Highlights:
- Toyota is the longest-lasting car brand, with a 19.7% chance of reaching 250,000 miles.
- Lexus ranks second overall, followed by Honda and Acura, giving Japanese brands the top four positions.
- Non-luxury brands have a 5.8% average chance of reaching 250,000 miles, while luxury brands have a 3.4% chance.
- Of the 33 brands included in the study, only five rank above the industry average of a 5.4% chance of reaching 250,000 miles.
“Consumers base their car-buying decisions on a range of vehicle attributes,” said iSeeCars Executive Analyst Karl Brauer. “For buyers seeking the longest lasting vehicles, it’s clear which brands they should focus on for their next new or used car purchase.”
For the model rankings and segment lists, see the Longest Lasting Cars Study.
Toyota leads a Japanese sweep of the top four brands
The undeniable pattern at the top of the overall rankings is the concentration of Japanese brands. Toyota, Lexus, Honda, and Acura occupy the first four positions, and all four substantially outperform the 5.4% overall average.Toyota's 19.7% chance of reaching 250,000 miles is notable because it is more than three times the industry average and comfortably ahead of second-place Lexus at 14.4%. Honda follows closely behind Lexus at 13.3%, while Acura at 9.5% is still 1.8 times the overall average.
GMC is the highest-ranking non-Japanese brand, placing fifth at 5.8%. Mazda follows at 5.3%. After Mazda, all of the remaining brands have less than a 5.0% estimated chance of reaching 250,000 miles.
| Longest Lasting Car Brands – iSeeCars Study | |||
| Rank | Make | % Chance of Lasting 250,000+ Miles | Compared to Average |
| 1 | Toyota | 19.7% | 3.7x |
| 2 | Lexus | 14.4% | 2.7x |
| 3 | Honda | 13.3% | 2.5x |
| 4 | Acura | 9.5% | 1.8x |
| 5 | GMC | 5.8% | 1.1x |
| Overall Average* | 5.4% | -- | |
| 6 | Mazda | 5.3% | 1.0x |
| 7 | Lincoln | 4.7% | 0.9x |
| 8 | Ram | 4.2% | 0.8x |
| 9 | Ford | 4.1% | 0.8x |
| 10 | Cadillac | 3.9% | 0.7x |
| 11 | Chevrolet | 3.6% | 0.7x |
| 12 | Nissan | 3.4% | 0.6x |
| 13 | Tesla | 3.3% | 0.6x |
| 14 | Subaru | 2.8% | 0.5x |
| 15 | Mercedes-Benz | 2.6% | 0.5x |
| 16 | Volvo | 2.6% | 0.5x |
| 17 | INFINITI | 2.5% | 0.5x |
| 18 | Dodge | 1.7% | 0.3x |
| 19 | Volkswagen | 1.5% | 0.3x |
| 20 | Jeep | 1.2% | 0.2x |
| 21 | Kia | 0.8% | 0.2x |
| 22 | Mitsubishi | 0.8% | 0.2x |
| 23 | Hyundai | 0.8% | 0.2x |
| 24 | Chrysler | 0.7% | 0.1x |
| 25 | BMW | 0.5% | 0.1x |
| 26 | Audi | 0.5% | 0.1x |
| 27 | Land Rover | 0.4% | 0.1x |
| 28 | Buick | 0.4% | 0.1x |
| 29 | Porsche | 0.3% | 0.1x |
| 30 | FIAT | 0.2% | 0x |
| 31 | Jaguar | 0.0% | 0x |
| 32 | MINI | 0.0% | 0x |
| 33 | Maserati | 0.0% | 0x |
"Reaching 250,000 miles is an exceptionally high bar for any vehicle, which makes the distinction among the four highest-ranked brands meaningful,” said Brauer. “Toyota, Lexus, Honda and Acura don't just lead the list, they substantially outperform the average vehicle's chances of reaching that high-mileage threshold."
Non-luxury brands: Toyota and Honda set the pace
Removing luxury brands from the rankings makes the separation at the top even clearer. Toyota's 19.7% chance of reaching 250,000 miles is 3.4 times the 5.8% non-luxury average, while Honda's 13.3% rate is 2.3 times the benchmark.GMC ranks third among non-luxury brands at 5.8%, exactly matching the category average. Mazda is close behind at 5.3%. From there on the probabilities decline to 4.2% for Ram, 4.1% for Ford and 3.6% for Chevrolet.
At the other end of the non-luxury ranking, Chrysler, FIAT and MINI have the lowest percentage chance of reaching 250,000 miles.
| Longest Lasting Non-Luxury Car Brands – iSeeCars Study | |||
| Rank | Make | % Chance of Lasting 250,000+ Miles | Compared to Average |
| 1 | Toyota | 19.7% | 3.4x |
| 2 | Honda | 13.3% | 2.3x |
| 3 | GMC | 5.8% | 1.0x |
| Non-Luxury Average | 5.8% | -- | |
| 4 | Mazda | 5.3% | 0.9x |
| 5 | Ram | 4.2% | 0.7x |
| 6 | Ford | 4.1% | 0.7x |
| 7 | Chevrolet | 3.6% | 0.6x |
| 8 | Nissan | 3.4% | 0.6x |
| 9 | Subaru | 2.8% | 0.5x |
| 10 | Dodge | 1.7% | 0.3x |
| 11 | Volkswagen | 1.5% | 0.3x |
| 12 | Jeep | 1.2% | 0.2x |
| 13 | Kia | 0.8% | 0.1x |
| 14 | Mitsubishi | 0.8% | 0.1x |
| 15 | Hyundai | 0.8% | 0.1x |
| 16 | Chrysler | 0.7% | 0.1x |
| 17 | FIAT | 0.2% | 0x |
| 18 | MINI | 0.0% | 0x |
“The number of non-luxury brands performing below average illustrates the elite status earned by Toyota and Honda,” said Brauer.
Luxury brands: Lexus and Acura give buyers the best chance of reaching 250,000 miles
Luxury brands have a 3.4% average chance of reaching 250,000 miles, with the rankings for luxury brands showing an even wider gap than volume brands between the leaders and the rest of the field. Lexus has a 14.4% chance of reaching 250,000 miles, 4.2 times the luxury-brand average. Acura follows at 9.5%, or 2.8 times the category average.Lincoln ranks third at 4.7%, followed by Cadillac at 3.9%. Both exceed the 3.4% luxury average, while Tesla sits just below it at 3.3%.
The numbers drop rapidly after Tesla, with Mercedes-Benz and Volvo tied at 2.6% and INFINITI at 2.5%. At the bottom of the rankings, BMW, Audi, Land Rover, Buick, Porsche, Jaguar and Maserati all have less than a 1.0% chance of reaching 250,000 miles.
| Longest Lasting Luxury Car Brands – iSeeCars Study | |||
| Rank | Make | % Chance of Lasting 250,000+ Miles | Compared to Average |
| 1 | Lexus | 14.4% | 4.2x |
| 2 | Acura | 9.5% | 2.8x |
| 3 | Lincoln | 4.7% | 1.4x |
| 4 | Cadillac | 3.9% | 1.1x |
| Luxury Average | 3.4% | -- | |
| 5 | Tesla | 3.3% | 1.0x |
| 6 | Mercedes-Benz | 2.6% | 0.8x |
| 7 | Volvo | 2.6% | 0.8x |
| 8 | INFINITI | 2.5% | 0.7x |
| 9 | BMW | 0.5% | 0.2x |
| 10 | Audi | 0.5% | 0.1x |
| 11 | Land Rover | 0.4% | 0.1x |
| 12 | Buick | 0.4% | 0.1x |
| 13 | Porsche | 0.3% | 0.1x |
| 14 | Jaguar | 0.0% | 0x |
| 15 | Maserati | 0.0% | 0x |
For consumers planning to keep their vehicle for many years, the study provides a compelling factor to consider, alongside purchase price, operating costs, safety, features and other ownership priorities.
“For used-car shoppers, the longest lasting brand rankings can provide valuable context when comparing used vehicles with higher odometer readings,” said Brauer.
Methodology
iSeeCars.com analyzed data for over 395 million cars. The average odometer reading for each vehicle was calculated at each yearly age, and a proprietary model based on these average mileages was developed to estimate the probability that each vehicle would survive to various mileage thresholds. Heavy-duty vans and models with insufficient data were excluded. To determine which brands build the longest-lasting vehicles overall, the odds of reaching the 250,000-mile milestone for each specific model and generation were calculated and then averaged across each brand's entire lineup, weighing the results by how common each model is on the road.
About iSeeCars
iSeeCars helps millions of people make smarter car decisions and find the best deals by leveraging data-driven research and unbiased analysis. iSeeCars Research conducts independent studies that provide key insights on vehicles, market trends, and the automotive industry, including Best Cars Rankings and the annual Longest Lasting Cars Study. With the goal of making car shopping easier and more transparent, iSeeCars.com analyzes millions of car listings and offers valuable resources like iVIN Reports, Window Stickers, and Build Sheets. iSeeCars has saved users over $451 million using over 25 billion data points and proprietary algorithms to objectively analyze, score, and rank new and used vehicles.
