How long do you drive a vehicle, on average, before replacing it?

[christineann]

I drive a 1998 Silverado pickup that has about 210k miles on it. My only major repair was within the last year - a new radiator. It still looks great and runs great. I am sort of looking around for a used vehicle to drive occasionally since I am going to keep my truck.

My daughter drives a 2002 (or 2003?) Trailblazer with over 150k miles on it, and she drove it to from SC to California with no problems in August. That car has never had a major repair either.

 

[mommy2_3]

we replace our car when the one we have gives out. our last one the engine blew. yep. was not worth the $5000 to fix. so we got a new one. well new to me lol! it has alot of miles on it, but i just took it into the shop and my mechanic said its in GREAT shape for the many miles! so happy!! oh and i have a 03 Honda Odyssey with 168,000 miles on it.

 

[dsanner106]

We have a 2008 suburban with 186,00 miles, a 99 expedition with 235,000, a 2005 cadi cts with 178,000. We typically wait til the 200,000 mark and then assess the reliability.

 

[cbg1027]

I'm in the camp of driving something until the car is no longer reliable and/or the repair costs in a year are more than a new car payment and/or the repairs needed are more than the car is worth.

I have a 1993 Volvo 240 with around 235,000 miles on it. I got it in 2000 as a 16 year old, and now I'm 28 and it's the only car I've ever had. My mother purchased the car for me, so I've never had to deal with a car payment and I love that! People always ask me when I will buy something new and I tell them as long as my maintenance costs are cheaper than a new car payment....you won't be seeing me in a shiny new thing anytime soon.

Over the entire life of my ownership, my maintenance costs average only $800 per year.

So....$800 bucks a year and cheap insurance vs. a down payment and upwards of $2500 a year on a new (cheap) car?

I'll stick with my ultra reliable and long lasting Volvo!!!

 

[scrapquitler]

Like others have said, we drive our car until the repairs seek ridiculous compared to the cars value.

Right now I'm driving a 2000 Ford Taurus with 155,000 miles on it. Last year I spent almost $1000 on repairs, which seems like a lot, but that $1000 saved me at least a years worth of (new) car payments. At this point, I know that there is a transmission problem with the car. I am going to "need" a transmission soon, but the cost of the transmission is going to be more than the car is worth: to us, that's going to be the breaking point, so we are starting to shop for a new car to replace it.

DH drives a 2008 Subaru, and that has about 110,000 miles on it. If that car were to need a $3000 repair, and we thought the repair would make the car last until 150,000 miles, we would most likely do It (ESP. Since we refuse to have 2 car payments at once),

Barring a major mechanical problem, I wouldn't get rid of a car until it had at least $125-$150k miles on it. We buy new and drive it as long as it will go reliably.

 

[tvguy]

Like others have said, we drive our car until the repairs seek ridiculous compared to the cars value.

Right now I'm driving a 2000 Ford Taurus with 155,000 miles on it. Last year I spent almost $1000 on repairs, which seems like a lot, but that $1000 saved me at least a years worth of (new) car payments. At this point, I know that there is a transmission problem with the car. I am going to "need" a transmission soon, but the cost of the transmission is going to be more than the car is worth: to us, that's going to be the breaking point, so we are starting to shop for a new car to replace it.

DH drives a 2008 Subaru, and that has about 110,000 miles on it. If that car were to need a $3000 repair, and we thought the repair would make the car last until 150,000 miles, we would most likely do It (ESP. Since we refuse to have 2 car payments at once),

Barring a major mechanical problem, I wouldn't get rid of a car until it had at least $125-$150k miles on it. We buy new and drive it as long as it will go reliably.

I would argue that comparing repair costs to the value of the car really doesn't make much sense if you are looking for transportation at the lowest cost. You shouldn't be looking at repairs as a way to improve resale value, , you should be looking at repairs for the tens of thousands of additional miles they will get you.
I bet the sales tax alone on a new car is more than a new transmission, and the depreciation when you drive a new car off the lot alone certainly is more than that.

 

[angierae]

I bought my '99 Escort new, and drove it for 10 years (almost exactly) and about 120k miles. When it needed more in repairs than a year's worth of payments would cost, I replaced it with a 2008 Cobalt that had about 23k miles on it.

I bought that car four years ago last month and it has about 72k miles on it. The only thing I've had to do in 50k of driving it is put new tires on it last winter and a new serpentine belt, which i replaced before it broke. I intend to keep it until, once again, it needs more in repairs than a year's worth of payments. And then I'll buy another slightly-used car that still has warranty left.

 

[delmar411]

I tend to drive cars until they die. We are driving a dodge caravan that is 16years old and has less miles on it than our '03 town and country. Both are doing fine with around 140-160k miles each. We are starting to think about getting a commuter car for DH and then something small for odd 16th b-day next April.

But if we get the house that we hope to then DH will only have a 10 mile drive every way so the dodge should be fine even though it sucks down gas.

 

[OklahomaTourist]

Just one more voice here....

I tend to drive cars at least ten years and 150K miles. Minimum.

I loathe having a car payment.

I've got a 2004 Buick LeSabre with 104K miles on it, and my wife has a 2008 Sienna with about 66k mi on it, and I'm banking on us being in good vehicle shape for a few more years minimum. Obviously, neither the LeSabre or the minivan are considered "sexy" vehicles by any means, but they're paid for, and I can do at least minor tinkering on them if the need arises.

My Buick used to be the family car, but that title has migrated to the Sienna, and with the kids getting older. That reduces my Buick to commuter car, so whenever the time comes the replacement will likely be a small used truck like a Ranger. But not for a good while...

I drove my first Buick to about 100K, the second one was totalled after six months, and its replacement was sold at about 160K mi, which brings me to my current one. We drove a used Mercury Villager for several years until it (literally) burned up just before I tried to sell it.

 

[DisneyMomma81]

My 97 Altima has 192K miles ~ I haven't had a car payment for years.

 

[ilovemk76]

Just out of curiosity? Both of our vehicles are paid off and have been since 12/11. They are both 2007 Hondas. Both purchased used. My odyssey has 110,000 miles. Got it in Jan 2010. DHs accord we got in march 2011 i think. it has over 160000. He travels for work so we wouldn't want to ever get him a NEW car I don't imagine. Currently he gets reimbursed 50cents or whatever the going IRS rate is for mileage from his company. They offered to give him a $500 stipend and pay his gas instead. Seems like a better deal. Thinking of using that $500 towards a new car for me and they will still pay his gas for work related travel. He will drive his accord quite awhile longer since any car he gets he runs the miles up so quick. Sold his last car, a civic, with over 250k miles and it was running great. Only sold because our friend was selling this accord and we got a good price.
I'm just getting the new car itch and wondered how long most folks drive a car. Mine is going on 7 yrs old.

Your car is only 3.5 (really less) years old WRT your ownership. 110,000 is not high mileage.

My car is currently over 10 years old. It has more mileage than your and runs fine. I will not be replacing it for a few more years.

 

[Disneefun]

This is funny to me that someone would consider a car old at 3 or 4 years old. My car turns 20 this month. Has 140k on it and still runs and looks great. I have no intention of replacing it any time soon. The amount I pay in property tax is so low, I don't know why they even send me a bill! Costs the county more to process the paper than they get out of it.

At the present rate, I might only have 3 cars in my entire lifetime. Many people I know have that many in a ten year time frame.

So, I keep cars until they drop dead. My parents did that, so that's just how I roll, I guess. No new car smell is worth the extra in insurance and property tax to me. Until I have no other choice.

 

[JackTraveler]

I drive a '92 Ford Ranger that my grandfather gave me when I was 16. It only has 135k miles on it, so I think it's funny that you think 110k is much. I'm getting a new (used) car this month, because I'm moving to Florida where gas is high and I don't have AC. I'm a big believer in no car payments so I'll be buying a mid-2000s car with about 100k miles on it. I figure that will last me another 10 years!

 

[thebeesknees]

We just replaced our 1999 Camry last week at the 160K mile mark. We'd dumped several hundred dollars per month in repairs into it for the past several months and knew it was going to need new shocks, struts, brakes, timing belt and bushings in the next couple of months, as well as having a significant mystery oil leak, so we traded it in on a new Sienna. My DH will only buy new because he doesn't want to inherit someone else's maintenance history, but considering that the first car made it 14 years and this new one is our only vehicle which we expect to last at least as long, I don't think we are being careless with our money. It is our only vehicle and we wanted something reliable and comfortable.

 

[vaDisneyGuy]

We keep our cars at least 10 years, My last car was a Saturn that was 12 years old and had 189,000 miles still ran great I only got a new car be cause a tree fell on the Saturn. Even with the high miles a still drove it from VA to WDW at least twice a year.

 

[bookgirl]

I drive my cars until the repair costs are high.

Like everytime something breaks down it's $700+. I've driven all my cars until they were 10+ years old. (I got some of them when they were really old but my last two or three I got either new or with under 10,000 miles and then drove them until they were falling apart).

I love having no car payment so once I get one paid off I try not to get another car until I have to, but once you get a couple of big repairs then I don't feel comfortable having to do long car trips and having to come up with big amounts on short notice or taking out of savings, so at that point I just start looking for a new or new to me car.

I am NOT the norm for my family, including the various inlaws. My dad is like me in that he drives cars for a long time, but my mom and brother usually get a new car every 3-5 years.

 

[flowerboy]

My dad showed me a great lesson waaaay back when I 1st got my driver's license.

Let's say cousins, Bob & Joe, both get new cars at age 20 & both quit driving at age 80. Bob buys a car every 10 years. Over a lifetime he buys 6 cars.

Joe gets a new car as soon as his previous one is paid off, every 4 years. (This was back in the day when a typical car payment was 4 yrs.)
Over a lifetime, this results in 14 cars bought.

Also let's just say each new car always costs 25,000 (which we know due to inflation is not true but just to keep it simple.)

Bob's 6 cars will cost him $150,000.
Joe's 14 cars will cost $350,000.


I can think of a LOT of better things to do with $200,000+.

Not sure this is completely true the 4 year car would have some residual value. IE you would get some money back? I think there is a sweet spot for selling and buying another. I either keep for at least 10 years or sell at 5 years. less than 5 years hard to sell at good profit more than 10 years hard to sell at good profit. 50000 miles easier to get good money 100000 a little harder to get more money. Also if lifestyle changes gas and maintenance play a big role?

 

[2disneyboys]

As I told my DH, I love not having "car" payments. Its been over 7+ years since we had a car payment to a dealer or bank. We do "pay ourselves" $350 a month into a seperate account that we use for any car repairs, maintenance and eventually to replace a vehicle when the time arrives. We currently drive a 2000 Nissan Altima (approx 145,000 miles) and a 2002 Kia Sedona (approx 130,000 miles) Both are a bit rough on the edges, however are very reliable and get us where we need to go. Every 12-24 months we have something that needs specific work (other than tires, oil changes etc) around $1000 but the way we look at it, $1000 every year or so is still ALOT cheaper then a car payment.

one thing we Do do, is once our cars hit about 100,000 miles or so, if we are driving long distance, we usually rent a car. With our USAA discount, we can usually get a two week rental of a mid to large size sedan for less than $300 so we'll use a rental car to avoid the extra wear/tear on our car. But that happens about once a year or two so its not an ongoing expense. We just build this into to our vacation budget.. we are either buying plane tickets at $xyz or renting a car at $xyz.

LOL, I want to drive my cars until JUST BEFORE they breakdown. I don't want to be stranded anywhere

 

[LJSquishy]

We love not having car payments. We will probably need to finance a new/newer used car in about 3 years.

I drive a 2000 Nissan Sentra with 157k miles on it. It's had numerous problems where each repair ranges from $300 - $800 but no repairs in the thousands (for a single repair). It's getting old and within a few years some major things would need to be replaced and it will be time to let go of it. It's not worth hardly anything if we were to try and sell it.

My husband drives a 2005 Subaru Legacy. We bought it brand new and it's been an awesome car. It has maybe 60k miles on it. No major repairs, just an o2 sensor or something once. We do keep up on routine maintenance. I don't like driving it (I can't see over the headrests) but my husband loves it. We'll keep that car as long as possible.

I would love to get a brand new car someday for myself to drive. I've never driven a new car. They've always been "well-loved" cars and they've never felt like "mine". My Nissan belonged to my Dad (brand new) and he sold it to us at a reduced cost when he wanted a new car. And, our "new" car is my husband's. So I really want a brand new car next time around, but it likely won't happen. I will probably have to get a 3yr old car or so but that would still be way newer than any I've ever driven.

 

[pocomom]

Wow. I guess my dh and I drive a lot- he did have a huge commute, and we travel mainly by (my) car pretty frequently. My minivan is not quite 2 years old and has 50K on it, his car is three years old and already has over 150K. I can't see us keeping a car 10 years, but I would if we drove as little as you all do
And although it just may get me kicked off this board , I have to admit we normally buy new cars. I wouldn't mind a low mileage used car, but DH really enjoys a new car. I'm fully aware of what a bad decision it is from an economic standpoint, but he works hard, drives alot and I want a car that makes him happy while he is driving it! All about balancing our priorities. I know, he would rather spend more on a car than vacations (crazy, right? ) so we compromise, he gets most of what he wants in a car and I get most of the vacations I would want.