Vehicles capable of driving further 160,000 kilometers at prices starting at $9,000

One of the most widely cited financial websites in the United States, CNBC.com, has summarized data collected by the American search engine iSeeCars and has published a list of the most beneficial-to-buy used cars based on their minimal cost and ability to run reliably for many years.

The chart published by CNBC.com demonstrates 10 vehicle models starting at $9,000 and not exceeding $19,000 and aged from five to ten years. Nevertheless, those are only half used up.

The experts say 100,000 km is not the limit

Over 2 million vehicles for sale have been analyzed in the recent iSeeCars study to determine used models with the longest service lifetime at the lowest price.

The average price of the 10-year-old cars and trucks in iSeeCars' TOP-20 "long-livers" was determined as $12,814. The report also demonstrated that those had been only used by 46%. Potentially, the TOP-20 vehicles can run at least further 160,000 kilometers and more.

“Don't worry about the 100,000-mile mark on your odometer,” Ivan Druri, one of the leading experts of the Edmunds online car-buying guide says. “Stepping over the one hundred thousand miles threshold doesn’t mean handing the modern vehicle for scrap. Over the past decade, the durability of vehicles has improved dramatically.”

By twos count off!

Topping the chart published by CNBC.com, is a 10-year-old Chevrolet Impala priced at about $9,700 with an average remaining service life of nearly 120,000 miles.

Toyota Prius is the next best deal with up to 130,000 miles run, at less than $14,000 (in addition to significantly lower fuel costs).

The other top contenders such as Kia Sedona, Dodge Grand Caravan, Honda Ridgeline and Ford Fusion are available in a number of various car bodies, from sedans and SUVs to minivans and pickups.

Honda Fit at an average cost of $18,486 and with the remaining service life of over 150,000 miles (75% of the car's total life) leads among 5-year-old cars and trucks. It is followed by Civic and Prius.

As many as five Toyota models including Camry, Corolla and Avalon were rated in the top 10 used cars five years ago in terms of value for money.

The report considered 10-year-old models priced between $9,000 and $19,000 with an average remaining service life of over 100,000 miles (160.9 km), as well as 5-year-old models priced between $18,000 with an average possible service life of over 150,000 miles (241.4 km).

“Anyone who wants to buy one of the above mentioned used cars should act quickly," Ivan Druri says. “It is unlikely that the TOP-20 vehicles will remain available for over a few weekends at the marketplace.”

According to Edmunds, a 10-year-old vehicle priced at $12,000 spends an average of 27 days in a parking lot.

Postscript: the prices for used vehicles are going down

Buying a used vehicle is usually considered a smart way to save money by avoiding high depreciation costs.

However, the limited supply of new cars and trucks due to the ongoing chip shortage has caused a rapid growth in demand for used vehicles. This, in turn, led to their significant price growth.

However, the situation is changing before our eyes; the used vehicles make one of the few types of goods in the world priced lower than a year ago according to the latest data.

“Nevertheless, they are still 33% higher than in previous years when normal depreciation of used cars occurred," Pat Ryan, the founder and CEO of CoPilot, a car-buying app says.

According to her, the situation can radically improve this year, 2023.