have 129000 on my 94 3.4, and i havent had any major problems at all. spark-plugs and wires are the only thing ive ever had to replace. i have heard that fuel pumps tend to go out at around 150k, but that is just hear-say.

[94bird]

i have 58,000 mi on my 3.4 now and i drive it kinda hard, but i keep up on maintenance and stuff, so hopefully i'll get another 100k out of it. :D [img]graemlins/burnout.gif[/img]

[nikkev]

3.4's are great dependance and maintenance wise.Unless that car is just a lemon (highly doubtful with that many miles) or has been abused then it will last forever.The 3.4's are based on the older 2.8 design and some of those cars have over 200k on them and still driving around daily.My own old 3.4 has 100k and my ex-wife still drives it daily in stop and go traffic.All I ever had to change was the alt and a head gasket.The alt just went out but the head gasket blew a few days after a 150 shot of nitrous.Good luck with the car.I wish I could find a high-mileage 3.4 around here for cheap.I would snap it up in a heartbeat for my daily driver.
Kevin

[BIG Daddy]

121K on mine. It has some mods all put on around 40K. Nothing major has broken yet. But I use synth oil and change plugs every 20-30K miles and I try not to drive it too hard only when the situation calls for it. :D [img]graemlins/burnout.gif[/img]

[C.Palmer]

HA!! I've got you all beat!!! 137K right here baby yeah! :D I bought the car from it's original owner with 100K on it. It's all original with the exception of O2 sensors, CAM sensor, water pump, and it needs some EGR valve maintinance. What a dream... the car runs like it's brand new.

Maintinance wise, the 3.4 is excellent from my own personal experience and from other drivers I've spoken with. But that is a lot of miles so have it checked, drive it, get some maintinance records, the basics.

[spyder]

I just hit 140k. I've had to replace the drive shaft, need to replace the rear axle bearing, and I have an ABS wire harness to replace. Also the front pump started slipping out of the tranny and I had to reseat it. Thats about it though.

[camaro28]

Spyder,
My rear axle bearigs are needing replacement, how hard was it for you to do? And where did you get the bearings from? Thanks alot!

[94CaliCamaro]

My 94 has 136K and runs like a dream. Just keep up on the routine stuff and it seems like these cars will outlast you. Hehe, have fun if ya decide to buy!

Davy Dave [img]graemlins/fluffy.gif[/img]

[zlightning]

what kind of gas mileage are you all getting? I am only getting 16-17 the best I got is 17.8mpg