What is the longest you have made a car last? [Archive]

catherine

8-23-18, 7:46am

I can't believe it was 12 years ago since my DH bought his Honda Fit and 11 years ago since I bought my Toyota Prius and we still are driving them. Good thing is, both of us spent a number of years working from home, so his mileage is about 160k and my mileage is about 115k. I plan on driving mine until paying to fix it doesn't make sense.

HappyHiker

8-23-18, 7:48am

Our Ford Focus SE is now 18 years old and still road worthy. Has a lot of rattles, though. Mileage is around 92,000. It's not our daily driver--we mostly use our 2005 Honda Civic. It's much quieter.

Ultralight

8-23-18, 7:58am

My current vehicle (which is actually the first one I really bought and owned) is a Nissan Versa 2012.

Previously, when I was a teenager, I was given a couple old, rusty Dodge Omni from my dad.

Then after those died on me I drove girlfriends' cars, rode the bus, rode a bike, or just hoofed it.

My Versa has around 62k miles on it. I bought it in May of 2013. I am wondering how long I can make it last...

razz

8-23-18, 8:17am

With a lot of driving, I usually keep a car for 10 years - Chev Lumina, Ford ,and now have a Toyota Prius that I will drive until the repair cost discourages me. I spoke to a former mechanic, who when advised that I bought a Prius, told me his brother bought a Prius the second year it was available and has had no problems with it so I anticipate few.

SteveinMN

8-23-18, 8:32am

Fifteen years and counting on my Volkswagen Jetta diesel. More than 135,000 miles. It was run a lot when I first got it (with three miles on the odometer), but I'm pressed now to put 10,000 miles a year on the car (even though this is the car we take on longer trips). It's showing its age: no rust and all the rubber is good, but the headliner is drooping some, the radio antenna (amplifier, actually) needs to be replaced (poor design), and there's a switch in one of the doors that arms the alarm even if I'm in the car dawdling before I start the engine (my workaround but still a nuisance). Fixing all this is more a matter of taking enough things apart to find and replace the parts.

Beyond that, I'm not even halfway to an engine overhaul (never mind engine failure) and the car does everything I want it to do. It's more comfortable and hauls more and gets better mileage than DW's Kia (eight years old). I don't really even want a different car. So, yes, this one will stick around until it's economically beyond repair.

Zoe Girl

8-23-18, 8:36am

I have a 2007 honda crv that my dad passed down. I typically get the cars no one wants to deal with anymore. It is at 230K miles right now. I have it in because a rear strut is blown and the door lock motor is fried. Total about $1,200 with a rental car. I have not taken care of hail damage, many of us don't.here in denver. My dad was a traveling salesman so all our cars had high mileages.

My last subaru was at 270K miles when the engine blew. It was over $5K to fix so I didn't keep it. My chevy astro van was in the high 200's I think. I drive them until they drop.

My hints are to get the best oil changes recommended, get good tires with tire insurance, and put money in savings for repairs. Driving older, high mileage cars makes a big impact I think but you need to be prepared to get work done, be willing to rent a car or use uber and have a good shop.

Sad Eyed Lady

8-23-18, 8:58am

I had a 2000 Toyota Echo that I sold in 2014 to a friend when we bought our current car, a Prius C. The Echo had around 150,000 miles on it then, and the friend can do his own repairs and maintenance has taken very good care of it and it now has over 200,000 miles. I don't believe I have ever had a car that I loved like that little Echo. There was just something about it. I am thinking this Prius will probably be my final car.

CathyA

8-23-18, 9:23am

Of course, a lot depends on the type of driving, car storage (we don't have a garage), how many times mice have chewed your wires, etc.

I got a new odyssey 2 years ago. I traded in my old odyssey when it was 15 years old. I think it was something like 178,000. But too much was going wrong, so I bought a new one. DH still has his 2006 Ford Explorer with close to 300,000 miles on it. But.....he did drive it when there was smoke coming out from under the hood at couple years ago, and got a new engine. He does things like that. :( I'm trying to talk him into a new car (or a used one, since we've had great luck with used Hondas and have a great service place)......but I think he's waiting until he's really busy and is going on a business trip, when his car dies. Seems like he likes life best when things are at their worse, which forces him to take action. Another :(

dmc

8-23-18, 9:45am

My wife put 250,000 miles on a Mercedes diesel. She was doing a lot of traveling at the time. It was still in very good shape when I gave it to a friend at work. He wanted it for his mother. Unfortunately she was in a accident a few months later and the car was totaled. She was not hurt though.

Gardnr

8-23-18, 10:09am

I had a 2000 Nissan Maxima for 17 years. 102,000 miles on it. Sold it to a desperate niece for $2650. Replaced with Mercedes C300 4matic with a lot of safety features and likely my last car as I can easily drive it 30+ years (I'm 57). It currently has 14,500 miles on it at 31 months old.

Miss Cellaneous

8-23-18, 10:13am

2001 Volkswagen Beetle. 130,000-ish miles. Still going strong, but the A/C has died and one inside door handle has broken off. I am hoping for one more year with this car, and then I will replace it with a Subaru--I've moved north since I bought it and am dealing with more hills and more snow than before and 4 wheel drive would be lovely.

Float On

8-23-18, 10:17am

Our '97 F150 was getting ready to roll 330,000 when my son totaled it in August '12. So it was 15 years old but we bought it '99 used with 23,000 miles on it and then the transmission went out at 30,000. So a rebuilt transmission got us almost 300,000 miles! My current rides are 9 and 10 years old. We've only had a combo of 6 vehicles in our almost 29 years of marriage. Always buy used but next time I want something brand new...just for once even though I know it horribly depreciates.
Currently '09 escape has 170,000 and '08 Ranger truck has 160,000.
The '00 durango I sold at 210,000 for $2000 - wish I'd kept it. Even though it was on it's 3rd dead AC it was so much more comfortable than the escape.

JaneV2.0

8-23-18, 10:19am

1975 VW beetle, 33 years, maybe 150,000 miles on it.

iris lilies

8-23-18, 10:47am

DH’s Nisson small truck was the oldest vehicle we have had. It got up to 20 or 21 years old.it was still under 100,000 miles. It was driven daily,just not driven far.

nswef

8-23-18, 10:50am

2000 GMC Sonoma pick up- not 100,000 miles yet but still looks new and has never been garaged...it does however have a water leak that the body shop said isn't really worth fixing....so a tarp when not in use works well. Still have a 2007 Focus wagon 150,000 miles and looking to replace one or the other with an suv-small. But we've been tossing that idea around for 2 years.

catherine

8-23-18, 11:07am

1975 VW beetle, 33 years, maybe 150,000 miles on it.

No way. Did you guy it new? Have you had it since 1975?

CathyA

8-23-18, 11:30am

LOL.......a bit off-topic. I bought a very used VW Beetle in the early 1970's. Actually, it was so bad, one of the professors I was working for went with me back to the Used Car place and I ended up trading it for another old VW.......which was almost as bad.

But I learned to love that Beetle! I'm sure it was the most unsafe car around. (Trunk in front). But it never got stuck in the snow. I used to drive it across town to a garden plot I rented and so carried my hoe and shovel with me in the car. It was a good thing, because the driver door kept popping open and I could grab onto one of the tools while I reached for the door. The horn would blow every time I turned left. The battery started falling out of the back seat floor. I could see the road under my left foot so I had it fixed as cheaply as possible by a wonderful German mechanic. the only problem was the screws would dig into my left shoe when I drove. hahahaha It had no heat at all and so in winter, frost would build up on the inside of the windshield, so I would have to constantly scrape it off to see.

The jerk/criminal used car salesman that sold me the cars finally got his comeuppance. A young guy stabbed him when the salesman came on to him. Unfortunately, I wasn't working the E.R. the day he came in. :devil:
I got a new VW Rabbit several years later. I don't know how many miles the Beetle had on it. Did they even keep track back then?

Oh.......and sometimes it wouldn't start and a couple of my friends would push it to the end of the drive where I was renting an apartment. There was a steep drive down. One person would go down on the road and let me know when it was safe to go.........and I would pop the clutch and it always started up. Ahhh.......Those were the days my friend. hahaha :~)

Geila

8-23-18, 11:33am

We have a 1989 Chevy S10 and a 1995 Honda Accord. I think the Accord will be retired in the next year or two and the truck we will keep till it dies.

oldhat

8-23-18, 11:33am

My current car, a 2004 Toyota Corolla. 135K miles. I'd say it was easily good for another 100K, but most of the driving has been local, which takes more of a toll on the engine. Also the finish has taken a beating because it's never been garaged.

I've thought about replacing it, but driving an old clunker has its advantages. In fact, just yesterday a woman backed into me in a parking lot, putting a small ding in my rear bumper. She was almost hysterical since she was obviously at fault. But I told her to forget it and drove off. (She was driving a Mercedes and definitely got the worst of it.)

Gardnr

8-23-18, 12:15pm

We've only had a combo of 6 vehicles in our almost 29 years of marriage. A.

Made me stop to count: We're married 38 years and our current 2 vehicles bring the total count to 10. 6 of those were in the first 12 years when we were busy "Jonesing".

Thoughtful contemplation on the "why" of changed behavior:)

Teacher Terry

8-23-18, 12:20pm

We keep our cars until they get too expensive to repair. I had a 14yo Volvo that had 178/miles but than needed a 6k repair so got rid of it. We now have a 10yo Toyota Corolla and 8yo Honda Accord both bought used. The Toyota has 49k/miles and the Honda 80/k.

mschrisgo2

8-23-18, 12:39pm

I tend to drive a lot, and have had several cars. My first car was a '65 Mustang fastback. It had 96,000 miles on it when I bought it in 1970, and 187,000 when I sold it. Bought my 1975 Capri new, had 236,000 miles when I traded it in (a local guy bought it and I saw it running around town for another 3 years or so). I bought a new 1984 Colt, drove it myself for 182,000 miles, then my son-in-law put another 30,000 miles on it, I got it back and it had 249,000 on it when I traded it in for a 1994 Chrysler Town and Country, the only real luxury car I've had, it already had 48,000 miles. I drove that to 217,000 miles. Then I got a new Caravan, that went 204,000 miles. Now I'm working on a 2014 Kia Soul, it has 90,000 miles yesterday. The first 2.5 years I was commuting to work, since then, I've made several long road trips, and in between it sits.

The Caravan ate front tires and brakes, got lousy gas mileage (17), and wasn't a very comfortable car to drive but I could haul the grandkids, dogs, and lots of stuff. Otherwise, my cars have all been low maintenance, really pretty good on gas, and very comfortable. I am careful about getting periodic oil changes.

iris lilies

8-23-18, 1:08pm

bae

8-23-18, 1:13pm

Of my current fleet of vehicles, which I think I will trim down soon, the oldest are:

- 1998 BMW Z3
- 1999 Hummer H1
- 2003 Porsche 911C4S

Each is pretty low mileage, with < 30,000 miles.

JaneV2.0

8-23-18, 1:28pm

No way. Did you guy it new? Have you had it since 1975?

I bought it with 2000 miles on it; i had it from '75 to '08. I tend to hang on to things (and situations) until well past their pull date.

Float On

8-23-18, 2:04pm

Dont shame us! We like cars.

Over our 30 year marriages we have had 11 cars. If you slice out the fun cars, we have had 9 cars and small trucks for regular use.

The fun cars are two Triumph TR6 autos and one Mercedes Benz 450 SL. The
TR6 cars never really ran. The Benz runs well but needs expensive Benz heating/cooling system fixes. We have no cooling sustem, and now have no heating system.

My brother and I shared a Triumph TR7 in highschool and college. Between that and the 3 old Rancheros we always had something driveable. The Rancheros were a lot more trustworthy with the 3onthetree than the Triumph but that wedge shaped 5 or 6 speed (can't remember which) convertible was so fun to drive.

Float On

8-23-18, 2:12pm

Did you all read about that 64.5 mustang convertible the lady had sitting in her garage for years. Very low mileage and now worth up to 350,000?
My dad was the first one in Missouri to get the 64.5. It was light yellow. He sold his tools, farm, and that car when he thought he was going to 'Nam. Then they found out they were going to have me and the Army said he didn't have to go.
2442

iris lilies

8-23-18, 2:42pm

Gardenarian

8-25-18, 12:52pm

My 2004 Scion xB has 110,000 miles and has never had any problems. We also have a 2004 Honda Odyssey mini van with about the same mileage. Very reliable cars, both.

iris lily

8-25-18, 12:58pm

I think the early Scion xB cars are funny,
I like them. They always make me look.

In my lottery winning dreams I would have a fleet of funny little cars, and the
Scio xB would be in that fleet.

jp1

8-25-18, 5:01pm

My '02 Accord has just over 39,000 miles on it and still running strong. Since it's a honda I'm hoping to get 200,000 miles out of it. After inheriting it from my father 4 years ago we've nearly doubled the mileage. With the 5,000 miles per year that we're currently driving it I hope to keep it at least another 30 years.

Gardnr

8-25-18, 9:29pm

jp1

8-26-18, 8:51am

What I learned with my car was that the car itself started falling apart around the low miles engine:(

Yeah, I expect that will start happening one of these days. It already looks its age because living in a dense city is rough on cars. There's even a dent on the top side of one of the fenders. Not sure what fell on it...

jp1

8-26-18, 8:54am

My brother and I shared a Triumph TR7 in highschool and college. Between that and the 3 old Rancheros we always had something driveable. The Rancheros were a lot more trustworthy with the 3onthetree than the Triumph but that wedge shaped 5 or 6 speed (can't remember which) convertible was so fun to drive.

In hindsight the TR7 was not "The Shape Of Things To Come". But they were still cool looking cars. And definitely cooler than the 75 Nova with three on the tree that my sister and I shared in high school.

SteveinMN

8-26-18, 10:10am

With the 5,000 miles per year that we're currently driving it I hope to keep it at least another 30 years.What I learned with my car was that the car itself started falling apart around the low miles engine:(
Indeed. I also find I'm replacing several consumable parts well before their usual mileage life would wear them out. I just tossed (recycled) a nice set of tires with lots of tread on them because they were going on seven years old. The timing belt on my car, which should be replaced every 100,000 miles or so, is replaced on its time interval, 5 years, because otherwise I'd be expecting that belt to last 12 years or so (it's a very expensive fix if it breaks).

iris lilies

8-26-18, 11:03am

In hindsight the TR7 was not "The Shape Of Things To Come". But they were still cool looking cars. And definitely cooler than the 75 Nova with three on the tree that my sister and I shared in high school.

Was not a fan of the TR7, not at all.
I dont know anyone in the collectible car world who wants one although there is an old car for everyone. meanwhile,
the TR6 auto
s remain popular and collectible.

jp1

8-26-18, 3:53pm

Was not a fan of the TR7, not at all.
I dont know anyone in the collectible car world who wants one although there is an old car for everyone. meanwhile,
the TR6 auto
s remain popular and collectible.

You're right about someone somewhere wanting every old car. I was watching a video on youtube of a guy who had kept an maintained a first gen Chevette. Seriously.

But if no one wants the TR7's that just means buying one would be an inexpensive proposition!

iris lilies

8-26-18, 4:03pm

You're right about someone somewhere wanting every old car. I was watching a video on youtube of a guy who had kept an maintained a first gen Chevette. Seriously.

But if no one wants the TR7's that just means buying one would be an inexpensive proposition!
Corvairs are suddenly hot ticket items in my neighborhood. Hard to believe but believe it. Granted, the ones collected here are convertibles but,yeccchch, Corvairs? Isnt that that Unsafe st Any Speed car?

razz

8-26-18, 4:09pm

When walking the dog yesterday morning, I was both amused and delighted at the parade of about 15-29 cars of the Model T era driving by. All were open to the elements with a variety of passengers joining the drivers. Some waved, some tooted a very squeaky horn, some were seriously concentrating on the driving ahead. I thought that would be such a fun hobby to have provided one has lots of storage and space to do maintenance.

Speaking of parts, how much of a challenge would they be to find for heritage vehicles? I suppose 3D printing could solve that, maybe?

jp1

8-26-18, 5:51pm

Corvairs are suddenly hot ticket items in my neighborhood. Hard to believe but believe it. Granted, the ones collected here are convertibles but,yeccchch, Corvairs? Isnt that that Unsafe st Any Speed car?

That is the Unsafe at Any Speed car, although to be fair GM upgraded the suspension after a couple of model years and eliminated the 'tuck under' that was the cause of a lot of accidents. After that it was mainly an issue of poor driving skill because the heavy rear end made for a much different driving experience.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NI9Hq0_Mhy0

SteveinMN

8-26-18, 6:37pm

Speaking of parts, how much of a challenge would they be to find for heritage vehicles? I suppose 3D printing could solve that, maybe?
When I have to wait for my barber, one of my reading choices is Hemmings Motor News, which is dedicated to the maintenance and restoration of old cars and trucks. I am amazed at the number of "old" parts which are being reproduced: wide-whitewall tires that look like the old bias-belted tires or tires which fit on Model T rims; replacement fender parts for 1950s Chevys; and so on. It also appears that, courtesy of auto salvage software, special-interest forums on the Internet, and craigslist, it's easier than ever to locate the parts you need for your 1923 Flivver. :) Obviously the more popular the car was to start with, the easier it is. But even brands that have been gone from U.S. shores for decades still have some ready supplies of parts.

pony mom

8-27-18, 9:35pm

My current car is a 2003 Subaru Forester with 235,000 miles. Still runs great and has been garaged for the last few years, so it still looks pretty good. I used to drive many many miles every week but now average about 400-500 miles a month. I LOVE this car to bits and hope it lasts many many more years. My next car will be another Subaru.

The car before that was a 1989 Acura Integra that I sold in 2003 with 214,000 miles. A friend of my bf at the time bought it and would have kept it for a long time if he didn't wreck the front end.

ToomuchStuff

8-28-18, 10:48am

My old Ranger I had for 11 years and it sold for what I had into it when I bought and fixed it. But I have an antique vehicle (71 Superbeetle) and one neighbor, who has a model A that his uncle bought (and it has been his daily driver for a bit), in 29 and he still has the original plates.
I would still have my first car if not for being rear ended by a snow plow.

San Onofre Guy

8-28-18, 11:54pm

I had a 1989 Mazda pickup which at239,000 miles got blue smoke disease. Given that it was on the second clutch with no transmission or rear end work, I donated it to charity. The A/C stopped working long before then.

beckyliz

8-31-18, 3:05pm

January 2003 new Hyundai Santa Fe. Lasted until November 2016. 235,000 miles. Basically raised my kids on that car.

Rogar

8-31-18, 7:17pm

I'm on my third small Toyota pickup, called a Tacoma now. I got rid of the first two after about 11 or 12 years and around 140,000 miles. Some driving on dirt roads and a little four-wheeling on old mining and logging roads, but mostly city. Neither had any major problems but small things were starting to go wrong. I suspect someone willing to keep up with maintenance and a few repairs could get 200K or 250k out of those things, as long as the manufacturing quality keeps up.

jp1

9-7-18, 10:42am

nswef

9-9-18, 10:05am

We had a car that was low book value and got rear ended, but because we had just put new tires on it and had some other important repair done, the hitters insurance (State Farm) paid for the repairs even though it was close or more than the book value of the car. It pays to ask.

beckyliz

9-13-18, 2:11pm

And then this happened...

2493

SO got rear-ended and shoved under a truck on the way home from work wednesday. Thankfully he wasn't hurt. If it had been bumper to bumper there would be minimal damage (neither other vehicle involved had any damage, nor did the back of our car). But since the book value of my car is maybe $3,600 I fully expect that the insurance companies will total it out since repairs will likely be more than that.

I guess I probably won't need to worry about it rotting away despite only having 40,165 miles.

Well, that stinks. I was in an accident (not my fault) about 18 months ago with my 2009 Kia Sportage that I was driving at the time. I probably had 80K miles on it. I was sure they'd total it out, since the KBB value was less than $5000. Guess what - they repaired it! Took them like a month, so they paid for my rental car, too. Not sure how long State Farm can stay in business making decisions like that, but there ya go. My college-aged daughter is driving it now.

jp1

9-21-18, 3:30pm

Well, state farm was surprisingly generous in their valuation of my car. They totalled it out since the damage estimate is over 75% of the value. But i accepted the settlement offer, kept it, and am having it fixed.

Alan

9-21-18, 4:11pm

The longest I've ever kept a car was 9 years and 200,000 miles, a Ford Escape Hybrid. Interestingly enough I replaced it with the car which I kept the least amount of time, 2 years. It was a 2014 Volkswagen Passat TDI. It had a list price of $32,000 and change but I got it for a little over $28,000. Shortly after purchasing it the whole VW Diesel Emissions thing came up and VW eventually notified me that they would either buy it back from me or provide a fix to the emissions thing and pay me a token amount for my trouble. At the same time, they sent me a $1000 gift card as their first sign of remorse.

While waiting for a final offer from VW and considering my options, another driver crossed the center line one evening and hit me head on, totaling the car. Her insurance paid me $24,600 for the car. VW then made me an offer of $7,632 to settle any future claims against them, and the airbag manufacturer for that model year made me an offer of $300 because of a problem found with the airbags (which worked wonderfully by the way, I walked away without a scratch). So, the end result was that I drove the car for two years and from a variety of sources received approximately $33,500 for a car that cost me $28K and change, approximately $5000 net profit. I loved that car.

Teacher Terry

9-21-18, 4:52pm

A semi truck pulled out in front of my husband and ran over his Saturn a number of years ago. The only spot not crushed was where he was sitting. The car peeled like an onion due to the slippery exterior they used. He walked away with no injuries which was priceless. However, we lost money on the car when it was totaled. It cost us more to buy a similar car with more miles. I think he used up all his 9 lives that day:))

jp1

9-21-18, 7:30pm

Alan, how did you like the escape hubrid? We’ve had those as rental cars several times and although we’re not really in the market, SO thinks that should be our next car.

Alan

9-21-18, 8:49pm

Alan, how did you like the escape hubrid? We’ve had those as rental cars several times and although we’re not really in the market, SO thinks that should be our next car.I loved it! It was comfortable, had lots of room and gave me approximately 32 mpg on my 100 mile daily commute to and from work with absolutely no issues outside of normal wear and tear.

Ford re-styled the Escape several years ago and I have no idea how the newer ones differ from the mid 2000 models but if they're anything like the older ones, I think they're a fine choice.

jp1

11-2-18, 1:53pm

So I just finished re-registering the Honda as salvage at the DMV. Other than spending $64 for a new title and $133 for a brakes and lamps inspection the whole process was relatively painless. And the subrogation against the at fault driver has been successful so all told I'm going to come out about $400 ahead. Sometimes "the system" actually works the way it's supposed to!