Popular Cars People Keep the Longest
Cars, trucks, and sport utility vehicles are purchased every year. People keep some for a few a while and then trade it in for a newer model or something different. But, did you know some owners keep their vehicles for a much longer period of time, like for 15 years?
iSeeCars.com pulled some data and released a report on the percentage of cars people have kept the longest, some of them being for over 15 years. They also calculated the data for a few more lists that showed which SUVs people kept, and which sports or luxury cars people held onto for a long time. Here’s what they found on the list of the most popular cars people kept in their possession.
The Japanese-made cars are always popular
Out of the 22 vehicles on the list, 12 of them are Japanese-made. Toyota having the most cars, trucks, and SUVs, followed by Honda, Subaru, and Nissan.
Toyotas, Hondas, and Subarus are well known for being reliable and being extremely dependable. The Toyota Corolla, especially, has been around since 1966 and continues to go strong. Toyota’s SUVs, like the Land Cruiser, are rated high for safety as well as being excellent family vehicles, so it’s no surprise to see them on the list.
Toyota pickups may not be strong competitors to the American-made ones, but they do tend to cost less to fix, in most cases. The Honda and Nissan cars are no strangers to reliability either. Fuel economy ratings are good, and the costs of repairs are quite a bit less than their competitors. These cars can go a long way before repairs would be necessary, provided regular maintenance continues.
How popular American-made cars?
Out of the 22, nine of them are American-made vehicles. There are four pickups listed as well as two SUVs. The most popular trucks on the list do not surprise anyone.
You’ll recognize pickups from the four big companies, Ford, Ram, GMC, and Chevy. These trucks have stood the test of time and loyal customers like to hang on to them as long as they can.
However, these trucks, depending on the year purchased, have been plagued with some serious problems, that have driven customers away. The Chevy Silverado is in the 11th spot with 8.7% of them lasting longer than 15 years.
The Ford Explorer and the Escape are the two of the American-made SUVs on the list. They’ve proven to be pretty popular among Ford customers, but they fall near the bottom with 5% of them being kept for long periods of time.
American SUVs just haven’t had the reliable ratings that the Japanese counterparts have seen. The Jeep Wrangler, Cherokee, and Grand Cherokee are also on the list. They make these on American soil, even though they have production plants in other countries as well. They bring up the rear, filling the last three spots.
Who else is on the list?
The Japanese-made and American-made vehicles pretty much cover most of the list, but there is one more that’s found in the report iSeeCars released. Hyundai Elantra is in the 10th spot, with 8.7%, tying with Chevy Silverado. This is a Korean-based car that’s been around awhile, but they originally marketed it in Australia and other European markets as the Lantra.
This compact car has seen pretty decent sales in America. After a few years of improvements to the Hyundai Elantra, it got good fuel economy ratings, which is one of the biggest reasons people want to hang on to it for as long as they can. It’s seen a fair amount of issues, but not too many serious problems have plagued it.
It goes to show popularity means something with automobiles. Those that prove to be dependable and reliable will stay with customers for a long time, which is a good testament to the quality of the car.