The Countdown to 300,000

298,929. That's what my odometer reads. For the next few weeks I will entertain you by cataloging the final countdown to what some consider a fairly major milestone in in the automotive industry: 300,000 miles on an original engine.

I bought a baby blue 1996 Honda minivan in the spring of 2000. Mind you, this was six years BEFORE I became a father, if that tells you how interesting I am. It had a mere 45,000 miles at the time I signed the papers (and paid too much, I might add). I distinctly remember turning 100,000 miles somewhere underneath an interstate overpass in south Mississippi. The car sat idle at exactly 200,000 miles in a friend's driveway in Houston, TX, the very same trip that my wife and I bought that little red 1965 VW Karmann Ghia coupe. That particular milestone was six years ago.

There's a healthy chance Oddy and I will clock another 1,000 miles, turning 300K "together" somewhere on yet another trip to who-knows-where in the coming days. If I'm not on slippery, wintry terrain, and it's safe for me to pull over, I plan on taking a photo for posterity sake, and to send to the manufacturer. I wonder if Honda will care. They should. I don't know how many vehicles today reach that level of distance endurance, but surely it can't be a high percentage, though they aspire to it.

"What's your secret, Eric?" Since you didn't ask, I will now bore you with a few details: very regular oil & filter changes (there's something manly about getting your hands that filthy), two timing belt replacements (read, expensive), one major oil leak repair (doubly expensive), and enough washes, waxes and interior cleanings to make a professional maid service proud. The car, for what it's worth, still looks like a million bucks, minus a few bucks, of course. I'm slightly compulsive about aesthetics, just ask my wife. By no means am I a handyman or a mechanic, but at the very least I can change the oil in my car and mower, landscape a lawn, wipe soiled baby bottoms, vacuum, and take out the trash. All in a single leap.