The 50s and 60s beetles were actually more durable than that. A public health nurse in Alabama drove one for 650,000 miles on the job, and went through only 3 engines. A California driver go 203,000 miles from his original beetle engine, but it was using oil at that time.
But, as you say, the engine was cheap and easy to fix. An acquaintance of mune took his into his apartment and overhauled it on the kitchen table!
Agree; but I actually wore one out, but it was a local Asian brand, Twin Head made in Taiwan. Within 2 years both the battery and the hard drive went, and even the carrying clasps on the case gave up the ghost. After nearly spending the cost of a new one, I finally gave it away to somebody’s kid to play videos on.
Lorenzo, most of us keep our cars much longer than the Average American because we actually do the maintenance required and drive sensibly. So, early last year I sold a 1988 Caprice, not because it was unreliable, but it was starting to rust, and in the spring I would likely need a new compressor for the A/C.
The kid who bought it was delighted, since he likes old cars, and this one was the perfect hobby car for him. This car has another 8-10 years of life left in it. The engine was perfect with all cylinders close to 100% of original compression.
So, don’t worry what other people say or think; you will know when the time comes to get another car.
Cars are very much like computers in that with just the slightest amount of user education, precaution, and maintenance, a modern version of either can last quite a long time.
And people buy cars like computers. After a few years there are newer models that are far faster and far more features which every wants (although they don’t need). So they buy a new one.
I keep my cars for years…but I usually upgrade my computer every 2-3 years…But then again…I work as a Software Engineer…so I usually NEED a faster/bigger computer.
my 99 civic has only 88k miles on it and hopefully will last a few more years, or till I pay off the house loan(have a plan to pay it off in 10 years)
I agree with Mike, but the biggest difference is the rate of technology growth. While a 5 year old computer is practically useless (to run the latest software) the technology in a five year old car is practically identical to a new car. My 25 year old car is functionally identical to a new car (not withstanding some marketing gimmicks and mandated equipment), but my 4 year old powerbook is basically a relic in terms of performance. When computers have been around for 100 years it will be a better comparison.
Making cars more durable has been going on for over 30 years, and additional durability, such as all stainless steel exhaust systems would increase the price. So would a rust proof body mad of exotic materials.
You mean like my Saturn? SS exhaust (broke due to bad welds/cracking, but replaced under warranty), plastic body panels (but steel hood, roof, trunk lid). Not a speck of rust (at least in visible areas). By the way, GM has ordered Saturn to switch to steel for body panels – presumably so these cars won’t last so long. 
My daughter-in-law has an old Windows 98 machine, and it became essentially useless.
I first installed a cheap network card, then I made a CD for Puppy linux, she boots on that live CD, it need not be installed on Hd, and she happily does her e-mail via web mail, also browses the web with the latest browser features.
Computers only become ‘obsolete’ for those who use Microsoft software. Same deal here. For those who know most the cost is lowest.
I have three or four computers just like the one she is using. They were given to me free, but with a network card installed, and Puppy live CD, all will run current web pages.
Actually the main reason for switching to steel is that the expansion of plastic body panels in hot weather mandates VERY large panel gaps. One of the signs of a precision-made car (think the big Lexus and Infiniti sedans, Mercedes, etc.) is the use of very small panel gaps between doors/fenders/trunk lids/hoods. In an era of shrinking panel gaps, those huge panel gaps on Saturns just made them look very cheap and toy-like.
Also, since Saturns are now losing their unique identity, and depending on the model are actually just clones of Chevies or Opels, it is just not practical to make plastic panels for the Saturn versions and steel panels for the clones with other name plates on them.
There are a few things that wouldn’t cost too much but save a lot of money down the road. Urethane or silicone rubber CV joint boots would last a LOT longer than the current natural rubber. They would only cost a couple of dollars more. The timing belt could also use silicone rubber instead of natural rubber and it would outlast a timing chain. Of course they could do away with the belt/chain all together by using gears, or even better, an engine management system that controls the valves by computer through solenoids or a hydraulic actuator system. Real potential for a big boost in both power and fuel economy there too.
There are a lot of things that consumers just don’t think about when buying a car so the manufacturers don’t have any incentive to provide them. If they can figure a way to save a dime per car in a way the consumer won’t notice, that becomes serious money when you look at 5 million vehicles a year. A dime a vehicle adds up to $500,000 in pure profit. Look how much they saved just removing cigarette lighters and ashtrays.
The air cooled VW beetles of the late 1950’s through the 1960’s probably wouldn’t go 100,000 miles without a rebuild, but the engines were easy to remove and rebuild. These cars could almost be repaired using kitchen utensiles.
WHAT??? Those air-cooled engines were EXTREMELY durable…Even by todays standards. I’ve seen several with well over 500k miles on them without them EVER being torn down. Everything origional. Very very few engines lasted as long as those Air-cooled engines.
I concur people wear out before the car does. I only last about 7-10 years with a car and then simply move on.
Here are few things that you can do to make a car last mechanically and also make it a car that you want to continue to drive. Maintenance by the book is a given as well as is driving the car without trying to kill it. Be lucky and don’t crash the car too.
Buy a car that you like but make it one that is common mechanically with other brands and sells well enough so that parts, new or from a scrapyard, will continue to be available. Another possibility is a car that you believe is worth keeping in spite of difficult parts availability. Think in terms of 20 years from now. It is obvious that a simple car will have fewer things to break. Don’t worry about styling as almost all cars become ugly in 10 years.
Don’t drive your long term car in the winter salt. As a car becomes rusted and all do if driven long enough in the salt, you will feel less and less inclined to spend money to keep it going. Road salt corrodes brake lines and other brake parts as well as body parts.
You need a second or even a third car to take “vacations” from driving your long term car as well as something to drive in the winter.
A couple of possiblities for a long term car are a Corvette or a VW diesel.
Good points! In my personal situation, I spwend moe time in rental cars than my own, and as a result it will take me a long time to get to 200,000 miles. I therefore picked a car from:
It is easy to buy a car that will become an orphan or from a company that might go out of business (AMC, Daewoo). For instance Isuzu is withdrawing from the North American market. Isuzus will soon be orphans.
I don’t think most cars are worn out when people get rid of them. My nephew took over The family chevy with a 350 engine. It had 379k miles on it when he blew the motor drag racing it. Never had the heads off until he blew it up. An acquintance of mine has over 400k miles on a honda accord. Again the heads have never been off. Mostly highway miles as he lives 80 miles from work. Both of those cars had oil changes at reccomended intervals. This is in Phoenix Arizona where we don’t have the extreme cold weather that some places have. Cars can last a lot longer than they usually do because most people don’t take care of them after they get tired of them.
What I am getting at is that owning a new car is not an absolute necessity every five years. Whatever happened to the late 1960’s way of thinking?
I’m sorry, but the late 1960’s way of thinking was to get a new car every 2 or 3 years if possible. At least that is what I remember from that time. Yes, there were some older and more staid individuals who held on to older cars, but the GO-GO 60s were about consumerism and consumption. New cars as often as possible. The VW people were counter-culture then.
The probelm with a “refurbishing center” is the LOW “hull value” of a used car.
Case in point: I recently bought a '98 Ford Contour with 78Kmi for $1700. $500 more fixed a few problems. When it comes time to rebuild the engine, that’s around $3000 for the engine (or 800 or so used but by that time a used eng. will have been sitting a while). So even if my 'Tour could be made “good as new” for $5-10k, I could get a car with 50% life or more for 30% of the money. Not financially viable! (I probably will, just to be onery.)
When rebuliding makes sense due to high hull values (read: general aviation) or non-availability of replacements (read: Fidel), it’s done.
If you can convert it to run on propane, you could possibly make it to 500,000 miles. Cars that run on propane have no hydrocarbons that contaminate the oil, in turn the oil dose it’s job of lubricating better so parts don’t wear out nearly as fast. If we all did this and didn’t need to worry about salt and calcium chloride biodegrading our cars, we could live as the people in Cuba do. Cuba hasn’t had a new car hit their shores since the 50s.
Correction; Cuba has many new “cars” hit their shores from the early sixties till the time the Soviet Union collapsed. These cars were all Russian Ladas, or Zhigulis, the Russian namebased on the Fiat 134. Their quality was so poor that the Cubans still prefer the old US cars over the much newer Russian ones.
The Russians propped up the Cuban economy by buying all Castro’s sugar and selling him oil and other goods at subsidized prices, as long as Cubans did Russia’s diry work overseas like fighting in Angola, Mozambique and other trouble spots.
When the Soviet empire collapsed, no more subsidies for Castro, and we now see how good the Cuban government is at providing for its citizens.
Do cars last longer now than 50 years ago? That all depends on the car! My 1958 VW Beetle went 350,000 miles on the original engine-- amazing for 1958, and still impressive. I see lots of Chevy and Ford trucks from the 1950’s and 1960’s on the road, but very few Dodge pickups from those decades survived. Any car, even a Yugo, will go lots of miles with fanatical maintenance… and a “reliable” brand will die, if not kept up (my sister’s Honda Civic died at 80,000 miles from neglect and lack of oil changes). On the other hand, all of the Toyota Corollas owned by our family have gone over 180,000 miles, before we sold them-- not because of mechanical problems, but because they looked rather trashy, with dents all over and faded paint! Generally speaking, trucks last longer than cars, and cars last longer than motorcycles. Bigger motors (larger displacement with multiple cylinders) tend to last longer than smaller motors, and bigger cars tend to wear better than smaller cars. And any car, if kept protected in a garage, will last longer than a car left outside, exposed to the elements (i.e. surfer rot found on cars by the beach). Anyway, these are the thoughts of a guy who has driven everything from Midgets to Mercedes. 