It makes the Junkyard Odometer Top Ten, but pushes another Accord off the list.
Last time we reshuffled the Junkyard Odometer Top Ten was just a couple of months ago, when I documented a 1990 Volvo 240 with a startling 631,999 miles under its wheels. At that point, the Top Ten had three apiece Mercedes-Benz and Honda cars, but now today’s Junkyard Treasure gives Honda further bragging rights.
Here’s the current Murilee Martin Junkyard Odometer Top Ten:
- 1990 Volvo 240 DL, 631,999 miles
- 1988 Honda Accord LXi, 626,476 miles
- 1987 Mercedes-Benz 190E, 601,173 miles
- 1981 Mercedes-Benz 300SD, 572,139 miles
- 1985 Mercedes-Benz 300SD, 525,971 miles
- 1988 Honda Accord DX, 513,519 miles
- 1990 Volvo 740 Turbo Wagon, 493,549 miles
- 1991 Honda Accord, 435,471 miles
- 1988 Toyota Tercel 4WD Wagon, 413,344 miles
- 2002 Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor, 412,013 miles
The previous #10 car was a 1983 Honda Accord with 411,794 miles, which means Honda keeps exactly three spots on this list while pushing the only Ford that much closer to being #11. I’ve found many discarded Toyotas with more than 300k miles, of course.
This car appears to have been in pretty decent condition prior to its final owner and the depredations of junkyard shoppers pulling parts. That’s typical of high-mile vehicles that show up in boneyards, because you don’t get past 200,000 miles in any car without being good about maintenance. The pink door panel got swapped in along the line, and I’ll bet those aren’t the first front seats that have lived here.
Colorado isn’t particularly rusty, but these cars were susceptible to rot (and it may have lived elsewhere for part of its life).
This car was built in Ohio, while the other two Accords in the Junkyard Odometer Top Ten came from Japan.
It appears to be a DX sedan, the cheapest of the 1991 Accord lineup, with a 2.2-liter four-cylinder and five-speed manual transmission. All of the Accords I’ve found in junkyards with better than 400k miles had manual transmissions, but the Volvo that sits at #1 had an automatic.
If I had to guess about the reasons this car ended up in this place, I’d say it broke down in a bad spot and its final owner couldn’t or wouldn’t rescue it from the tow yard. As we all know, notes to tow-truck drivers generally won’t save your car if it’s parked illegally.