Anyone proactively replace parts?

[jim x 3]

I replace filters and fluids on the schedule. All else as broken or worn. When I did the waterpump I would have replaced rubber hoses and thermostat as well, except the existing rubber looked so good and the thermostat was a half step beyond the water pump on this engine. I park my truck on customer driveways so it can't be leaking. The water pump did weep on a customer's driveway (brand new concrete flatwork) which took some doing to clean up.

@ Golden Helmet: Is your VW a "clean diesel"? No bones about it, all my vehicles are "dirty diesels".

 

[Golden Helmet]

@ Golden Helmet: Is your VW a "clean diesel"? No bones about it, all my vehicles are "dirty diesels".

My VW is one of the Dieselgate dealer buyback cars, 2012 model year Passat with all the fixes. Everything is intact since it has to be smogged, if I lived in America I would delete all that junk, tune it, and probably get 50mpg out of it with more power and less throttle lag. It gets 42-45 MPG highway though, so i can't whine THAT much, the laggy computer and confused transmission are just the price you pay for MPG.

 

[CDX825]

Belts and hoses are about the only thing I replace proactively. Those two things seem to be about the most common to leave you stuck on the side of the road.

Other than that I'm pretty **** about changing fluids and keeping things greased.

 

[StBernardnot]

Oem for sure. At my local Ford dealer the other day & asked for a quote on new batteries for my '92 idi. Mine are 7 years old. He said $145 & $16 back when I bring in the old ones. I told him to load 'em up. 3 year warranty Motorcraft. Bought new Michelen's (sp?) for my f-150 there, too. Free rotation for the life of the tire. Their point system for every purchase gave me a free oil change & air filter on the f-150 last time. Can you tell I'm a happy customer? lol!

 

[Noiseydiesel]

I am a retired fleet mechanic from the largest nationwide vehicle fleet.
Wanna guess which one?
Problem we ran into too, far too many times, was the replacement parts were below par.
Upper management usually always went the cheap route.
My own stuff? I know what to look for and when.
I am also $35K plus into a '94 idi getting it to where I desire it to be.
I figure another 10 or 15 and it should be there.
Most everything else in the driveway is just about ignored short of fluid changes.
Oil changes keep things running a lot longer such as the wife's mini-van with 252K miles on it.

 

[genscripter]

When I was a sales rep, making actual in-person sales calls and spending way too much time in a car,
I called on trucking fleets.

I had several accounts that would change out parts.. starters, water pumps, bearings, hoses, etc.. at specified mileage, regardless of condition, based on failure data they had on the fleet as a whole.

Do any of you replace parts at a periodic interval because you heard, or you know, the expected life span was X miles, and want to fix it before it's a problem.. or do you just wait until there are signs of wear and failure? (not including oil changes, and things like that)

It came up in conversation the other night, so I thought I would pose it to this audience of esteemed individuals.

I often change out parts in advance, even at the sign of a tiny failure like a drip or minor issue. I take my van up to the arctic and remote parts of the US and Canada every year, so I can't afford to be stranded in some 12-person town on the tundra waiting for a part to be airlifted.

Also, if possible, i try to replace the part with the highest quality replacement. Not just for power or strength or durability, but also, basically it's cheaper than replacing 2 or 3 cheapo parts over the course of owning the van.

And, I proactively replace parts because I take my kid and other families on roadtrips with my old van, and it's not professional or courteous to be stuck in Omaha or Trenton replacing a WP or Tie rod that was on its last leg before we left for the trip. I remember one time we took a family with us from LA to Indiana, and the grandfather of the family was concerned for his son and grandkids to be in a 30-year old van crosscountry. He asked, "Does this guy know how to work on these old vehicles?" and my friend said something like "I think Nick knows every bolt on that van."