Lincoln Town Car Gets Over 500k Miles Easy
Think of the highest-mileage car you've ever been in. What was the number? 150,000 miles? 200,000? Higher? Now think of the condition that the car was in. It likely wasn't anything close to mint, but hopefully, it still ran without being a safety hazard to its driver and passengers.
Updated June 2021: If you're wondering whether your car has driven far enough to make it onto the pages of the Guinness Book of World Records, or just curious to see how far it's possible for a car to be driven, this is the article for you. We have updated this article with some new cars and the latest info we could find regarding their mileage.
Now imagine doubling or even tripling the mileage number of the highest-mileage car you've ever been in, and still keeping that car on the road in a safe and roadworthy condition. It would take some serious determination, dedication, and a decent maintenance budget, to say the least. Most people give up on a car when it reaches a certain mileage point, either because we're afraid of the looming cost of major services, or because the car is just too far gone to be worth saving.
In fact, many cars these days never see more than 100,000 miles on the odometer. Then there are owners like the ones on this list.Owners who keep their cars far beyond the manufacturer's predicted lifespan, whether out of necessity or of pure love and passion for their car. We have previously reported on the woman who drove her Hyundai Elantra 1 million miles in just 5 years, and the Chicago driver who broke 1 million miles in his Nissan Frontier. This time, we'll talk about 15 cars with some of the highest mileage ever recorded — all of them with no less than 1 million miles!
15 1964 Porsche 356C – 1 million+ miles
Guy Newmark was given a 1964 Porsche 356C as a graduation present from his father in the mid-1960s. Now, more than 50 years later, Newmark is still daily driving his blue Porsche, which happens to be nicknamed Blu. Back in 2013, the odometer was showing 980,000, and the story about Guy and his Porsche was all over automotive media.
Then, the car was stolen. For a minute, it seemed Guy would never get to cross the million-mile mark in his treasured sports car. Luckily, it was found just down the road as the thieves didn't figure out how to hotwire it. Newmark got it fixed and installed Lo-Jack, and kept driving it on a daily basis. When he finally crossed the million-mile mark, even Porsche congratulated him and posted a video on their YouTube channel. His secret to trouble-free motoring? The Porsche has been serviced every 3,000 miles for more than five decades.
14 2007 Toyota Tundra – 1 million miles
This truck was bought new by its one and only owner in 2007, a Louisiana man named Vic Sheppard, who then proceeded to rack up north of 125,000 miles every year, driving it around between his home state and North Dakota.
The owner kept it dealer-maintained, and despite the obvious damage to the front quarter panel seen in the photo, the truck was in generally good condition when it reached its seven-digit milestone. When Toyota HQ learned about Vic's milestone via the dealership that serviced the truck, they were so proud of this truck's achievement that they decided to give him a brand-new Tundra in exchange.
13 1989 Saab 900 SPG – 1 million miles
There's no doubt that Saab dying was a tragedy. This high mile Saab is probably better known for its exclusivity than its mileage count. Only 7,500 900 SPGs ever made it to America, so it's no wonder Peter Gilbert, the owner of this one, wanted to hang onto his example for a long time.
But despite its rarity, the owner kept driving it on what must have been a daily basis. He racked up an astonishing 1,001,385 miles on his stylish Swedish car before eventually donating it to the Wisconsin Auto Museum back in 2006.
12 1996 Lexus LS 400 "Million Mile Lexus" – 1 million miles
This is perhaps one of the most famous mega-high-mileage cars in the world. Yes, this is Matt Farah's million-mile Lexus. The California-based automotive journalist bought the car in Florida when it was nearing the 900,000-mile mark, with the intent of taking it to a million miles.
What then happened might be one of the coolest projects in modern internet car journalism. Farah decided to loan the car to other journos so they could drive it around and rack up miles for him. Well played Farah.
11 1991 Honda Accord EX – 1.16 million miles
The 1990s might be the best era of Honda cars — something to keep in mind for those looking to buy one. This bulletproof Honda was passed down through two generations within the original owner's family, ending up at 1.16 million miles.
The original owner kept the car until his death, and in his will, he passed it down to his son, who kept driving it until it got to that critical seven-digit mark. Not much is known about what happened to the car since, but we can only hope that it's still out there, keeping its odometer rolling and racking up the mileage.
10 2006 Ford F-250 – 1.2 million miles
Ford's 7.3-liter PowerStroke turbodiesel V8 is one of the most dependable and long-lasting engines ever created. Co-developed by Ford and International, the same engine could be found in all sorts of commercial machinery, including buses and delivery trucks — two types of vehicles that are expected to last for hundreds of thousands of miles. It's only appropriate, then, that this 2006 F250 with that same engine would make it to 1.2 million miles without any major issues.
Its owner used it for towing trailers all over the USA to deliver to clients, so it clearly didn't have an easy life either. He drove it 200,000 miles per year, but the original engine died after 400,000 miles. Luckily, an engine salvaged from a junkyard ran at least another 800,000 miles. The last time anyone checked, the F-250 was still running, so it might've done more than 2 million miles by now.
9 2006 Chevy Silverado 3500 Heavy Duty – 1.22 million miles
This 6.6l Duramax diesel-powered Silverado is another high-mileage hauler. Its owners, Hugh and Tammy Pennington, bought it for long-distance hauling, using it mostly for hauling supplies to help with recovery efforts after Hurricane Katrina.
The owners say that their secret to longevity was to change the oil religiously every 5,000 miles and to wash the truck after every long haul, particularly after dealing with snowy and salty roads to prevent rust. No major maintenance was required but it's not known if the owners still have it or drive it.
8 1966 Mercedes-Benz 250SE – 1.28 million miles
A modern Mercedes wouldn't be a very safe bet for high-mileage ownership. They're too complex and fragile and rely on far too many electronic components to be easy or affordable to maintain. However, decades ago, Mercedes' build quality was a completely different story. Cars like this 1966 250SE were built extraordinarily well, using nothing but the best quality materials and relatively simple mechanical components that could easily be kept running.
The original owner of this Mercedes-Benz drove it all the way to 877,000 miles before he passed away. His heirs then drove it for another 350,000 miles before they sold it to the owner who got Mercedes to certify it with its million-mile badge on the grille. The "secret" to its longevity was to baby it and service it often.
7 1991 Chevy C1500 – 1.29 million miles
These early-90s GM trucks were some of the last of the era of truly honest pickups. They were dead simple, functional, tough, and crucially reliable (as long as you kept the frame from getting too rusty, as corrosion would cause it to fracture and bend).
This one's owner used it to deliver seafood from Wisconsin to Illinois every day, and the apparent secret to the truck's longevity was regular rust-proofing of the undercarriage and careful care and maintenance.
6 1983 Lincoln Town Car – 1.3 million miles
If you're going to travel 1.3 million miles in a car, best to do it in something with a pair of bench seats modeled after your grandmother's most comfortable couch. Its owner drove it cross-country on many occasions and was even able to squeeze 22 miles per gallon out of its massive V8 engine.
He maintained it at a Lincoln dealership for its entire life and claims that the car never broke down once in the entire time he owned it.
5 1963 Volkswagen Beetle – 1.61 million miles
Mechanically speaking, classic Beetles are known for brutal simplicity and ease of repair, but not necessarily reliability. Yet, this one was able to cover an astonishing 1.61 million miles. It wasn't easy though, the owner reportedly went through seven engines on the way to 1.61 million, which he reached in 1987 after buying the car new in 1963.
4 1963 Plymouth Fury – 1.62 million miles
Sometimes, the reason for a car never making it to a high mileage number is completely out of the owner's hands and can often be blamed on pure bad luck. Such is the case with this 1963 Plymouth Fury.
It was used as a taxi in Montreal, where its owner kept good care of it all the time he had it. In that time, he estimates that he carried some 800,000 passengers across the city. He came within a few miles of claiming the Guinness World Record for high mileage in 1999, but his car was hit by a truck. The driver was unhurt, but the Fury was totaled.
3 1979 Volvo 245 GL – 1.63 million miles
In the apocalypse, the only traces of humanity left behind will be Twinkies, Nokia 3310s, and Volvo 240s. It was sold from 1979 to 1993 largely unchanged, save for some upgrades to the fuel system, and new safety features. 240s are desirable now, and with enough care and maintenance, they can last for hundreds of thousands of miles without issue. This first-year model made it to 1.63 million miles, used by a Finnish logistics firm as a company car.
2 1976 Mercedes-Benz 240D – 2.85 million miles
This is the first car on this list to travel over 2 million miles, doubling the mileage count of some of the cars at the top of the list. It was owned by a Greek taxi driver, who reached an astonishing 2.85 million miles sometime in 2004. Mercedes-Benz recognized the car as the longest-running vehicle in the company's history, and gave its owner a brand new C-Class for taxi duty, in exchange for putting his 240D in Mercedes' own museum.
1 1966 Volvo P1800 – 3.25 million miles
Fitting that the Guinness World Record for the highest mileage would be held by a Volvo. Although, the P1800 wasn't just any Volvo. It was a beautiful and comfortable sports tourer, and its owner, Irv Gordon used it for its true intended purpose: long-distance drives across the United States.
He achieved the astounding mileage count of 3.04 million miles in 2014 and claimed that his secret to longevity was regular oil changes, closely following the manufacturer's maintenance guidelines and keeping the car clean. Irv kept driving the Volvo until he sadly passed away at age 77 a few years ago. Reportedly, the odometer then showed 3.25 million miles, that's roughly 130 times around the world.
Source: https://www.hotcars.com/15-cars-with-the-highest-mileage-ever-recorded/
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