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Meet the king of million-mile cars
The Guinness world record belongs to a retired Long Island teacher and his nearly 3-million-mile Volvo 1800S. But there are plenty of other cars with more than 1 million on the clock.
Tue, Jan 24 2012 at 12:41 PM
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VICTORIOUS VOLVO: Irv Gordon is closing in on 3 million miles. (Photo: Volvo)
Do you have an old beater, a station car, a piece of junk that really should be in a scrap yard — but it just keeps running and running? Maybe you should hold on to it — it might be valuable someday as a million-mile record car. I don’t think anybody in the world can beat Long Island’s Irv Gordon, who has put nearly 3 million miles on a 1966 Volvo, but others have come surprisingly close, and with all kinds of cars and trucks. Here’s a portrait of the king, and some of the pretenders to the throne:
One indestructible Volvo: Gordon is a 71-year-old retired high school science teacher from East Patchogue, N.Y., but you probably need to track him down on the road because he’s always driving his Volvo, an 1800S sports coupe of the type driven by "The Saint" on TV. He had 2.93 million miles on the odometer now, and will definitely keep it on the road through 3 million. A 125-mile round-trip commute piled on the miles (64,000 miles annually) over the years, but now that Gordon’s retired, he can really hit the road. The Volvo had an engine rebuild at 680,000 miles, then another one at 2,010,000. It has the original radio, though. “Three million miles by my 73rd birthday sounds right,” says Gordon. “But, whether I reach that mark is more up to me than it is the car. The car’s parts have long proven they can take it, but I'm not so sure about my own. Either way, it will be a fantastic testament to the engineering genius of Volvo.”
A hardy Greek Benz: Greek taxi driver Gregorios Sachindis could have been a contender for knocking Gordon off his perch, since his manual-transmission 1976 Mercedes-Benz 240D diesel had achieved 2,852,000 miles. But it now sits quietly behind velvet ropes at the Mercedes Museum in Stuttgart, keeping company with a million-mile 280SE from California. "That's a commercial car, anyway, not a personal vehicle," sniffs Gordon. Indeed, there are tons of commercial vehicles that attain high mileage, and million-mile big rigs are common. Sachindis bought his car in Germany when it already had more than 200,000 kilometers on it, then brought it back to Thessalonica and into 24-hour-a-day taxi service. He rotated three different engines a total of 11 times. A Georgia man with nearly the same car, an ’81 240D, hit his million miles way back in 2008.
An honorable Honda from Down East: Joe LoCicero is a damage claims inspector based in Maine, with territory that covers all of the state and northern New Hampshire. Nearly tying Gordon, the Saco resident drives 55,000 miles a year, all of it in a pristine-looking 1990 Honda Accord. And he recently took it over 1 million miles, earning congratulations from Gordon — who knows he’s no competition in this lifetime. “Though I’ve never met Million-Mile Joe, I understand he’s a former auto mechanic who’s extremely diligent with vehicle maintenance,” Gordon says. “In our increasingly throwaway society, it’s delightful to learn of a fellow car fan who takes impressive care of his automobile.” In October, Honda presented LoCicero with a 2012 Accord in a ceremony in Saco. It’s the first million-mile Honda.
A Toyota Starlet: Does anyone even remember the Toyota Starlet? Jim and Dianne Jeter have a fondness for the car, since they put a million miles on a thoroughly ratty ’82 example (not the one at left; it looks too good). I interviewed them years ago as their rustbucket had achieved 999,421 miles. Dianne told me, “We asked the Lord to bless the car and keep it running, because we couldn’t afford car payments.” Their strategy was to sell the car for the kind of payout scored by LoCicero and Gordon (who was presented with a 780 Bertone Coupe when the car hit the million-milepost. Gordon put almost a half-million miles on that car, too, but sold it eventually to a friend from Holland. As we talked, the Starlet was sitting in the Jeters’ carport. He thought that whoever bought the car would want to take it over a million miles. “I wish I was driving it now,” Jim Jeter said. “I think it could do another 100,000 easily.” Well, they didn't get the big payout, but they did get to be on the David Letterman show, and that's something.
Some other star cars: Tom Olding's million-mile 1995 Dodge Ram diesel (the only American car here), and Peter Gilbert's Saab 900 SPG, which went into a museum after hitting a million miles.
Here's Irv Gordon on video. He loves to talk about his car:
And here's Joe LoCicero, a modest guy, talking about his high-mileage Honda:
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My '67 MGB is at about 500k. I've had it since '76. It is my daily driver since then. I rebuilt the motor in 79 and put ~350k on it; it was still ok but built a fresh one in 2001, that's over 100k now. I've driven around much of N. America twice. An old British car is not so common to use this way, but they are basically sturdy. I've added custom features so that it is quiet and comfortable.
I think modern motor oil helps a lot.
Two cars; a 2002 Suburban with 200,086 miles and a 1994 Volvo 850 Turbo with 346,000+ miles. Both excellent condition and both going strong!!!
1964 Dodge with 385,000 miles. Original everything.
Even older cars can do it when you take care of them.
my '99 toyota corolla has 144,000 plus on it but i do a lot of driving so it'll get up in the miles
I have personally seen two different Ford Crown Victoria's that had been taxis with over 1 million miles on them up for auction in NYC. On top of that I own one that has 780k miles on it right now and I drive it about 25k a year. It has never had an engine rebuild, and still has the same transmission, electrical system and everything. The only problem I've had with it is the catalytic converter, but being in NYC a part for a Crown Vic is never expensive or hard to find.
Hate to reply to my own post but I bought the car from a taxi company who had all records for it. I paid $450 for the car at 695k miles about 3.5-4 years ago.
No American cars mentioned
Look at Crown Vic's and Town Cars in NYC. When cab companies sell them on they are always .5mil plus and have had little or no work. I have seen at least two that have passed 1mil and I own one that has near 800k on it right now.
Sold my Volvo 240 with 165000, no motor work. My gal has a 240 wagon, her 4th, with 230,000, still passes CA smog. I finally put new rings in my Taurus SHO '92 at ~190,000 as compression was starting to drop. Did an overall rebuild while it was open - it's at 220,000 or so now.
Our 1989 Cadillac Seville is at 283, 400 miles. My husband drives it every day, his commute is 55 miles. It has a few door dings and the front seats are beginning to show their age. Original engine and trans. We did put a new radio in it at about 100,000. My husband religiously maintains it on schedule and I suspect we'll keep it forever, it's become an old, cherished friend.
These people drive way too much... I've put less than half a million miles an all the cars I ever owned put together (& I'm a 51 year old 'car guy' with multiple vehicles). I do respect these folks for maintaining their cars so well - that Volvo is beautiful.
1997 Geo Metro, 2nd engine, 3rd transmission. Passed 460K three days ago. Chalk it up to 150-mile round-trip commutes, a couple of driving vacations, and diligent maintenance. Oh, and it has the original muffler; this thing came equipped with a stainless steel exhaust system. Our previous two vehicles both passed 250K before their last respective gasps. On one of them (the Camry), the radiator exploded (literally) at 250,001.
2000 Mitsubishi Galant 300500 miles. Still original engine and transmission. Drives me to and from work 130 miles everyday
I have a '93 Honda Accord with 360,000 miles. Original everything. I am going to drive it until it dies. 1,000,000 would be cool.
The 89 to 93 Accords are infamous for being indestructable. I myself have had 2 that the mileage combined is almost 400,000. I work at a Honda Dealership and we have a gentleman with a 93 Accord with 700k on it. Original owner as well. Best Hondas ever made. PERIOD.
We have a 1995 Geo Metro,which we bought new,and it has just under 230,000 miles on it. It has used a couple of batteries and a few sets of tires,but still runs. I don't remember any engine work being done on it. Keep the service up,and who knows how long they will last!!
We have a volvo v70 (2001). The trans was rebuilt at 100K, but the car just turned 140,000. Hoping for another 140K.... we love this car. And with the t5 engine it still moves!
I have an '04 V70 2.5T that's coming up on 190,000 fairly soon. We both have a ways to go to catch up with the folks above.
Where is the VW Bug? Those cars will be around after humans disappear- driving themselves!
if you are talking about that 1963 VW Bug it got totalled in an accident i saw that somewhere
I have a '95 Plymouth Voyager with 394,000 miles. I bought it new and have replaced a few things along the way. The engine is original. I'm hoping to get to 500,000!
The article should have mentioned how many engines, engine rebuilds and transmissions etc. that have been made to achieve these great distances There is no way to achieve this otherwise! Especially with an older Volvo. All I can tell you is this would be alot of work with a car like that no matter how many oil changes and care in driving.
Volvos are known for routinely achieving multiple 100 thousands of miles without major work. The are indeed a bargain for those who choose to keep a car for the long haul.
Ummm... I guess you might need to read more thoroughly. "The Volvo had an engine rebuild at 680,000 miles, then another one at 2,010,000. "
Yes, that's why they call the Midwest the "rustbelt." Rust never sleeps, and it's taken its toll in the Northeast, but today's car bodies are much more resistant to rust than cars made even 10 years ago. After the mid-90s, total rustout is rare.
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