What's The Most Miles You Ever Put On A Car?

Bertel Schmitt
by Bertel Schmitt

Irvin Gordon bought the Volvo coupe in 1966 when an AM/FM radio was a big deal and an optional extra. Gordon took Volvo P1800 and radio. 46 years later, the car holds the mark for High Mileage Vehicle since 2002 and is only 34,000 miles away from the 3 million mark. Yes, that’s 3,000,000 miles.According to the Christian Science Monitor, the Volvo lacks the digits to display the actual mileage, but Gordon has tune-up records. It took him 21 years to reach the first million miles and 15 more years to reach 2 million. Gordon averages 85,000 to 100,000 miles per year. The car still has the original engine, rebuilt twice in the car’s lifetime.

What about you?


Bertel Schmitt
Bertel Schmitt

Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.

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  • Psknapp Psknapp on Jul 11, 2012

    My last car I sold was a 94 Toyota pickup - the year before it was called the Tacoma. It had 220k when it was donated (honestly, because I didn't treat it very well) and had @60k miles when I bought it. Now our old car is a 2003 Matrix bought new with 117k and nowhere near being sold. We're taking better care of it (I took the truck for granted with 10-12k service intervals...), so I am hoping I can give it to my daughter. She's 7.

  • V-Strom rider V-Strom rider on Jul 12, 2012

    +1 I tell my friends I'll drive anything, anytime, anywhere. I love driving and the people and places I find along the way. On my motorcycle it's even better!

  • Joeaverage Joeaverage on Jul 12, 2012

    3M miles? That's alot of wheel time. Alot of money. Alot of motel rooms and restaurant food. As impressive as that 3M number is I would never want to be in any car that much and that often. I'm also going to discount the value of that number a little by saying that his car doesn't undergo the same wear and tear that a family hauler does with sticky fingers, little feet crawling in and out of the back seat and those occasional passengers who slam the doors so hard that a normal person would wonder if the doors would warp. His car rolls down the highway and is handled with care the whole trip. He probably treats it like a museum car. ;)

  • Harrybill Harrybill on Jan 15, 2013

    This Volvo car has drawn its importance since earlier. The durability of the engine is worth noticing. With the same set of engines perhaps other companies would have thought of. http://germanimportservices.com/

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