Average US vehicle age hits record 12.6 years as vehicle life expectancy continues to improve!*
Average US vehicle age hits record 12.6 years as vehicle life expectancy continues to improve!*
Cars, trucks and SUVs in the U.S. keep getting older. A study published Wednesday says U.S. vehicles hit a record average age of 12.6 years in 2024 as people hang on to their rides largely because new ones cost so much.
“[Prices are] prohibitively high for a lot of households now,” said Todd Campau, aftermarket leader for S&P Global Mobility. “So I think consumers are being painted into the corner of having to keep the vehicle on the road longer.”
Plus have to seen the new models??? It's all touchscreens everywhere.
You can't even drive at night in those things because you get blinded by all the light from the screens covering you entire dashboard.
You wanna use the car infotainment system? Bitch you gotta download the app on your phone so we can collect your data.
Wanna listen to some music? Haha bitch you gotta navigate the touchscreen interface to the radio app and then find the part of the surface of the glass to adjust the volume.
Wanna turn in the hradlights at night? You gotta pay for the monthly subscription of 50$/month for that feature, you bitch!
How much of this is due to vehicle life expectancy improving and how much of it is nobody can afford a new car. Obviously it's not purely the later, because vehicle do (generally) last longer these days, but it's not like everyone was driving their vehicles into the dirt previously.
This year my car turns 14 (Kia) and my husband's turns 22 (Acura). We consider ourselves to be "car people" and we probably would have replaced them sooner but the type of vehicles that we like are not very popular (sporty coupes and small lightweight trucks). We've been lucky and had to do very minimal maintenance so far.
If you're in the right neck of the woods (owing to vehicle safety regs), a kei truck might be up your alley.
It goes to show automobile prices are increasing and US income distribution is f'n piss poor.
I drive a 2009 Crown Hybrid. It's fast, it's reliable, it's great on fuel, it's luxurious, the build quality is extremely high, and on top of that, it didn't cost much. I can't see what a new car could offer me other than touchscreens, mandatory data collection, and a heap of tech I'll never use more than once. Mine has radar cruise, that's as advanced as I need a feature to be tbh
Wow they had that in 09? I can't live without that anymore. Beware Nissan's implementation though, it suddenly disables with a tone if you're fully stopped in traffic more than 10s. Complete trash.
Toyota really weren't fucking around with the Crown Hybrids back then. They threw everything into them. It also has soft close doors and trunk, TV/DVD, factory Bluetooth audio, heated/cooled front and rear seats, reclining rear seats, lane keep assist, night vision front and fender/rear cameras, keyless everything, and a heap more.
I fucking love the Toyota Crown.
Covid and the remote work change likely contributed. Not having to commute every day has saved a lot of miles on people's cars.
Also the fact that new cars are insanely expensive these days. Study after study comes out saying consumers aren't spending in weird ways, but it's because the economy is essentially in a recession but no one wants to admit it.