Pickup trucks are vehicles built for the long haul.
In fact, the top vehicle lasting 250,000 miles or more – and 10 of the top 23 longest-lasting vehicles – are all pickup trucks. This is according to a recent study released by online research and shopping website iSeeCars.com.
The pickup truck parade is led by two Fords and a Toyota with the Ford F-350 Super Duty, Toyota Tundra and Ford F-250 Super Duty making up three of the top five. These trucks are followed by the Toyota Tacoma at No. 7, GMC Sierra 2500HD at No. 8 and Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD at No. 9 in the study’s overall top 10.
The 10th anniversary iSeeCars.com study analyzed more than 260 million vehicles sold between 2012 and 2022 to determine which models best demonstrate longevity and reliability with the highest percentage of cars reaching 250,000 miles. The average vehicle has only an 11.8 percent chance of lasting 250,000 miles, the study showed.
Following are the top 10 longest-lasting vehicles and percentage chance of lasting at least 250,000 miles:
Longest-lasting vehicles
- Ford F-350 Super Duty, 49.1%
- Toyota Land Cruiser, 47.9%
- Toyota Tundra, 47.9%
- Toyota Sequoia, 47.1%
- Ford F-250 Super Duty, 43.6%
- Honda Pilot, 42.7%
- Toyota Tacoma, 41.7%
- GMC Sierra 2500HD, 41.3%
- Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD, 41.2%
- Toyota 4Runner, 41.0%
“Vehicle lifespans continue to grow, with more than 20 cars now having a 20 percent or better chance of lasting at least a quarter million miles,” said iSeeCars.com Executive Analyst Karl Brauer. “For most of the automobile’s history, 100,000 miles was considered the maximum usable lifespan. Over the past 30 years we’ve watched an increasing number of cars reach 200,000-plus miles, and for our tenth Longest-Lasting Cars Study we’ve expanded our analysis to predict which vehicles have the greatest likelihood of reaching 250,000 miles or more.”
Longest-lasting pickups
- Ford F-350 Super Duty, 49.1%
- Toyota Tundra, 47.9%
- Ford F-250 Super Duty, 43.6%
- Toyota Tacoma, 41.7%
- GMC Sierra 2500HD, 41.3%
- Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD, 41.2%
- Chevrolet Silverado 1500, 31.0%
- Chevrolet Avalanche, 26.7%
- Ram 2500, 26.3%
- Ram 3500, 24.3%
“It’s not surprising to see so many trucks, including heavy duty trucks, on this list,” said Brauer. “Trucks like the Ford F-Series Super Duty are work vehicles, often purchased by businesses to serve as a key resource driving a company’s success. We’ve also seen models like the Toyota Land Cruiser and Sequoia consistently displaying a long potential lifespan when looking at the market data.”
In relation to the Land Cruiser and Sequoia mentioned above, those vehicles took the No. 1 and No. 2 spots, respectively, for the longest-lasting SUV category:
Longest-lasting SUVs
- Toyota Land Cruiser, 47.9%
- Toyota Sequoia, 47.1%
- Honda Pilot, 42.7%
- Toyota 4Runner, 41.0%
- Acura MDX, 29.2%
- Honda Element, 27.8%
- Honda CR-V, 27.5%
- Subaru Outback, 22.3%
- GMC Yukon XL, 21.3%
- Ford Expedition, 19.9%
In terms of cars, the study found that, “unlike the more durable trucks and SUVs, only 8.6% of cars will make it to 250,000 miles or more. But the spectrum of above-average models includes sedans and hatchbacks of every size and price range, along with a few luxury brands.”
Longest-lasting cars
- Toyota Avalon, 33.1%
- Honda Accord, 27.1%
- Toyota Camry, 20.4%
- Toyota Matrix, 16.7%
- Subaru Legacy, 16.2%
- Lexus GS 300, 15.9%
- Acura RL, 14.9%
- Honda Civic, 14.7%
- Volkswagen Golf, 14.2%
- Volkswagen Jetta, 11.7%
While 250,000 miles-plus could be considered something of a gold standard for vehicle longevity, meaning relatively few should qualify, vehicles are demonstrating their improved quality overall. So, even though most of us won’t drive our vehicles 250,000 miles or more, it is encouraging to know that with proper maintenance today’s automobiles are capable of going a long, long way.
For more on the iSeeCars.com study, see The Longest-Lasting Cars, Trucks and SUVs to Reach 250,000 Miles and Beyond.
