Average Age of US Vehicles Climbs to 11.5 Years
The average vehicle on U.S. roads is roughly 11.5 years old.
That means that the average car driving beside you was bought brand new in 2004 (like the 2004 Civic, seen above). According to IHS Automotive, overall vehicle registrations have grown by 2 percent compared to last year, and now sit at a record 257.9 million cars and trucks on U.S. roads.
Since IHS started tracking vehicle age in 2002, the average age has consistently gone up thanks to the ever better reliability of new vehicles. On average, new car buyers hold onto their cars for 6.5 years, while buyers of used vehicles tend to hold onto their cars for five years.
SEE ALSO: Consumers Not Confident in Self-Driving Cars Yet: Study
The report also shows that the roads are no longer dominated by old trucks, as the average age of cars has now caught up and sits on par with pickups.
Climbing new car sales will likely slow down the aging of our automotive fleet, which IHS predicts will hit an average of 11.7 years old by 2018.
[Source: IHS]
Stephen covers all of the day-to-day events of the industry as the News Editor at AutoGuide, along with being the AG truck expert. His truck knowledge comes from working long days on the woodlot with pickups and driving straight trucks professionally. When not at his desk, Steve can be found playing his bass or riding his snowmobile or Sea-Doo. Find Stephen on <A title="@Selmer07 on Twitter" href="http://www.twitter.com/selmer07">Twitter</A> and <A title="Stephen on Google+" href="http://plus.google.com/117833131531784822251?rel=author">Google+</A>
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Does the average new car buyer keep their cars for 6.5 years due to financing?
Having no car payment, to many people, is a wonderful thing