how many years do you keep a car?

i average 10 years for my daily drivers. I have over 20 however that are over 50 plus years old...



Recently bought Momma a new Tahoe, and since I gave my son my truck I will buy a new one at the end of this year.
 
My biggest thing, besides that I like new technology/gadgets (and new cars seem to have them!) is that I feel that as a car ages, it isn't as safe as it was new. Not that a car I could've bought when I first started driving would be less safer over the last 8 years, but with rust, continuous use of seat belts and all that crap, sometimes I think there should be a shelf or usable life to vehicles on the roads. But this could all be solved by simple inspections (just like how some states require emission testing) to see if the car is indeed safe (or not) to be on the roads. I say this only because I'm tired of seeing idiots with completely rusted out POS's on the road (who coincidentally seem not to have insurance!), having stuff fall off their cars, and also thinking about them in a crash...they'll need a tetnis shot before a paramedic would save them :lol



I guess if everyone cared for cars like we do here, there wouldn't be a problem, but in the mean time....
 
All my cars are pleasure cars since I drive a company vehicle to work.

I still have my 1990 Honda CRX-Si along with my 05 Mustang GT which will remain with me for a long time.
 
As far as an old vehichle not being safe-not true. Maintenance, maintenance, maintenance. That's the key! There are airplanes that are over 30 years old that are still flying.:wow:
 
jetset4me said:
As far as an old vehichle not being safe-not true. Maintenance, maintenance, maintenance. That's the key! There are airplanes that are over 30 years old that are still flying.:wow:
OH yeah, I know...it's the retards on the roads that don't take care of their stuff like we do that cause the un-safe cars! Living up north with the salt doesn't help much either, no matter how much you wash the car.
 
Accumulator said:
Ooh...I wish I'd kept mine! Those are great little cars :xyxthumbs

98877L.JPG
 
thump_rrr- Thanks for the pic. My last CRX (an Si) was the pre-facelift model (an '86 IIRC) with a kinda funny black metallic, it had gold flakes for the metallic element.



Yours looks a bit bigger than the earlier model, but I can't tell if it's *really* longer or just looks that way with the different rear hatch and qtr glass :think:



And to think I hauled big dogs around in one of those!
 
My Jeep is a 2002 and is also my first vehicle. it just broke 100K miles and is aging extremely well. Although with gas prices, I am driving less, I expect to keep it for quite some time.
 
I keep cars literally until the wheels fall off:



1st Car - 1987 Nissan Sentra Coupe (November 8, 1994):



I bought it in 1994 used from my aunt for $2000, as it only had 16,000 miles on it (city slicker). I drove it until it was totaled in 1999, 86,000 miles later. Damn I loved that car. Single stage red paint, 68hp, but I was rolling...enough said.



2nd car - 1997 Honda Passport (May 4, 1997)



My dad bought this SUV for me as a freshman year dean's list present in college on May 4, 1997. Almost 200,000 miles later, I'm still rolling in it! Matter of fact, I drove it to work today! Although I've spent some money on it (new transmission, alternator, idle control sensors, etc.), I will always love this automobile, as it was my first new car.



3rd car - 2002 Honda Accord (December 4, 2001)



When the transmission blew in my truck, I did not have the cash to spend $3400 for the dealer-installed repair. However, there was a San Merino Red V6 coupe on the lot that was just delivered off the truck. After skillfully negotiating, I got the sale price down to $23,000 and went on to buy my first new car with no money down on December 7, 2001. Nevertheless, Honda's quality has gone WAY DOWN as of late, as my transmission failed last Wednesday. After 130,000 miles, I don't know whether to fix it, or buy a brand new car.



Therefore, I keep my cars, sans accident, for an average of 8.5 years. The Passport will turn 11 this year, while the Accord turned 6 last DecemberI will turn 30 later this year.



I make about 4 times as much as I did back in 2001, so I think I can now buy a toy car (Mustang Shelby GT, Infiniti G37), trade the Accord, and drive the Passport in inclement weather. However, if I go the Dave Ramsey way, I'll just fix the transmission in the Accord, and keep it moving from there.



Decisions, decisions.
 
aabablusaan said:
I...Nevertheless, Honda's quality has gone WAY DOWN as of late, as my transmission failed last Wednesday...
I've heard this as well, but my 08 Civic (with 16k in 2 months) and the wifes CR-V (new, 1k) and my parents 05 Accord (45k) are still running fine...I guess more time will tell, but I thought the Passprot was labeled a big POS over anything else it ever produced?
 
mhadden said:
I've heard this as well, but my 08 Civic (with 16k in 2 months) and the wifes CR-V (new, 1k) and my parents 05 Accord (45k) are still running fine...I guess more time will tell, but I thought the Passprot was labeled a big POS over anything else it ever produced?





The Passport DID receive a bad rep, but as an owner, it wasn't as bad as the reviews have indicated. I'm at the 200,000 mile mark now, and I may have spent a total of $4k in repairs over 11 years, including a used transmission ($800), oil, idle control valve, major 105K mile service, tires, etc. I don't think that $4K is bad over that time period! However, since the truck was assembled by Isuzu with GM parts and a Honda badge, it got a bad, yet unfair rep. I admittedly may be biased by emotion, but honestly, it's been a good truck overall.



My Accord has been a different story. The dealer-installed fog lights broke every 20K miles due to thin plastic; my leather seats, which were cleaned and conditioned with Lexol religiously, still cracked and split on the side bolster after 50,000 miles; the motor mounts wore at 80,000; and the sunroof began a rattle at 50,000 miles. However, the transmission and the general runaround that I've received from the dealer has me pissed at Honda. Honda KNEW there was a transmission problem with the 1998-2002 automatic Accords, and did nothing but extend the warranty to 105,000 after being threatened with a class-action lawsuit. Since mine failed at 130,000, I'm both ineligible for the warranty, AND ineligible for the 50-50 split on the price of a new transmission. You can do a Google search on Honda's automatic transmissions to read these nightmares.



My girlfriend's 2006 Acura TL A-Spec's transmission died after 38,000 miles, and it's an '06! She drives like an old lady, doesn't use the manu-matic mode at all, services the car regularly, and it still failed. Honda used to be synonymous with quality, but these days, they are synonymous with transmission failures and unscrupulous dealers.



I bought my Accord primarily due to my father's experience. He purchased a brand new 1985 Accord that finally died after 242,000 miles. He also bought a 1992 Accord for my mother that he now drives to work that has an amazing 385,000 miles on the same engine and transmission. I was expecting to drive the Accord for the next 5 years at least without major repair, and on a car currently worth around $6000, I'm not spending over $3000 just to get it back on the road.



I'm not too familiar with the Civic platform, so your mileage may vary, as both your Civic and your wife's CR-V share the same platform. But hopefully, you will be able to have a better time at it than I have!!! Meanwhile, I contemplate the purchase of a new G37 coupe, or a Ford Mustang Shelby GT...
 
lots of problems with the 6 speed transmissions from honda, my 07 Si is started to act up and its very common, everyone on the honda forum i go to has the same issue and they all have been getting the run around for over the past year by the dealerships, tho some are starting to get fixed, still no recall,
 
I try to keep mine for about 3 years and I never buy a car that is less then 2 years old. I like to get most of the depreciation out before I buy it. And when I sell/trade it there is still good value left.



I've had my '02 Civic EX for about 15 months and have had no problems yet.



-Frank
 
dmcphee07SI said:
lots of problems with the 6 speed transmissions from honda, my 07 Si is started to act up and its very common, everyone on the honda forum i go to has the same issue and they all have been getting the run around for over the past year by the dealerships, tho some are starting to get fixed, still no recall,



My 02 Accord 4sp auto blew at 130,000 miles, my girlfriend's 06 TL's 5sp auto blew at 38,000 miles, and even the folks with Honda's manual trannys are having issues.



Incredible.



I decided to just get a rebuilt one for about $1200 because I don't want/need a car payment as I try to save for a house and pay off student loans.
 
dmcphee07SI said:
lots of problems with the 6 speed transmissions from honda, my 07 Si is started to act up and its very common, everyone on the honda forum i go to has the same issue and they all have been getting the run around for over the past year by the dealerships, tho some are starting to get fixed, still no recall,
Is it the 2nd to third syncro thing? I've heard something about that. I've also heard a few things on Hondas manual tranny's in general, but haven't heard anything bad about he auto trannys (yet).
 
Well, I'm 18, and I've driven 3 cars ... this is a grrrrrrrrrreat start lol



My neighbor has owned somewhere around 60 cars and he's probably 58-60 years old... I gotta put him to shame !!
 
I'm on a 10 year cycle. Both my wife and I have vehicles, so we buy a new car on a 5 year loan and when the loan is paid off, we replace the other car. That way, we only have one car payment.
 
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