Last week, my husband surprised me a with a new SUV. He's thinking long term - my birthday, Christmas, anniversary, and every other gift giving occasion is taken care of for the next five years. I'm really happy and thankful to have a new car! See, I'm a worrier, and a planner, and a researcher, and a wait just a little longerer, and did I mention that I'm a worrier? So, like most major life decisions - he just did it for me.  He showed up with a big black truck that's certainly an upgrade to what I have had for many many years.

We purchased my last car in 2008 when it was only a few months old. It was a snappy little Ford Edge. It was unlike any other car on the road (at the time) with it's sleek little crossover body style and panoramic roof. And it came with ALL the latest features from backup sensors to heated leather seats! Twelve years ago, I was big ballin'! And it has been a good... no a GREAT car for 12 years. No major issues, super safe, and gets a cool 21 MPG. But, twelve years does advance safety and technology in the vehicle world. I really wanted a backup camera! But, my new truck came equipped with lane detection, automatic braking, 360 cameras, and it even swerves to miss ROADKILL!

We kept the Edge though and at 168,000 miles, I plan on putting about 100,000 more on her. She's a rough rider but she's my ride or die.

Now, at twelve-years-old, I felt like my car was the oldest thing on the road that wasn't at the Frog Follies. So, I took to the internet to find out how long people keep their cars on average. I was surprised.

According to iSeeCars data:

The average new car buyer keeps their vehicle for 8.4 years. However, there are certain cars that owners are more likely to hold onto for longer."

iSeeCars analyzed over 5 million used vehicles sold by their original owners to determine the longest-kept new vehicles. The full study can be found here.

In Evansville, owners keep the Toyota Land Cruiser for 11.5 years. Here is the rest of the list of longest-kept cars in Evansville:

New Cars Evansville, IN Owners Keep the Longest
RankModel# Years of Ownership (Avg.)
1Toyota Land Cruiser11.5
2Audi TT10.5
3Chevrolet Corvette10.3
4Porsche 911 (Coupe)10.3
5Ford Expedition10.3

So, the Edge wasn't on the list but she's pretty special.

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