[blackwasp]

Related threads on why you should hold onto your car for the LONGEST possible duration:

5-year old car : Keep, Upgrade or Swap?

Want to sell your car because of repairs? Think again!

How to rejuvenate your existing car and save a lot of money

Has the current situation changed your car buying plans?

How a more expensive car can work out cheaper

How to maintain your car in top shape!

Simple question : How old will your current car be, before you upgrade? The average Indian car owner used to hold onto his car for about 4-5 years, but that is rapidly changing due to generally better built cars, owners becoming more sensible, landscape changes (e.g. Uber & millennials) etc. On the other hand, a section of the market upgrades more frequently due to easy finance, innumerable newer models coming, good salaries and so on. Then you have considerations like the NGT ruling in Delhi-NCR which bans 10-year old diesels and 15-year old petrol vehicles.

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Indian Car Scene. Thanks for sharing!

Anyone who knows me knows that I'm a big fan of maximising value from my automotive purchases. I pick the right model, buy pre-worshipped, keep cars for long and I drive them hard.

Voted for 10 years . I have 3 cars in my garage:

- The '12 Sunny is currently 8.xx years old and we will keep it for another 2 years.

- The '97 Jeep is currently 23.xx years old and there are no plans to sell it.

- The '13 530d is turning 7 this year and I plan to keep it for another 3 years minimum.

Each of my cars serves a specific purpose really well. The Jeep is for fun & I have a lot of sentiments attached to it. The 2013 5-Series still feels up-to-date, luxurious & fast (got a 300 BHP remap recently). The Sunny is the family beater, used primarily by my kid brother who doesn't enjoy cars or care about driving.

[a4anurag]

The Creta is 2 years 7 months old and has covered 78,000 kms so far. As per the earlier tradition of selling the car once it has crossed 1,00,000 kms or 3 years shall not be followed this time.

Plan to keep it for a time till the odometer crosses ~2,50,000 kms and how long that would take, I have no idea hence didn't caste a vote.

[Shreyans_Jain]

10 years or higher.

It’s not just about deriving maximum value out of your purchase of a depreciating asset. Fact is that we are enthusiasts who develop a sentiment attachment with our cars. Personally, we replace cars only when they become unreliable(again takes many years given our loving care) or completely obsolete.

In my family, the only car I remember being sold off inside 10 years was our old Indica V2, which had also clocked a decent 1.2L km. Everything else has lasted longer.

[sridhar-v]

We have a 2008 Santro AT bought new and lovingly maintained. It is in pristine condition and ideal for city errands. The only drawback os the lack of airbags. But airbags deploy only above 40 kmph and my daily commute to the gym (before lockdown) is done at 15-20 kmph. So no great advantage.
And we average 200kms driving a month. So this one will be kept till 2028. The only other scenario is if I hit a huge jackpot and need to splurge.

The second car is a 2007 Grand Vitara AT. Bought used in 2015. This has also been given the best of preventive maintenance and is used for outstation trips and bad-roading in the monsoons. Parts availability is a bit of an issue, but given the Covid economic slowdown it seems prudent to hang on to the car till 2025 or later.

[aniyo]

Currently own a Nexon and I might need a bigger car in next 5 years a seven seater probably. Don't see myself holding on to 2 cars.

Previous car, Brio was with us for 6.5 years before we traded it for the Nexon

[parrys]

The longest automotive purchase I had was my 2008 Hyundai Verna XXi ABS. The top of the line petrol model back in the day. I kept it till December 2015. No nonsense ownership from Hyundai allowed it to age well. I was just smitten by something else, so moved on.

At the moment, I have a 2017 Honda Jazz V Diesel. If things go as planned, and the way they are at the moment; I can easily keep it beyond 2027.

Voted for 10+.

I buy them brand new, maintain at authorised workshops under my supervision at all times and maintain a good relationship with the service managers. Kind words and smiles at the workshop can do wonders to your cars life.

[rohan_iitr]

My i10 is 11 years old, but has covered only 50k kms. Still feels and drives like new.

I am in no mood to let it go anytime soon. I may hold on to it even after 15 years.

I am loving the EMI free life, low insurance premiums and low maintenance costs.

Also, I enjoy driving an old car even more because you don't have to be extra cautious while driving and parking it.

Rohan

[reignofchaos]

It honestly depends on the car and how quickly I get bored of it.

i kept the Cedia for 8 years as it was interesting even after 8 years. I kept the Brio for 4 years as i got bugged by the lack of refinement and excessive noise from outside.

I was planning to sell the GT TSi this year and change to something else but have pushed this to next year due to the pandemic. It will be 5 years old next year.

My V40 will turn 5 in december but still feels absolutely new and tight. I plan to keep it for a few more years for sure. It is anyways a depreciation disaster so it would make more sense to hold on for long.

[ashis89]

Voted for 10+ years.

Until six months ago, I drove a WagonR which will turn 9 in July. It has covered ~89k kms and will remain with my parents for few more years.

The only reason I looked for a new car was to have something safer for highways and slightly bigger in terms of space. Now that I have something meeting these conditions, I don't see a reason why I should change the car before a decade or more.

My motto - It's a give and take relationship! Take good care of these machines and they will return the favor with a similar service.

[sulivan]

Voted for 10+ or as long I could take good care of it.

Mine is a pre-worshipped 2009 Ritz zxi, the non VVT.
The best Practical Rev happy 4pot NA to keep.

Past 2k rpm its raspy vocal keeps you gunning for the A pedal. I can easily forget the single digit km/l it gives.

[Sahilrai166]

Currently we have 3 cars in our house
Baleno Alpha 1.3 is 1.6 years old and have plans to keep the car for as long as possible.
Ecosport Titanium 1.5D is 1 year old and we'll be keeping the car for atleast 6-7 years.
Ciaz Vdi+ which is 4.5 years old and will be kept for another 1 year.

[balenoed_]

My Baleno Sedan is 16 years old.

Planning to keep it as long as it runs and as long as the government rules let it get its RC renewed every 5 years - whichever comes earlier

The reasons are -

It is running fine as good as how it was on Day 1 (touch wood) - So there is no absolute reason to replace it at the moment. I would certainly go for a new one in due time.

It is too old, outdated and cost-less (in terms of $ value) that I do not have to worry about any incidents like damage, theft etc - peace of mind

The value is rock bottom that I am surely not going to get above say 1 Lakh if I sell. I may as well keep it with me even if I go for a new one.

And of course, it is a driver's car.

[akash_v12]

My dad likes to keep all the cars for quite a long period of time.

'08 Chevrolet Spark - 12 Years Old, No plans of selling it even after 15 years.
'07 Hyundai Santro - 13 Years Old, To be sold soon (probably in this year itself).
'16 Volkswagen Vento - 4 Years Old, plans to keep it for at least 5-6 Years more.

[Guna]

I did not vote as I could not find my option (my car is already 15 years old)
I purchased my Chevy (Subaru) Forester in 2010 as 'pre-owned' which was already 5 year old. My idea was to use it as a second car which will be used for 'outstation trips' and keep it for another 2-3 years. But soon it became my first car and ended up keeping it for 10 years, primarily because I could not identify a 'worthy replacement' within budget.
Before this, I have replaced cars every 3 years. Now I am convinced that if you buy the 'right' car, one must keep it at least for 10 years and may be even 15 in some cases.