[rpoz-29]

After my spark plug issue, I started think a little more about my car. As I've said before, it's a very low optioned 2002, with around 7,300 miles, that I bought new in October of 2001. The car has been garaged all it's life, but still, it's almost 10 years old. I'm taking care of the fluids, but what about the tires? Should I consider replacing them? The tires are Z rated Goodyears, they look good and don't seem to have any cracks or leaks. I realize I'm not doing the car any favors by letting it sit, and I plan to drive it a good bit more in the future. Thanks for any thoughts you guys may have.

[pknowles]

I change hoses when I see cracks, bulges, or the ends distort and don't seal as well. Not sure what rubber they are made of, but original GM hoses last a very long time. In fact I still have a bunch of original GM hoses on my 97 C2500 truck with 232k miles on it. I take a few of the hoses off and look at them in detail every time I do anything that requires a cooling system drain and they look good as new. My truck is also my mostly driver, so hoses and belts may rot quicker on vehicle that sits. If I find any cracks starting, I will probably change all of the original hoses at that time. For some reason I never get the same life out of the parts store hoses.

[85t5mcss]

For some reason I never get the same life out of the parts store hoses.

Simple. Lower quality. Not bashing, either. I work in parts. It's simply price. MOST will not pay $60.00 for a top quality hose with premium rubber when you get one for $10-15. Personally I would like to buy the premium product to prevent break downs, but others wouldn't agree. Batteries are the same way. GMs are usually 7-8 year factory life while aftermarket (including Delco) are 4-5 years. But, do u want to pay $200 for the "factory style" battery? Maybe not the battery I wouldn't, but other parts I would. I could keep going on-brake pads and shoes are a big one. It's just the business and doubt it will change for the better. FWIW-some OE parts are made by the aftermarket companies-Belt Tensioners for GM were made by Gates for example.

And as far as tires go-I do not know. So I always replaced to prevent problems. Tires on the Monte look brand new-over 3 years on them. Maybe I should do a few HPDEs in it and fix that problem.

This post has been edited by 85t5mcss: Jan 2 2011, 12:54 AM

[pknowles]

For some reason I never get the same life out of the parts store hoses.

Simple. Lower quality. Not bashing, either. I work in parts. It's simply price. MOST will not pay $60.00 for a top quality hose with premium rubber when you get one for $10-15. Personally I would like to buy the premium product to prevent break downs, but others wouldn't agree.

Defiantly a quality or material difference. My real issue is that all of this stuff is listed as "rubber hose" and there are clearly different types of "rubber hose" that last a lot longer than others. Call me crazy, but I will pay more for something if I knew specifically what I was buying!

[Todd]

For some reason I never get the same life out of the parts store hoses.

Simple. Lower quality. Not bashing, either. I work in parts. It's simply price. MOST will not pay $60.00 for a top quality hose with premium rubber when you get one for $10-15. Personally I would like to buy the premium product to prevent break downs, but others wouldn't agree.

Defiantly a quality or material difference. My real issue is that all of this stuff is listed as "rubber hose" and there are clearly different types of "rubber hose" that last a lot longer than others. Call me crazy, but I will pay more for something if I knew specifically what I was buying!

for some vehicles you can get the goodyear extended life belts/hoses. It depends on the application though. I know that the Impala SS crowd gets the police duty belts/hoses.