I'm currently in the process of looking for a decent 93-97 Camaro for under $5,000. The only question I keep wondering about is how many miles would be considered too much for that V-8 engine?

 

It depends on how it has been treated.

I didnt even cam my car until it was around 150k, and have put 15,000 on it since then with full H/C/supporting mods without any problems - all on the stock shortblock still. Hot oil pressure is 22 @ idle, peaks at ~61 w/ 5w-30.

Others have spun mains or lost oil pressure with only 90k. Hell, there are LT1 taxi cabs that have 250k+ on 'em. Its all about regular maintenance and how it was treated! If it was one of those guys who got a huge cam and spun it to 6500 consistantly, and hardly ever even changed the oil, it can be expected to have quite a bit less left in it. On the other hand, a granny driven stock auto that has never seen over 6k and has had regular maintenance may just be stretching its legs at 150k

 

My 95 Z28 has 235K on it. Never any major problems. Still all stock engine, and trans. It had an oil leak fromt he rear seal for the last 30K. I'm tearing it down know to rebuild the whole thing only because it got wrecked a couple of weeks ago. So might as well take the time to do everything at once.

Shawn

 

I've seen abused engines last forever and babied engines be nothing but trouble. If it's a specific car that you really want and are having a hard time finding sometimes you just have to buy it regardless.

 

You get a second here . It all depends on how well that abused engine has been maintained. I completely thrashed a 86 - 2.8l Camaro for 125,000. The trans finally started slipping at 245,000, but the motor still runs. All I did was change the oil every 3,000 and keep clean antifreeze in it .

 

enigines are like a box of chocolates... you never know what you are going to get. i have seen 250k lt1's still running great or like me youcould have a 56k mile perfectly maintained lt1 spin a bearing. generally if it was maintained well you are pretty safe but there is always that odball out there.

 

mine kicked the bucket at 155k and i bought it with 145k soo its the luck of the draw.

 

MIne never even made it to 6500 once after I got it, made it to like 6200 at 135k. Completely stock except gears and cai, kind of shows how proper matience can help ALOT(i took care of it but hard to tell its past). I bought mine for 5k with 117k miles stock.

 

anything over 150000 Just look at it like this all the seal surfaces have been turning over for millions of times. the crank seals probably have groves into the crankshaft. just deside what your going to do with the car, how hard your going to run it. if you kill it every time you take off even grandma's car ant gona take it. imo.

 

noob question. what is low oil pressure a sign of?

 

Merely looking through the oil fill can tell you whether or not the engine was treated well. You see oil buildup/gunk then you know oil changes have been neglected per given the driving conditions.

 

thank you all for your help

 

when your dealing with 100k or 125k plus cars look into the wheel wells and under the car as much as you can. Your dealing with 10-15 yr old cars, the ones who have been kept up with be very evident. Look at 10 cars and you ll understand what im talking about, hell maybe even 3.
Miles arent really a concern, you may find some with 180k that look and drive nicer than cars with 100k. Upkeep, people buy these type of cars to beat the crap out of. These cars require a lot of attention and the ones that dont get enough show. Good luck