How Many Miles Can a Car Last - article

[gearheadgrrrl]

I have 3 TDI's , 2 over 300K miles. It is not the engine that is the problem...it is the fiddly electronic gee-gaws that eventually kill the car.
My 1978 E-150 Van (with a stick shift) is on 317K+ and doing fine. Gotta take care of the rust spots tho and have the upholstery replaced when it is tattered. I attribute the long life to the manual tranny and the engine ( 300 ci-6) NOT having any weird EPA plumbing as I ordered it with the heavy-duty GVW package which put it off the list for that stuff. On the highway, it does nicely at 65mph and makes an honest 21mpg.
NO. It's not for sale.

Good example of the effect of rust on vehicle longevity- I used to work for Continental Baking which had thousands of those 3rd generation Econolines, both full bodies and stripped chassis with aluminum step van bodies. The Ford 300 six was utterly reliable and got decent MPG for a gasser, in fact a lot of the mechanics wondered why they even bothered with diesels in such a small truck. But the full bodied E150s in the rust belt were lucky to survive 10 years, even after Ford gave them new body panels when they were only a few years old. Under their aluminum bodies many of the step vans survived until the company's 2012 bankruptcy liquidation, especially the ones engine repowered with Cummins 4BT diesels. I've done the numbers and suspect that the economy and efficiency of those aluminum bodied Ford chassis and Ford or Cummins engines kept Continental Baking alive for several years.

 

[kjclow]

From Edmunds: More than 15% of consumers who financed a car in Q4 2022 committed to auto loan payments of more than $1,000 a month.

And I've read that currently the average car loan term is 72 months. 84 and 96 month loans are available, and some lenders have just started offering 10 year loans.

I've also heard that the rule of thumb is that most lenders will write loans for between 120-140% of the MSRP of a vehicle. So if you buy a $50K vehicle, and put no money down, you may be able to get a loan for $60 or $70K. I can't imagine.

I borrow money for my cars if it makes more sense to use their funds than mine but over $400 is too much for my blood. Can't imagine paying as much for my car as I do for my house.

 

[turbobrick240]

Here's why Wesson makes terrible motor oil:

 

[IndigoBlueWagon]

I've leased and then bought out several cars over the years. My daughter just did this, too. If the money factor on the lease is low (at least once it was negative) and the residual value is realistic this can be a reasonable way to go. And you get the perfect used car: one that you used.

But these days I'm less interested in doing even that. Picking something I can afford to buy with cash is more appealing. However, I haven't bought a car since the leftover '15 GSW I bought in '17, nearly 6 years ago. I just keep repairing and driving what I have.

 

[atc98002]

My Bolt is being bought back from me in the next few days, so I'm looking for a replacement. Can't find any reasonable deals on a diesel car, but I have no intention of paying more than a few hundred as a monthly payment. With any luck, I'll find something I can pay cash for.

 

[Lightflyer1]

Good luck! I would hate to be buying right now.

 

[IndigoBlueWagon]

My Bolt is being bought back from me in the next few days, so I'm looking for a replacement.

What happened?

 

[atc98002]

I requested some sort of compensation for two reasons. One, the battery recall happened the day after I took delivery, so I've been under a charging and parking restriction of some sort the entire time I've owned it. Second, they dropped the MSRP on the car by over $6000, which made an immediate drop of the trade in value of mine by the same amount. They gave people who bought in 2022 a cash rebate for the same amount, but because I got mine in late 2022 I didn't get a dime. I wasn't expecting a full price buyback, but that's what they ended up offering. So I will end up driving a Bolt EUV for free for 18 months, while gas/diesel prices were sky high. I've saved a ton of money driving an EV during this time.

I'd love to pick up a used diesel X3 or smaller Mercedes, but they simply don't exist for less than $50k, and I'm not going to spend that kind of money. I haven't decided if I am going to get a used Mercedes GLC plug in hybrid or a new Ford Escape PHEV. I'm leaning towards the GLC 350e, because the initial loss of value is gone, and it appears overall a nice comfortable car. Planning on a long road trip this summer, so comfort will be important. Also why I'm not looking at another EV, since range and charging is still less than stellar.

 

[IndigoBlueWagon]

Look here: Several X3ds priced in the 20s. https://www.autotrader.com/cars-for...eBanner=false&sortBy=mileageASC&numRecords=25

 

[atc98002]

I don't want to buy something that old. I'm limiting myself to no older than 2019. But those are nice looking, and a few not too far away.

 

[IndigoBlueWagon]

I think '18 was the last year for any BMW diesels in North America.

 

[tikal]

I remember seeing an article a few months back that the average owner was now hanging onto their new cars for at least 12 years. Don't think they looked at life of used cars. I know we have conversations about replacing the JSW but it's only 13 years old and just 165k miles on it. With my wife being retired and me joining her soon, we're having to do annual oil changes instead of mileage. So at only 5-6000 miles a year, that car should be in our drive way for many more years.

In North America? It seems very generous average to me.

 

[atc98002]

I think '18 was the last year for any BMW diesels in North America.

Yeah, I think 2016 is the newest I could find. There's only four listed on Cars dot com within 150 miles of me.

 

[IndigoBlueWagon]

In North America? It seems very generous average to me.

Generous in what direction? Seems reasonable to me. I think what you see for ages of cars largely depends on where you live. Around here I don't often see cars that are older than what I drive. Even my 335d, which I still think of as a "new" car, is 12 years old.

 

[Mcgink]

Generous in what direction? Seems reasonable to me. I think what you see for ages of cars largely depends on where you live. Around here I don't often see cars that are older than what I drive. Even my 335d, which I still think of as a "new" car, is 12 years old.

Thanks to the rust belt, it's tough to avoid the corrosion. Hasn't IBW had "a little work done" to keep her looks up? Last time I saw it, it still looked great.

 

[IndigoBlueWagon]

Yes. I'm on my third pair of front fenders, and I've had both rockers repaired. But honestly it's hung together pretty well. I drive it all winter, and it still looks really clean underneath. With modern rustproofing living in the salt belt shouldn't limit vehicle life. And if you can find a body shop that will do rust repair you can keep ahead of the parts that do rust.

My B4 is pretty rust free, too, although I think the rockers are deteriorating some. And it wasn't garaged before I bought it.

 

[MattRabbit]

I drove my mk1 Rabbit to 300K miles, my mk4 Golf TDI to 400K miles, and I'm currently at 100K miles on my mk7. The only reason I replaced the mk4 was because VW was practically giving away mk7 TDIs a few years ago. I pay less on my payment per year than I did on repairs! That said, there was something really cool about my old mk4, and I kinda wish I had it back. I sold it to a member on the forums, and I hope he and his family are enjoying the heck out of it!

 

[kjclow]

In North America? It seems very generous average to me.

Not my figures. I think the article was from AAA and looked at state registrations.

 

[jjblbi]

If shopping for a car check out autotempest. It searches multiple sites and can use multiple filters. Good luck, John

 

[tikal]

Generous in what direction? Seems reasonable to me. I think what you see for ages of cars largely depends on where you live. Around here I don't often see cars that are older than what I drive. Even my 335d, which I still think of as a "new" car, is 12 years old.

Yes I should have been more explicit. I could be wrong, but I feel in North America people hold to their cars less than 12 years on average.

 

[tikal]

Not my figures. I think the article was from AAA and looked at state registrations.

Got it. Thanks.

 

[turbobrick240]

Yes I should have been more explicit. I could be wrong, but I feel in North America people hold to their cars less than 12 years on average.

Yeah, I think that's right. I believe the average age(not lifespan) of vehicles in the US auto fleet is about 12 years. Most are probably on their second or third owner by that point. I agree with IBW about the regional aspect too- in New England the average age might only be 9 or so years, due mostly to corrosion.

 

[tikal]

Yeah, I think that's right. I believe the average age(not lifespan) of vehicles in the US auto fleet is about 12 years. Most are probably on their second or third owner by that point. I agree with IBW about the regional aspect too- in New England the average age might only be 9 or so years, due mostly to corrosion.

Ok, that's a good clarification. I was more thinking how long, on the average, the first owner keeps a passenger vehicle in North America.

 

[kjclow]

for us:
Got rid of the 05 Corolla last year. So owned that for 17 years.
Still have the 10 JSW. 13 years of ownership.
Still have the 17 Ram and it just had it's 5 year birthday celebration. Not planning on getting rid of it anytime soon.

 

[atc98002]

Our Dodge Ram 1500 is now 18 years old. Bought new by my brother-in-law shortly before he was diagnosed with cancer. When he passed in 2007, no one would buy it from her because no one believed it only had 8000 miles. So she gave it to my wife, Even now, it's only a hair over 42,000 miles, and I'm sure we'll keep it until neither of us can drive anymore.

 

[braddies]

Golf turns 20 this year, if I can make the trunk watertight again it might just go another 20, but I understand why someone might buy a new car if they find a pond in the spare tire compartment.
Staying on top of the little things makes it worthwhile to spend on the big maintenance when it's needed

 

[Nevada_TDI]

I must not have understood the question why would I not want to replace a $500 alternator instead of picking up a $500 a month car payment

 

[tditom]

Honda Accord with 1 million miles:

 

[ssaric1.9TDI]

Good old Honda. I had one long time ago and I could not kill it. It was an awesome car that took me everywhere without any problems. I end up selling it with 250k miles on it. The engine and transmission were great, the body was all faded and it needed a paint job but no rust. Great car, they dont make them like they use to and that is a shame for Honda.

On another note, I recently bought 08 volvo xc90 AWD 3.2L inline 6 for dirt cheap with 134k on it with a bad alternator. I end up sourcing an fairly new alternator at a junk yard and I replaced and the car is running great. Hopefully it will last me few years to help haul heavy stuff with kids or go camping and stuff like that. I dont know much about volvos so I am learning, however I am never letting go of my TDI's

 

[N2UADTDI]

My 99 Ody van will be 25 years old next year. I can get antique plates for it. Should I?