re: How many people have gotten 15 years out of a car/truck?

Bought a new Tahoe in 1996. Sold it in 2017. Had 594K miles on it when I sold it. Never did anything major to it - did change power steering pump and steering gear box once and of course maintenance but outside of that nada. The last 7-8 years I owned it it was my fishing and hunting car....best one I ever owned. Barndoors are fantastic. It was also one of the best offroad vehicles I ever owned. It was bullet proof. Looked like hell when I sold it...I would still be driving it but my wife and daughter were embarrassed for it to be in the driveway LOL.

Bought a 1988 K5 Blazer. Still have it but I hardly ever drive it any more....its in BAD shape. It has about 300K on it but the odometer hasn't worked in years. It was a piece of shite from day one....drivetrain was reliable as are all short block GMs and Turbo Transmissions but everything else about the damned thing has broken numerous times. The back window almost never worked meaning the tailgate nevet worked, the brakes failed on it 4 times (master cylinder and booster just up and self destructed). Tilt wheel literally fell apart while driving down the road at 45 MP leaving the steering wheel detached from the steering column....twice! Even the paint was bad from day one. By far the "prettiest" truck I ever owned and it was as loaded as loaded gets and was the first new vehicle I ever owned...so I still have it....I have said for years I was going to do a frame off restoration but if I ever undertake something like again its going to be a 1972 Chevy Cheyenne or CST 10. I suspect the blazer will be behind the barn at my Dad's place when I reach room temperature.

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I see 15+ year old cars on the road all the time. Cars are more reliable than ever these days.

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They are and it ain't even close. 100K miles used to be getting up there. Most cars used some oil at about 25K. Most people today do not even know how to check the oil in a car. They are FAR better today than even 30 years ago and they were that much more better 30 years ago than they were 60 years.

I have a sedan made by Toyota that is over 17 years and over 200k miles.

Frankly, there are lemon Toyotas (and I would include Lexus) and exceptional examples from other makers (notably, my daughter had an old Honda Accord with over 1/3 of a million miles on it and it was well over 15 years old), but I would suspect that Toyota/Lexus more consistently than other brands getting daily drivers to 15 years, 250k to 300k miles, just from my humble, subjective experience.

So 15 years ago would have been 2009. There are SOOOOOOOOO many GM SUVS still on the road from that era + 10 years more it is almost uncanny....I bet GM hates those damn Tahoes and Suburbans LOL.


There are 6000+ Tahoes alone from 1999 to 2009 for sell nationwide on national websites. That aint counting the ones on Market Place and for sell on the side of the road and not for sell at all.....they are still heaps of them running around.

2009 Mitsubishi Lancer bought new as daily driver. Just regular maintenance and a radiator. 170k miles.

Car made in Japan

Had a Tacoma that I bought new in 2004, decided it was time for a new one in 2022 and just over 250,000 miles.

I forgot about this one...I have my Dad's last vehicle, 1990 S10, at my Uncle's place....he uses it daily. Iron Horse Marine 4 Cylinder and 5 speed tranny....it has over 500K on it but the transmission has been changed, at about 400k. Motor is still going. No power NOTHING. As far as I know nothing has ever been done to it to amount to much. Had to cut an access plate in the bed to replace the fuel pump once but other than that it has been general maintenance and replacing belts and things as needed....I wouldn't be afraid to drive it from Key West to Anchorage. Damn thing still has a R12 AC system in it that will run you out its so cold. My uncle has LOADS of R12 refrigerant still....he had a sizeable HVAC business for years.

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I just bought my dad's old 2007 Avalanche for a truck to haul a trailer with. So just shy of 15 years but I've been driving it every day for the past couple weeks and love that thing.

Yeah, it sucks not having some of the tech in it, but that thing feels like it's bulletproof. Other than having to keep an eye on how much oil it's going through, it runs like a top. I didn't think I would like it as much as I do, but I have a feeling ill end up driving it way more than I thought I would.

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Keep oil in it and it will run forever. That model GM truck/SUV with the small block is notorious for burning a little oil. If it was going to fail most of them did it before they hit 100K. The vast majority of them used a quart of oil between fill ups from day one and are still doing it 250 and 350K miles later. They have a lot of people who hate on them but if it made it past about 80K or so as long as you change the oil when needed or check it if not it will run forever.

I was gifted a vehicle in high school by parents and drove it until I was 32.

Bought my first vehicle at 32 and plan to keep until I am 50ish. Then hopefully my 2nd purchase will get me to 70ish and then my 3rd purchase will be my last. Ideally that’s how it will play out.

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Wife drives a 1996 Z71 pick up to work (40 miles round trip). Truck looks new and is very reliable. It has over 420k miles, though the motor was replaced with a nicer motor out of a Suburban.

I drive 15 year old vehicle all the time as a "drive to work" vehicle.

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Its a wonder GM survived the mid 90s....those damn trucks and SUVs are STILL everywhere and running like a top. I sold a '96 Tahoe in 2017 with just under 600K on it and never did anything to it. It was hard used the last 7 years or so....just kept on ticking. GM also sold the Lumina Sedan in that era which is supposed to be the most reliable automobile ever produced in the United States. Ugly one but apparently lasted forever.....