You are reading one of the stingy, and non-car-obsessed, folks. My 1978 Saab 99 lasted 19.5 years, and got replaced because parts were getting hard to find, and it was my one and only car. My current wheels, 1997 Subaru Impreza Outback, are working fine at a mere 117K miles. I normally wouldn't bother replacing it for a few more years, because parts are still easily available for it. My out of town family has been nagging me for years to upgrade, in hopes that I don't get stuck on my road trips to visit them. They are car fans who salivate at new Beemers, and don't quite understand my crunchy-granola attitude about cars.