A survey of car owners by www.AutoMD.com revealed that consumers plan on hanging on to their cars longer, with nearly 80 percent planning to put up to or over 50,000 more miles on their current vehicles than they put on their previous vehicles.
Furthermore, approximately 58 percent of survey respondents said a "recovering" economy has not decreased the number of miles
they plan to put on their current vehicles. Only
12 percent plan to buy a vehicle in 2011, with nearly
half planning to do so only because they have to; only 6 percent said the recovering economy is the reason they want to buy a car.
Other interesting statistics from the report include:
• The percentage of survey respondents reporting they have
over 100,000 miles on their current vehicles increased by 25 percent
from 2010, with almost 60 percent aiming to push their miles higher and higher. About 68 percent plan to
drive their existing vehicles for over 150,000 miles or "until it dies," a
slight decrease from 69 percent in 2010.
• The percentage of people saying that either the economy
or cost savings is the most important reason for holding onto their
vehicles for more than 100,000 miles went up over 20 percent versus 2010.
• About 21 percent of those planning to purchase a car in 2011 said a combination of a favorable financing
market, "great vehicle models" and an improving economy bolstered their decisions. But 45 percent reported that they're purchasing not out of choice but necessity – because
their vehicles are at the end of their lives. Exactly 39 percent plan to buy a used model.