How many miles is too many when buying used?

I had an at-home test drive/trial period for a 2016 Mazda CX-9 Signature and my wife and I decided it's more than we'd like to spend right now but I'm in love with this vehicle. I really want to make a GT or Signature work as the downgrades to the Touring are too significant to me but there are very few options at the price point I'm looking for. There are practically none under 80k miles and most are closer to 100k. Is that too many? How reliably will the engine be able to get to 250k miles?
 
It really boils down to how it was driven and maintained. For example, I would feel more comfortable with a highway commute car 2 trips 100 miles daily vs 30 miles multiple trips stop n go. Also 2.5T is rather new powertrain so it is "early" to draw a conclusion.
 
Cferr, one thing you can do is to send engine oil and transmission fluid samples to a testing lab. There is likely one local to you that can do a quick turn-around. It will identify excessive wear particles that are a strong clue to the condition of the machinery. You'll need the OK of the seller, and hope it isn't sold while you're waiting for the results. Getting the samples may take a trip to an independent mechanic, and you'd want their judgement anyway.

The Mazda Certified Pre Owned warranty is only 12 months or 12,000 miles after purchase. I think the 100k powertrain warranty started when the car was new. You can buy a Mazda CPO extended confidence plan (so-called extended warranty) for about $1000, but it's only another 24 mo/24k. 3rd party underwriters may offer a longer extended prepaid service contract (that so-called extended warranty).
 
If you don't mind me asking, what's your price point? My wife and I just bought a 2016 GT with 43k miles for just over $24k OTD. There was another one close to me that sold in a day because it was listed at $21.5k with 51k miles. I agree that most in that range tend to be higher mileage though
 
If you don't mind me asking, what's your price point? My wife and I just bought a 2016 GT with 43k miles for just over $24k OTD. There was another one close to me that sold in a day because it was listed at $21.5k with 51k miles. I agree that most in that range tend to be higher mileage though
Yeah we're trying to stay at a max of $20k but it's close to impossible to find any at that price without a lot of miles. I can maybe stretch to $21k but I wouldn't feel comfortable going any further unfortunately. I found one for $19,900 with 84,000 miles but the engine was replaced and it comes with a 1 year warranty on the engine. Seems like a good deal?
 
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Yeah we're trying to stay at a max of $20k but it's close to impossible to find any at that price without a lot of miles. I can maybe stretch to $21k but I wouldn't feel comfortable going any further unfortunately. I found one for $19,900 with 84,000 miles but the engine was replaced and it comes with a 1 year warranty on the engine. Seems like a good deal?
I've been lurking on this forum for a couple months now to see if there are any issues with the CX-9 before buying one. Seems like a couple people have had coolant issues that resulted in an engine replacement. To me, that one you're looking at sounds like it might be one that had a coolant leak. I'd argue that you're actually better off with a recently replaced engine (assuming it's a new one and not a rebuilt or scrap yard engine).

There are maintenance items you'd have to be ready for as there are with any higher mileage car. Rubber hoses will start deteriorating. Bearings and bushings will start to wear out. Things like that. I can't speak to the reliability of the 2.5T because it hasn't been around that long though. My wife and I bought a 4Runner last year so we'd have one very reliable vehicle. I'm not expecting this CX-9 to be as reliable as that but I am hoping for more reliability than the Ford 1.6T that we had before this.
 
Yeah we're trying to stay at a max of $20k but it's close to impossible to find any at that price without a lot of miles. I can maybe stretch to $21k but I wouldn't feel comfortable going any further unfortunately. I found one for $19,900 with 84,000 miles but the engine was replaced and it comes with a 1 year warranty on the engine. Seems like a good deal?

There are two issues that seem to be popping up with the 2.5T engine. One is a coolant leak from somewhere on the "back" of the engine that requires an engine replacement. The other is a compression loss in one cylinder that also typically requires and engine replacement. As of now, these seem to be isolated to the first few model years, but this could just be because the newer ones haven't had enough time in use to exhibit problems.

Generally I would avoid purchasing a vehicle with a rebuilt engine. If it was a new engine installed by a good Mazda dealer, I might consider it.
 
There are two issues that seem to be popping up with the 2.5T engine. One is a coolant leak from somewhere on the "back" of the engine that requires an engine replacement. The other is a compression loss in one cylinder that also typically requires and engine replacement. As of now, these seem to be isolated to the first few model years, but this could just be because the newer ones haven't had enough time in use to exhibit problems.

Generally I would avoid purchasing a vehicle with a rebuilt engine. If it was a new engine installed by a good Mazda dealer, I might consider it.
It is a brand new engine from a Mazda dealer with a 1 year/12,000 mile warranty on the engine.
 
There are two issues that seem to be popping up with the 2.5T engine. One is a coolant leak from somewhere on the "back" of the engine that requires an engine replacement. The other is a compression loss in one cylinder that also typically requires and engine replacement. As of now, these seem to be isolated to the first few model years, but this could just be because the newer ones haven't had enough time in use to exhibit problems.

Generally I would avoid purchasing a vehicle with a rebuilt engine. If it was a new engine installed by a good Mazda dealer, I might consider it.
I heard back from them and they said the engine got a crack in the head due to a coolant leak as expected. The mechanic said the longblock was replaced with the new one with thicker head to help with that issue, as well as the valve train, pistons, crank, and rods (all new '21 parts). They moved the intake, turbo, plumbing, downpipe, and exhaust over from the original engine as they weren't damaged. Do you think it is worth it in that case?
 
I heard back from them and they said the engine got a crack in the head due to a coolant leak as expected. The mechanic said the longblock was replaced with the new one with thicker head to help with that issue, as well as the valve train, pistons, crank, and rods (all new '21 parts). They moved the intake, turbo, plumbing, downpipe, and exhaust over from the original engine as they weren't damaged. Do you think it is worth it in that case?

I'd be ok with that one personally. Up to you though. You'd still have the maintenance items to watch that I mentioned though
 
I heard back from them and they said the engine got a crack in the head due to a coolant leak as expected. The mechanic said the longblock was replaced with the new one with thicker head to help with that issue, as well as the valve train, pistons, crank, and rods (all new '21 parts). They moved the intake, turbo, plumbing, downpipe, and exhaust over from the original engine as they weren't damaged. Do you think it is worth it in that case?

Seems reasonable. I'd ask for the service records so you have this information in writing should anything happen later.
 
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