How long do you plan to keep your car?

[bloom2708]

I keep a car until "something changes" that points me to a different car.

That is kind of generic, but setting a 10 year or mileage limit never worked.

Something changes. I look at the information and my car and if the need changes, I change cars. Used usually.

I went from single to married. Had 1, then 2, then 3 kids. Had a mini-van that was a lemon, bought a camper, kids got bigger.

I see no reason to sell my 3 row 2013 Ford Flex. However, when the 3rd kid is driving in a few years, I may not need such a big vehicle.

My best laid plans change. Course correct on the way.

 

[FANOFJESUS]

I've bought a new car every year now for at least the last 10 years. Usually I have two or three daily drivers in the garage so it rare for me to have a daily driver that's more than ~3 years old. I like the latest and greatest "stuff" and performance improvements. However, I may not buy another new car in 2019 (maybe) since the new years models, that are of interest to me, are the same as the 2018 models.


Last car (well Jeep) that I bought was ~100k so I'm trying my best to "blow that dough".

I would love to buy your used cars but something tells me you don't buy base model Camry's

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

I have mixed feelings about two kids and minivans. On one hand, everyone - literally everyone, men, women, etc. - I know with two kids who has one swears it's the greatest thing ever. But it's still a minivan...

Reminds me of the wife of a fella I used to w*rk with. They were expecting their 4th child and bought a new Chrysler Pacifica, which is now a mini-van. Well, some folks made a couple comments about it on her Facebook page, and she went on a tirade about how "IT IS NOT A MINI VAN!!! DO NOT CALL IT THAT!!!" and continued to list all the reasons why it *wasn't* a mini-van. Now, whenever the DW and I are cruising around and we see a Pacifica, it's a race to see who can yell, "IT'S NOT A MINI-VAN!!!" the fastest.

We are [-]childless[/-] childfree so have no reason to have a mini-van but I can certainly see the advantages if you had to tote around some kiddos.

 

[Bamaman]

My average is about 8 years. I buy new with cash. I really enjoy the safety features and the AWD on my current 2015 Lexus IS 250. We made one mistake with it, the seats get harder and harder to get in and out of. Will watch that the next time.

I too have an IS250 that I'm getting ready to sell. We haven't even used it the last year after getting the 2018 Camry Hybrid.

I too have troubles getting out of these low slung cars without looping my upper left arm around the door pillar and pushing myself to my feet. I don't have that problem with my F250 with running boards, as I just fall out of it.

Reading yesterday online was about the new RX350 Lexus upholstery. The guy had driven every fine production car in the world including Maybach, big Mercedes, etc. He claimed the RX front seats are the most comfortable seating he's ever seen.

 

[JoeWras]

Reading yesterday online was about the new RX350 Lexus upholstery. The guy had driven every fine production car in the world including Maybach, big Mercedes, etc. He claimed the RX front seats are the most comfortable seating he's ever seen.

Stop talking dirty like that! You are making me think about changing my plan. I'm about ready to go out looking at Lexuses right now.

No Joe, stay the plan. LBYM.

 

[panhead]

For those of you getting the most out of every dollar, when do you plan to upgrade? Is it when you reach a certain amount of miles, age or when it becomes too cost prohibitive to keep repairing?

I have a 13 year old Dodge Ram 4x4 that has 140k on it. I've had it since it had 7k on it. I'll keep it until the New England salted winter roads finally dissolve it to the point of no longer being safe. I oil undercoat it every year, but that only delays the inevitable. Around here, for me, it's the rust that decides on how long I keep a car, not years or mileage. I imagine if I lived in California I'd keep my cars indefinitely. I do all mechanical repairs myself, so maintenance isn't usually expensive, just time consuming. That is until I need to replace the transmission!

Anyway, I hope I can get around 200k+ miles out of it. Trucks are crazy expensive right now and I don't look forward to having to replace it.

 

[SmallCityDave]

I have a 13 year old Dodge Ram 4x4 that has 140k on it. I've had it since it had 7k on it. I'll keep it until the New England salted winter roads finally dissolve it to the point of no longer being safe. I oil undercoat it every year, but that only delays the inevitable. Around here, for me, it's the rust that decides on how long I keep a car, not years or mileage. I imagine if I lived in California I'd keep my cars indefinitely. I do all mechanical repairs myself, so maintenance isn't usually expensive, just time consuming. That is until I need to replace the transmission!

Anyway, I hope I can get around 200k+ miles out of it. Trucks are crazy expensive right now and I don't look forward to having to replace it.

I live in one of those dry climates and rust is the last thing we worry about.


Yesterday I sold my 20 year old truck that had almost 200k miles on it, I sold it for almost 20% more than we bought it for 5 years ago and we didn't do any upgrades.



The bad part is that 20% more than very little is still very little

 

[Lawrencewendall]

Pulled the trigger and bought a 2014 KIA Sorento yesterday. Could be the last car I buy. My 2004 Cavalier is still running for now. My 2000 Durango died earlier this year and DW has been using Lyft to get to her Dr's appointments. Now she has mobility back and I have a backup when the Cavalier dies.

 

[ERD50]

Has anyone found a stat for the median (not average) age of cars when they are taken off the road due to age (not accident)?

I find things like the average age of cars on the road, and I assume that is just the average of all car registrations by age. But that would be skewed by cars that were in accidents, and includes cars that are just one year old, but will probably last 12 years. And antiques (small % I would think). It just doesn't seem like those averages tell us how long cars are lasting.

-ERD50

 

[gamboolman]

2006 Honda Accord with ~150K some odd miles.

Our son who lives in our house in Spring, Texas while we are living oversea's working the oil patch has kept up with factory recalls / replacements and the car is in excellent shape and we like it.

When we retire we'll likely give it to him as Ms. gamboolgal has her sights sat on a fancier Crossover type thang.....

Life's a Dance, And You Learn As You Go....

 

[Independent]

Years owned - Model

14 - 1970 Ford Maverick
11 - 1978 Chevy Malibu
17 - 1984 Dodge Colt Vista wagon
_9 - 1989 Nissan Maxima
_7 - 1998 Nissan Maxima
17+ - 2001 Toyota Echo
13+ - 2005 Nissan Murano

Looks like we average 12 years plus.

My wife won't sell the Echo until it rusts away.
I'll keep the Murano until I find something I like better.

 

[cj1717]

What happened?
Miata vs a Vette?

I've had several Miatas and several Vettes.

Miata for me!

 

[misty57]

DH drives a 2018 Toyota Tundra 4x4 TRD. It replaced a 2003 Toyota Tundra two wheel drive two winters after we moved to snow country. I drive a 2015 Lincoln MKC which replaced a 2001 Lexus RX300. We tend to keep our cars for about 13+ years.


I didn't really "need" a new car to replace the Lexus, but I wanted one. I started looking in 2013, and it took me two years of looking and test driving off and on to find what I wanted.

 

[sheehs1]

I just traded my 9 year old Volkswagen Touareg (125,000 miles) and bought (cash) a new BMWX5 this past October. I got a fairly good deal since they were trying to get rid of the 2018's for the new 2019 model and had a couple of dealerships bidding against one another.

I know it is smarter to buy a used car but have never been able to get comfortable with that. I tried even with this purchase. Maybe if I bought them more frequently, I would.

I really loved my Touareg and was disappointed VW was not making them for distribution in the U.S. market any longer. It was my second. Perfect size for me and the things I do with a vehicle.
The search for a new manufacturer and finding one I loved and "felt right" enough to spend the money on was exhausting. I prefer the German engineering, drive and ride. That said, I do not like buying cars or the process! I was definitely surprised at car prices after 9 years. All the safety features and new technology sure is different and better from my old Touareg.

 

[anethum]

My walkscore is 95. I do most of my shopping on foot or by bike (or online). I hate urban and suburban driving. My 7 year old car has 18,700 miles. I've bicycled more than that in the past 7 years. My current car replaced a 17 year old car with about 60,000 miles. It had higher annual mileage because it occasionally was used for commuting before I FIREd. But even then, my commutes were mostly on foot, by bike, or on public transportation.



I was in the southwestern USA in October and I drove over 2,000 miles in the rental in only 10 days. That's about what I average over 9 months while at home.

 

[CoolRich59]

Hard to say. As soon as I could afford it, I started getting a "new" car every couple of years. It seems I had the car for a year, then spent the next year doing research, taking test drives, etc. and then making the switch.

I "downsized" to a Honda Accord in 2016, and then in 2017 we got the FIRE bug. So, the plan is to hang on hang on to the Accord for 10 years. I have never had a car for that long, but I have been very satisfied with this vehicle.

 

[joeea]

For those of you getting the most out of every dollar, when do you plan to upgrade? Is it when you reach a certain amount of miles, age or when it becomes too cost prohibitive to keep repairing?

My car is 7 years old and just turned over 100k miles. I'll keep it until it become too unreliable.

My wife's car is 11 years old with 55k miles. She'll keep it until she decides she wants a new car. I honestly have no idea how she decides these things - she always seems to surprise me.

We tend to purchase new cars and drive them until they can't drive any longer. Now in retirement we may or may not decide to buy used. We'll check the used-car market once the time comes. With the types of cars we purchase, low-mileage used cars tend to be fairly expensive compared to new. Not much of a discount.

 

[old woman]

My car is a 2007 with 64K miles, I now drive about 300 miles a month. I am 70 so considering just making this my last car. If it starts breaking down I will replace it. If I hate it for any reason I will replace it. If I have failing health I will get my nephew to drive me places, he lives less than a mile away, or I could take Uber.

 

[MI-Roger]

High mileage drivers

We have three cars:

• My summer fun car 2000 convertible with ~77K miles
• Wife's 2006 daily driver with ~100K miles
• My 2008 daily driver with ~187K miles

I bought the 2008 because my previous daily driver was a 2000 with ~318K miles.

All of the above four cars are/were SAABs. I am not sure what to buy next as I enjoy doing my own service and I do not want to drive a computer. In fact, I still use the radio and CD players in all cars. Current cars are already devoid of CD players, and I fear future cars will lose the radio as well.

 

[pb4uski]

I have mixed feelings about two kids and minivans. On one hand, everyone - literally everyone, men, women, etc. - I know with two kids who has one swears it's the greatest thing ever. But it's still a minivan...

I really enjoyed the versatility of our minivan.... we may well get another one.

 

[Jerry1]

I really enjoyed the versatility of our minivan.... we may well get another one.

Minivans have been mentioned a few times in this thread. I’m not sure about the new Pacifica but my DD has a Chrysler minivan and come to find out that, with the seats stowed, you can put a sheet of plywood in there and shut the hatch. It lays flat on the floor. It tucks a bit under the front seats so you could only fit a few sheets, depending on thickness, but full sheets do fit. They are indeed versatile.

 

[steelyman]

My SUV is in the 70K range (mileage) and still runs like a champ. It’s of an age that predates Bluetooth and rear cameras. I was able to address the first by finding a dongle that plugs into the 12V outlet and transmits a connected BT device to an FM frequency. No rear camera though.

Re: minivans: there was a piece in the NYT about them earlier this year that I’ll be keeping in mind when I next go shopping:

https://nyti.ms/2MBIRxI

 

[fasteddie911]

I like to think I'd keep my cars until it dies but I'm starting to think this is more fantasy than reality. I haven't owned many cars yet and only recently bought my first new car. I think about cars 10+yrs old and they seem pretty outdated (style, technology, performance, etc.), worn, etc. I don't drive much so mileage and related wear isn't a concern. I'm not sure how likely I'd keep my car past 10yrs in reality. I think only a handful of cars work well for 10+yrs, imo. Something like pickup trucks, certain suvs and cars (usually sports cars). Their styles don't age as quickly. I'm in the market for a car now and will plan to keep in 10yrs, any more than that will be gravy.

 

[ncbill]

My SUV is in the 70K range (mileage) and still runs like a champ. It’s of an age that predates Bluetooth and rear cameras. I was able to address the first by finding a dongle that plugs into the 12V outlet and transmits a connected BT device to an FM frequency. No rear camera though.

Re: minivans: there was a piece in the NYT about them earlier this year that I’ll be keeping in mind when I next go shopping:

https://nyti.ms/2MBIRxI

Shhh...don't tell anyone...keep minivans cheap!

I have had far fewer problems with our 15-year-old Dodge Grand Caravan vs our 10-year-old Chevy Suburban.

 

[Spanky]

My car is 20 years old - 1998 Camry. The plan to drive it until it dies.