Whats the longest you've had a car?

[RustyNuts]

I'm just curious how long you've kept your longest owned vehicle and what make / model it is?

Oh yes and why have you kept it so long?

For us, it's the Safrane. Bought in Feb 2008 so nearly 17 years! It spent 12 and a half years off the road SORN with various engine bay woes which I eventually nailed (eek) but I liked the car too much to let it go. It's cost me far too much over the years but I love buttons and gadgets and this car is full of them!

 

[reb]

I've had my 205 since 2016, so 9 years. It's been off the road since 2019 when I took it apart to do silly things to it, and actually it spent quite a lot of time in bits before that too.

I've kept it so long because they're my favourite car ever (maybe second to the Volvo 850) and I don't think I'll ever find another one that's as good and within budget.

[purplebargeken]

MGF that I just sold, 3 and a bit years. Loved the comfort, the handling, floppy top fun, fucking sounded brilliant. Only reason for selling it was due to the local F guru winding down now. Much, much sadness.

[autopaul]

Itll be 10 years this year for the beach buggy, but I suspect this will be the last year before I moved it on to someone who may use it more than every other year

[IronStar]

My mum owned Mk1 Golf before I got the keys, it's now with us for 15 or 16 years I think.

The longest owned only by me is Mazda 626 GE, I bought it in 2016, so 9 years.

[Sham]

I've coincidentally had 3 separate cars for 7 years - a Proton MPi, a Focus and a Fiat Marea - but as yet, nothing longer than that.

 

[Imhotep]

Either my Kia Proceed or my AX GT, both four and a bit years but can’t remember how long a bit is. Still got the AX GT though so that’ll become the longest.

[Floatylight]

Our Citroen C3, bought from a main dealer in 2008 with 19k miles, went for scrap after having been MrsFL's from 2008-2018 then SmollFl's until it was scrapped in 2022.

[JJ0063]

Mk6 Golf, just over 3 years 

 

[Supernaut]

I had my first car for 3 and a half years.

It ended up getting scrapped because it went bang.

It was a 1997 Peugeot 306 I owned from early 2010 to late 2013.

 

However, I've owned the current E36 323i since September 2021 now. I also have no intentions of moving it on and it seems (touch wood) healthy enough too.

[Dobloseven]

Renault Master minibus,2002 model,bought in 2004 and kept till 2017.Also,at £15k,the most expensive vehicle we've ever bought.

[sdkrc]

Waiting tentatively to hear @HMC's response 

[Rust Collector]

Does it have to work, or can it be a lawn ornament now?

Longest ownership I’ve had regardless of functionality is my Honda Prelude, think I was 21 when I got that and I’m 34 now. It has probably been used for 2 or 3 years total on and off, and is pretty fucked now. 13 years lurking around though, which is my high score. I feel like binning it off is like binning off my yoof.

Longest I’ve had something continuously in service was probably my Shogun Sport, think I ran that for about 3 years straight before putting it on the ‘I’ll get round to sorting it’ list over a few bits it needed. It towed a lot of my other purchases home in that time.

Edited January 16 by Rust Collector
Have some photos

[hairnet]

16 honda 750

Bought in 19 just before first mot

[Weird Car]

There have been very few I’ve owned for over a year, the only one I can think of off the top of my head was my Peugeot 404, owned from 2019 until 2022, sold because it needed too much work for me to handle, sold to @Six-cylinder who’s doing a fab job keeping on top of things with it, couldn’t have gone to a better home really, currently got my 1967 Beetle which is a keeper though I’ve actually only owned it since August last year 

[junkyarddog]

My 1979 Viva HC.

Pulled this out of a scrap yard as a snot nosed kid in 1992.

Haven't driven it in years,but don't think I'll part with it.

I had two others,but they've been moved on.

[Metal Guru]

Got my Impreza new in 2004, so 21 this year. Only 80 000 miles though.

Had one of the first Orions in 1984. Only kept that 7 years but it had done 180 000 miles.

[Bear]

The yellow SLK I had from 2012 to 2018, so six years, almost 7 since it was 'start of' to 'end of'. I did NOT want to part with that car.

But otherwise, often six months, rarely more than 18 months unless contractually obliged.

Prior to that the longest I'd owned a car was a Citroen XM, but that was because I forgot I owned it and left it 'for sale for customer' at a Fiat dealer in Duns for I think, two years. I can't even remember what became of it.

[Asimo]

Soon be 12 years for this. So useful, so reliable, so hard to replace. 

[robt100]

For me its my Capri. Bought it as my first car in 2007 (a year before I passed my test) for a grand sum of £750. Had been off the road for 10 years when I picked it up, all I did before its first MOT in '08 was change the rear brake cylinders, passed first time! Kept it 16 years, in which time it was fully restored and converted to a 2.9V6 cosworth engine. Sadly sold in 2023 to help fund buying a house, and to be honest, I hadn't driven in for about 18months due to having no time and covid lockdowns.
Also recently found out the next owner has managed to write if off already, damaging the sills and rear 1/4 🙄

[sierraman]

9 minutes ago, robt100 said:

For me its my Capri. Bought it as my first car in 2007 (a year before I passed my test) for a grand sum of £750. Had been off the road for 10 years when I picked it up, all I did before its first MOT in '08 was change the rear brake cylinders, passed first time! Kept it 16 years, in which time it was fully restored and converted to a 2.9V6 cosworth engine. Sadly sold in 2023 to help fund buying a house, and to be honest, I hadn't driven in for about 18months due to having no time and covid lockdowns.
Also recently found out the next owner has managed to write if off already, damaging the sills and rear 1/4 🙄

Not a write off I hope?

[Bear]

12 minutes ago, robt100 said:

For me its my Capri. Bought it as my first car in 2007 (a year before I passed my test) for a grand sum of £750. Had been off the road for 10 years when I picked it up, all I did before its first MOT in '08 was change the rear brake cylinders, passed first time! Kept it 16 years, in which time it was fully restored and converted to a 2.9V6 cosworth engine. Sadly sold in 2023 to help fund buying a house, and to be honest, I hadn't driven in for about 18months due to having no time and covid lockdowns.
Also recently found out the next owner has managed to write if off already, damaging the sills and rear 1/4 🙄

I wish I'd been three months further down the house process when I came to see it

[robt100]

4 minutes ago, sierraman said:

Not a write off I hope?

Hopefully not, but no insurer will pay out for that amount of work I dont think. Would have taken out the spring mount and spring, rear 1/4panel (no spares around iirc) seatbelt mounts, and possibly chassis rail

 

[Markeh]

I had the Megane June 2014 to March 2018, about 15 days longer than the Qashqai that replaced it, March 2018 to December 2021. The current Qashqai will beat it if not replaced by September.

[danthecapriman]

24 years this year for my Capri! How time flies.

This was a few years after I bought it.

 

And how it looks now (or last year anyway!).

 

Absolutely no way in hell I’ll ever part with it.

[sierraman]

26 minutes ago, robt100 said:

Hopefully not, but no insurer will pay out for that amount of work I dont think. Would have taken out the spring mount and spring, rear 1/4panel (no spares around iirc) seatbelt mounts, and possibly chassis rail

 

It’s repairable but it won’t be cheap. You just hope it’s done properly, if there any benefit to Capris becoming worth a few quid is that they’re less likely to see hamfisted repairs and be in the hands of someone in a position to have it done right. 

[reb]

1 hour ago, hairnet said:

16 honda 750

Bought in 19 just before first mot

That's a funny looking car

[McRusty]

My Capri 3 litre S - 14 years. Only 3 years old when I bought it (1 careful lady owner) and in beautiful condition when I sold it. Still miss it.

[Split_Pin]

I bought this on 17th September 2005 from a main dealer with 26,888 miles, completely standard.

Over the 13 years I owned it, it was only off the road for 1 year after my son was born and we were really skint.

I did everything to that car and it had some really expensive extras like a full Irmscher body kit, genuine Morette headlights, a Remus exhaust and KW coilovers.

I sold it in September 2018 to someone who promised to keep it and love it forever. It was on about 70,000 miles then, FSH and absolutely split mint. They got bored after 6 months, sold it to a clueless moron who rather than fix a slight running issue that arose, advertised it for £600. Before I noticed it, some potless desperado swooped in and broke it for the nice bits that were on it and scrapped the remains.

That would have been quite a rare car now, especially in that condition.

Since then I have cared not one iota what happens to a car after I sell it and if I do, I will keep it.

That's the story with this car, now the longest- term resident on my fleet, coming up to 5 years in May.

Ironically the previous owner refused to sell it to someone that came to view it before my virtual Covid- friendly tour of the car, because he was just looking for a big cheap motor. He wanted it to go to someone who would appreciate it and unusually, I have kept up that mantra. I have tried to sell it in the past but as was pointed out to me, I am the best custodian for it. Countless other cars have been and gone but this has remained. One thing that hits me is when someone says "I never thought you'd sell that one" and I definitely dont want that said to me about this car.

[EyesWeldedShut]

1968 Ser 2a 88" Land Rover - bit of a Trigger's Broom motor but I had that 15 years and flogged it when I moved to Wales. Sometimes wish I'd hung onto it but the chassis was utterly knackered - more weld patches than chassis and I don't think the back wheels ever followed the same tracks as the front ones. Took it all over the place (even on a hovercraft to France - those were the days!). Noisy, thirsty, uncomfortable but really, really easy to fix.
I did learn how to stick weld from underneath without getting hot blobs in my ears though

31 minutes ago, Markeh said:

I had the Megane June 2014 to March 2018, about 15 days longer than the Qashqai that replaced it, March 2018 to December 2021. The current Qashqai will beat it if not replaced by September.

Fate. Tempting.
#touchwood