Posted on 05/04/2024 4:11:17 AM PDT by RomanSoldier19
Here at Jalopnik, we know there’s nothing wrong with keeping a beloved old beater running for mile after mile, and we regularly celebrate high mileage heroes. Now, it turns out the rest of America is catching onto this way of thinking as the savings of holding onto an old car for longer begin mounting up.
Drivers across the country are increasingly holding onto their cars for longer than ever, with an increasing number hitting more than 100,000 miles in their cars, according to a new report from the Wall Street Journal. The trend comes as drivers realize the savings to be had by simply not replacing their car every five years. As the site explains:
(Excerpt) Read more at jalopnik.com ...
No kidding. Brilliant.
Sounds like a press toward another cash for clunkers scheme.
In the 1970s you had to trade your car in after five years because it had stopped running. Cars are much better made today, at least as far as reliability. Some of the engines were bigger back then, and the cars were heavier, but I for one am glad Toyota and Nissan exist.
A Toyota is just starting to get broken in at 100K.
No problem as long as the vehicle is properly maintained. My F-150 has over 339,000 miles on it and aside from some parking lot rash and normal bed wear looks and drives like it did when it was new. Only thing I’ve added to it are nerf style running boards and an upgraded stereo. It does everything I need and best of all, it’s been paid off for years.
Nobody wants EV cars! Nobody wants the new crap that is only good for spying on the owner and sending all that data (including conversations) to the Gestapo. Lastly, if one minor thing goes wrong, the whole car craps out and it takes a computer genius to fix the problem. I can’t think of one good reason to buy this stuff!
Since a car is just a hole in the road you throw money in, we’ve always driven our cars til they died.
And we’ve always chosen good cars to do that.
Cars stopped being fun decades ago.
Something else to thank Deep State for...
“In the 1970s you had to trade your car in after five years because it had stopped running. Cars are much better made today, at least as far as reliability. Some of the engines were bigger back then, and the cars were heavier, but I for one am glad Toyota and Nissan exist”
In the 1970’s up north, you would see the road through the floorboards due to rust long before a car would actually stop running.
Got 250K on my 2012 Camry, had 350K on the one before that. Paid off the 2012 in 2015. Have a 209 Tundra, had to put 5K$ in transmission but then pulling a 3 horse trailer is not really a Tundras forte.
My E-350 has 240,000 and my Chrysler Aspen has 250,000. We will drive them till they can no longer go.
Which will probably be for another couple of years the way they are hanging together.
I had an Acura MDX running fine at 289K When I donated it. If you maintain it with a good team these cars can really last.I bet my VW bug is still going somewhere
My 2007 Honda Odyssey, also known as The Mighty Kong, is on it’s second transmission. I love this mighty beast. I need to get the sliding door mechanisms replaced, and I need to fix an oil leak in the engine — but the Great Ape/Seventh Wonder of the World is paid for, reliable, comfy and has THE BEST sound system in the world (Rivethead that I am, I need to listen to my Germanic/Belgian industiral bands with sonic purity...)
A new transmission is always cheaper than a new car if you think about it. Kong may not be pretty and enviable... but he’s paid for.
2013 Jeep Wrangler 214k miles and lifetime warranty through Chrysler. Oil changes every 5k, Great fun and sound system, I’ll never give it up.
Very, very true, so far as powertrains go. Something as obvious as selecting a better grade of iron for the blocks changed GM's V6s and V8s from 100k mile grenades to 250k mile champions. I was there.
But it's been an investor's shibboleth for generations to invest heavily in auto parts businesses when the economy goes sour.
Big problem today is finding mechanics. Cars have become far more complex than they were in the '70s, but the job doesn't pay a lot more. At 79, I can't do my own work anymore, and getting an appointment with my local independent shop means 2-3 weeks lead time.
You're my hero.
The drive trains were still fine, getting 2 to 4 MPG better than the factory specs.
I used Amsoil 100% synthetic oil, made in the USA in all of them, the engine oil changed at 25,000 mile intervals.
My 2007 Scoobie Legacy GT has about 245k. Had to get the top end rebuilt at 166k. But it’s been a reliable and fun daily driver.
Sure beats paying $60k for a new truck. Ridiculous prices for cars and trucks now.
Remember when we use to read about the Cubans having to drive old, old cars due to the miserable economic conditions brought on by communist tyranny?
It could never happen here, we thought.
That’s why I generally stick to dealers for services. Mechanics there make a mighty fine living, and they never seem short handed.
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