While some cars call it quits at 150,000 miles, the Japanese automakers are known for producing vehicles that can last for 250,000 miles and beyond. Good build quality, tight quality control measures, and conservative engineering are ingrained into how many Japanese carmakers operate, but which ones are best? A new longevity study reveals the brands with cars that are most likely to reach 250,000 miles, and we’ve compared the findings for Honda, Mazda, and Nissan. As things stand, there’s a surprising gulf between the best and worst of these rival automakers.
Honda Dominates Most Rivals
Nissan
Mazda
Honda
The study, which was conducted by iSeeCars, found that the average brand’s models had a 5.4% chance of lasting for at least 250,000 miles. Honda was far ahead of that, with a 13.3% chance. It ranked third in the study, behind only Toyota and Lexus. There’s a fairly sharp drop-off after that. Mazda ranked sixth (a 5.3% chance of reaching 250K miles), and Nissan was 12th (3.4%). Nissan wasn’t actually the lowest-ranked of the Japanese brands. Below it were Subaru at 14th and Mitsubishi at 22nd.
| Rank | Make | % Chance of Lasting 250,000+ Miles | Compared to Average |
| 1 | Toyota | 19.7% | 3.7x |
| 2 | Lexus | 14.4% | 2.7x |
| 3 | Honda | 13.3% | 2.5x |
| 4 | Acura | 9.5% | 1.8x |
| 5 | GMC | 5.8% | 1.1x |
| 6 | Mazda | 5.3% | 1.0x |
| 7 | Lincoln | 4.7% | 0.9x |
| 8 | Ram | 4.2% | 0.8x |
| 9 | Ford | 4.1% | 0.8x |
| 10 | Cadillac | 3.9% | 0.7x |
Overall, Toyota and Honda are far ahead of other mainstream brands. This won’t come as a surprise to many people, given the number of high-mileage Camrys, Tacomas, and Civics still on the road today.
“Consumers base their car-buying decisions on a range of vehicle attributes,” said iSeeCars Executive Analyst Karl Brauer. “For buyers seeking the longest lasting vehicles, it’s clear which brands they should focus on for their next new or used car purchase.”
How The Study Works
Honda
To formulate its rankings, iSeeCars researchers analyzed over 395 million vehicles. Average odometer readings were noted at every yearly age, and the publication used a proprietary model to estimate the chances that each vehicle would survive to different mileage thresholds. Automakers’ entire range of models formed part of the study, although heavy-duty vans and certain vehicles with insufficient data were excluded.
“Reaching 250,000 miles is an exceptionally high bar for any vehicle, which makes the distinction among the four highest-ranked brands meaningful,” said Brauer. “Toyota, Lexus, Honda and Acura don’t just lead the list, they substantially outperform the average vehicle’s chances of reaching that high-mileage threshold.”
What the study doesn’t ensure is that a long-lasting vehicle won’t need a considerable amount of maintenance to keep going. For instance, while Ram has a respectable eighth-placed rank, its pickups lag behind certain rivals for reliability. As a brand, Ram was ranked almost last across all brands by Consumer Reports.
What It Means
Honda
For buyers on a tight budget and forced to consider a well-used vehicle, Honda is the safest bet among the three compared here, followed by Mazda and Nissan. The study does not suggest that a meticulous service history isn’t important, though; a well-maintained Nissan with 200,000 miles can still be a much smarter buy than a 150,000-mile Honda that has been neglected.
Overall, Japanese automakers continue dominating longevity and reliability studies, while German brands remain ahead in technology and performance.
About the author
Karl Furlong
Senior Editor, Autoblog