This used to be a fairly common rule regarding car ownership:
Get rid of it before it hits 100,000 miles.
In fact, I once knew people who firmly believed in trading in their cars before the 60,000-mile mark. They were a strict Chevy family, and experience told them that anything over 60K meant trouble.
Of course, that’s just silly today. Cars at 60,000 miles, regardless of the make, are barely broken in and can easily pass 100,000 miles and even hit 200,000 or more.
A recent list from Consumer Reports rubbed me wrong, because it announced the 10 cars most likely to make it to 200,000 miles. They all had one disturbing thing in common:
Every car on the list was a Honda or a Toyota. All of them. Ten for ten. Not only that, but there were 5 Toyotas and 5 Hondas on the list. Anyone else smell something fishy?
I’m the first to admit that I’m a fan of foreign cars, and it’s a fact that Toyota and Honda make some of the best vehicles in the world. It’s true; they are very likely to surpass 200,000 miles when properly maintained.
But so is a Kia. And a Ford. And a Ram. And a Nissan.
Cars like the Corolla, Camry, Accord, and Civic are the easy choices for going 200,000 miles, but I know for a fact that plenty of other makes and models have not only reached 200,000, but passed it on the way to a half-million.
I think hitting 200,000 miles or more in your car says more about the owner than it does the car itself. Toyota and Honda owners tend to be more practical folks who might be more likely to drive responsibly and strictly follow maintenance schedules and procedures. Put those drivers behind the wheel of any car and it’ll last equally as long.
I don’t think that was true even 10 years ago, but cars today will last a long time when proper care is taken.
Who has a car or truck with more than 200,000 miles that isn’t a Honda or Toyota?
-tgriffith
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My 2001 Infiniti G20 just hit 400K miles! Changed the oil every 3500 miles and performed regular maintenance. Perhaps a bit of luck and being anal about other people driving my car might have helped, too.
My 2000 Subaru Forrester has 208,000 miles and still going strong, with the AWD it’s my “rally wagon”!
My 1999 Mazda Protégé lasted for 230,000 miles. I’m sorry to see it go.
My second car was a 1993 Mazda Protégé LX. It didn’t give out until around 340,000 miles. I live in South Carolina. That car took me everywhere. To Charelston, SC a few Times. The North Carolina mountains a time or tqo. But by far, it’s biggest achievement with it having well over 300,000 miles was a trip to California. Sacramento to be exact. I stayed there for 3 months and took Numerous trips to the Donner Lake area. After being in Cali, I drove BACK to Columbia with no issues out of the car. I’ll have another one day. My curren Car is a 2004 Mazda 6 which is just a few thousand miles away from the 200,000 mile mark!
I just sold 2004 Yukon Xl, 278,847 miles… Still rolled strong!
Just traded in my 2004 Mercury Mountaineer with 209,889 miles on it. No real issues other then changing the wheel bearings on the front two wheels round 150,000 miles. I just kept up with the oil changes.
I just sold a 1999 Suburban with 202,000 miles and going strong. Also had a 1984 S-10 Blazer with 275,000 when I sold it. The majority of cars, if well maintained, should easily approach 200K…