How far can you drive your car? When people tell you that things aren’t made to last, you can point them to Ben Welch’s 1994 Chevy Suburban to prove them wrong.
No matter the vehicle, very few ever make it over 500,00 miles, and still fewer reach the magical 1 million miles on the odometer. That said, one man recently saw his trusty steed hit that mark. The vehicle that hit this mark is one of the toughest and most rugged large SUVs in the entire market, a Chevy Suburban. While we know these big SUVs can last a long time, very few ever make it as far as Ben Welch has driven his.
How long did Welch intend to keep this Chevy?
Originally, when he bought the 1994 model, Welch intended to drive the big SUV for one year and put about 35,000 miles on it before trading it for the 1995 model. Unfortunately, or fortunately for our story, he didn’t like the 1995 model and chose to wait to see if GM would bring back the 1994 build. They never did, and he never traded that original blue model that is the subject of this wonderful tale.
Why has this SUV driven so many miles?
Although most Americans drive an average of 14,264 miles per year, according to the Federal Highway Administration, reaching 1 million miles in only 30 years means Welch was putting more miles on his Chevy Suburban than that. To reach this figure, driving only the average number of miles takes 70 years.
Welch is a distributor for Conklin, a company that makes synthetic oil and additives. He uses his Suburban to bring products all over the country, which means he easily averages about 40,000 miles per year with this impressive Chevy SUV. The fact that he’s been to every part of the country makes the next part of the story even more amazing.
The same mechanic for 30 years
Another amazing aspect of this story is the fact that Ben Welch has had the same mechanic take care of the Suburban from the time he purchased it when it was new. That mechanic is Randy Bloom, who has taken care of the SUV from the start. Because of Bloom’s efforts and Welch’s consistency, this big Chevy SUV still has its original engine block and timing belt in place. The driver’s seat has been replaced twice, but the engine is still going strong.
Has this SUV ever given Welch any trouble?
In 2004, Welch was on his way home after a Fourth of July trip. This trip took place during a blazing hot summer, with temperatures reaching 106 degrees in some areas. He drove nearly 110 miles in a vehicle that no longer had the belt that controlled the air conditioning compressor, water pump, alternator, and power steering. The only sign he had that anything was wrong was the lack of steering response, but this should have blown the engine, but that didn’t happen.
Once back in Lincoln, Nebraska, where Bloom and Welch live, the vehicle was checked for problems. Bloom had to perform some extensive work, including removing the cylinder head and redoing the valves. This was the only major repair to the engine, but it still allowed the engine block, crank, and rods to remain in place. This repair took place at the 400,000-mile mark, which means the blue Chevy Suburban should have given up long ago, but it kept on chugging.
How did Welch get the Suburban to 1 million miles?
Even after the scare of 2004, Welch trusted this big Suburban and simply wanted to find out how far it would take him. It was never part of his plan to get to the million-mile mark, but with proper maintenance and Bloom checking his vehicle regularly, he made it there. The story that he would eventually reach this mark reached his company’s corporate office, and he was asked to come to Arizona for the national convention.
Using a GoPro to document the time the blue Chevy Suburban turned over the odometer, Conklin made a video of the event and showed it to the audience while Welch waited backstage. After the video, he drove the SUV onto the stage to the thunderous applause of the crowd. As is fitting, Bloom was in the audience at the event.
What’s happened since?
Over the past nine months since the time this Suburban rolled the odometer, Welch purchased a newer model to take him on his rounds around the country. The 1994 model still sits in his driveway as a place of honor, and it’s still used for the occasional ride. As Welch says, “It still starts up every time.”
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