A Car’s Lifespan

No matter the make or model, every car has a lifespan. Your car’s lifespan may be longer or shorter depending on many factors, like how much you drive your car, how much care you put into maintenance and what kind of environment you drive it in. Even in the best conditions and with the best regular auto care, there’s a good chance you will part with your vehicle someday. This is because cars are made to be replaced. It ends up being a lot cheaper for consumers to recycle their car every five or ten years than to buy and maintain a vehicle that will still be running smoothly after a decade. So how do you get the most out of your car’s lifespan? Below are some numbers that can help you figure out how long your ride will last.

Average Car Lifespan: 11.4 Years

The average age of cars on the road today is 11.4 years. This means that a little over 11 years is about how long you can expect a new vehicle’s lifespan to be. Maintaining your car and keeping it out of extreme or hazardous driving conditions is the best way to stretch this number. In fact, with today’s vehicles, it’s not unrealistic to expect to be driving your car well beyond 10 years or 100,000 miles. This might not matter though, because chances are you won’t even own a new vehicle this long.

Average Time of Ownership for a New Vehicle: 6 Years

When people buy a new car, they typically own it for about 6 years. This number is significantly lower than the average lifespan—which means people buying new cars usually don’t own them throughout the cars’ lifespans. There are many reasons why this is the case. Unpredictable factors like natural disasters, accidents and theft can cut your time of ownership of a vehicle before your car lives out its full life. More often, though, many people are probably about ready to upgrade their car after about six years, and this is when the car enters the next phase of its life.

Average Time of Ownership for a Used Vehicle: 4 Years

Once a car’s original owner has decided to trade their vehicle in for a new one—potentially several years before it begins to show signs of breaking down—the car moves into the pre-owned market, where it will live out the rest of its life. The amount of time most people will own a used car is a little over 4 years, which, when added to the ownership time of new vehicles, just about accounts for the average car’s lifespan. Many people who buy pre-owned autos can expect to drive the car until repairs and maintenance become too costly or inconvenient to keep up. At this point, the car begins to enter the end of its lifespan. But there are ways to keep your car going well beyond a decade.

Miles Your Car Could Go with Proper Care: 200,000+

As long as you’re willing to put in the extra care and attention, it’s more than possible to get 200,000 miles or more out of your car. If you’re an average driver, that means your vehicle could last 15 years! Since cars are so expensive, only needing to buy one every 15 years can be a huge help to your bank account. How do you do this, though? Mostly by setting a good maintenance schedule and keeping to it. Rather than sticking to the standard service and maintenance schedule from your local dealership or auto shop recommend, use a more rigorous schedule that is usually meant for cars in high-stress conditions or environments. This will mean bringing your car in more often and paying for more replacements and services, but it’s the one sure way to keep your car going for as long as possible. No matter how careful you are, though, the end of the road has to come eventually.

Average Number of Cars You Will Own in Your Lifetime: 10

Right now, people on average own about 10 cars in their lifetime. No matter what you do to keep your car going, one day its lifespan will come to an end and you will move on to your next vehicle. If you have taken measures to keep your car going for as long as possible (or if other factors cut its life short), then it probably won’t have much resale or trade-in value. If that’s the case, you can visit 1800CashforJunkCars.com and get an offer on your junk car. We can help make sure you get the most you can when your car’s lifespan has ended!