Hi all, I've got a question that's perhaps rather stupid, but I'm going to go ahead with it anyway. I just recently took over my sisters '04 vibe with a blown clutch and 5 speed manual. I replaced the clutch and swapped in a much younger C60 6 speed at the same time (new rear seal as well). The car has about 310,000 miles on it, but very easy going miles (mostly highway and no hard work). You wouldn't know it had nearly that many miles, except for lacking a bit of its new original power. My next task is to fix up the oil drain plug; at some point it seems her mechanic cross threaded it and every time I undo it it's a pain to get in/out and I'm always worried how long it'll last. My question: on old farm equipment it's common to "tighten up" an engine between proper rebuilds by dropping the pan and rolling in new main & rod bearings with the engine still in the car. Typically we'll take the head to be checked over by a machine shop, lightly hone the block and put new rings on. Is it a stupid idea to think of doing this on my vibe to prolong the life a few more years? Any thoughts are very much appreciated.
I'd say 310,000 miles qualifies your engine as in need of a "proper rebuild!" If you are only trying to get a few more years, I would worry that trying to slip in new bearings could create a more serious problem that it may potentially prevent. At this point the parts are well worn-in together and disrupting that may spell trouble.
A compression check should tell you everything you need to know
05 Matrix XR 4WD and 03 Vibe GT
"If you want Government to solve your problems, then you are the problem!" BMSR
Trix MODS: SRI w/ AEM filter, Vibrant/Magnaflow Cat-back, Alutec Lightweight Crank Pulley
GT MODS: Cosmo SRI, DRL, Auto Stop