Is it true that cars degrade faster if they are never driven at highway speeds?

[Mr.Slant]

@Learjeff

Another issue is carbon buildup. I don’t know whether this even happens with modern control systems and emission controls – cars really are quite different today than they were in the 70’s. Anyway, with the older cars, running most of the time with low loads (not pushing the engine) could cause carbon deposits on the cylinder walls. These would continue to glow after killing the ignition, and you’d have a car that would keep running (kinda) after shutting it off. The quick fix was to run the engine hot for a good bit, like taking a freeway joy ride.

When I run my 6-speed-auto Elantra in the right lane cruising at 55, sometimes the LOAD indication on my OBD2 reads 85%.
So… I’m running at 85% of the horsepower capacity of the engine at the low RPM it’s stuck at in 6th gear.
Anyone know if that counts as ‘getting the lead out’ or not for purposes of what we’re talking about above?

[Kevbo]

@davidm

So what of the trope about the little old lady from Pasadena who only drove to church on Sundays?

It’s obviously only a joke, but there was no basis for it? Did it have things completely backwards?

You are blending two different cultural references:

“Little Old Lady from Pasadena” is a Beach Boys song about a street racing older woman who would clean the clock of all the cool kids, a “sleeper” both as the driver and the car. Definitely NOT a gentle driver going easy on a car.

“This car was owned by a little old lady who only drove it to Church on Sunday” Is the stereotypical lie told by a used car salesman to explain the rolled back or rolled over odometer reading on an older vehicle. And yes it is backward, because only driving for short trips can cause accelerated wear on a car. In addition to what has been mentioned, a huge percentage of engine wear happens at startup, so short trips mean many more starts per mile.

It is possible that the Beach Boys were inspired by and/or referencing the stereotypical salesman lie when the lyrics were written, But LOLFP was exactly the opposite of what the salesmen were suggesting.