Long-Term Relationships

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With the average new vehicle currently selling for more than $35,000, it should come as no surprise that the typical American motorist holds onto a car or truck for 6.5 years before trading it in, according to IHS Automotive in Detroit, Mich., which is up from a comparatively quick 4.3 years back in 2006.

But as is the case with marriages, some vehicular connections are bonded more passionately than others. According to the car shopping website iSeeCars.com 12.9 percent of all new-car buyers keep their rides for 10 or more years, with the Toyota Highlander Hybrid midsize gas/electric-powered SUV leading the industry with nearly a third of all original owners driving them for a decade or longer. That’s based upon a study of vehicles from the 1981-2006 model years that changed hands last year.

Among brands with the highest percentages of long-term original owners, Toyota dominates at 22.2 percent, followed by Honda (20.2 percent), Subaru (19.1 percent), Acura (17.8 percent), and Hyundai (17.4 percent).
“The top 10 cars that people hold onto are all from Japanese automakers, which isn't surprising since they have a reputation for reliability. But the makeup of the cars is unexpected,” says iSeeCars.com’s CEO Phong Ly. “These kinds of cars tend to be used as family cars, so they might be expected to be kept for many years if they're bought just as their owners start their new families.”

On the other hand, domestic cars, especially midsize and larger models that are more often part of commercial fleets or rental company fleets, tend to change hands far more often than average, according to iSeeCars.com data, as do upscale European models, which are most likely to be leased for two- or three-year periods.

Perhaps surprisingly, especially given that early hybrid buyers were given dire warnings that they would face costly battery replacement down the road, five of the 10 cars having the longest-term owners are gas/electric-powered vehicles. Ironically, this may have more to do with gas prices having become more affordable in recent years than the other way around. “For hybrids, the savings from fuel costs accrue only after several years of ownership, so one reason owners may be keeping these vehicles is to offset the higher cost,” Ly says.

And though pickup trucks are traditionally the best-selling vehicles of all types in the U.S. and enjoy great brand loyalty, they perform only about average in terms of original ownership. The sales-leading Ford F-150 is actually a tick below average at 11.0 percent of first owners holding onto them for a decade or longer, with the Ram 1500 at 11.5 percent and the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 leading the pack at 13.9 percent. ”Trucks are often used as heavy work vehicles, such as in construction, and so are driven much more than a typical passenger car. Consequently, they may need to be replaced earlier,” says Ly.

What’s the bottom line? As they say in the stock market, past performance is not an indicator of future results. Most new vehicles have seen two major redesigns over the last decade, and some have changed mechanically more than others during that period, so it’s difficult to say which of them might still boast the most enamored buyers in the country a decade later.

Vehicles Original Owners Keep for 10 or More Years

1. Toyota Highlander Hybrid: 32.1%
2. Toyota Prius: 32.0%
3. Toyota Highlander: 29.0%
4. Toyota Sienna: 28.7%.
5. Honda Pilot: 27.2%.
6. Honda CR-V: 25.2%
7. Toyota RAV4: 24.9%
8. Subaru Forester: 24.2%
9. Lexus RX Hybrid: 24.1%
10. Honda Odyssey: 24.0%

Source: iSeeCars.com, based on 2.5 million used cars from model years 1981-2006, sold between January 1 and October 30, 2016.