Which Cars Stay in the Same Hands the Longest

The ranking was made by the American resource iSeeCars, analyzing 660,000 cars from the 1981-2005 model years that were sold in 2020. It should be noted that last year we already discussed which cars you don’t want to sell even after 15 years of operation, and compared to that list, little has changed. As before, Japanese cars, especially Toyota, are the ones whose first owners change the latest.

In essence, this list can be considered an alternative reliability ranking, because if a car owner doesn’t sell the car for such a long time after purchasing it, it means the car serves well and likely with minimal breakdowns.

The Most Reliable Cars Over 15 Years

1. Toyota Prius – 13.7% of cars stay in the same hands for 15 years or longer
2. Toyota Highlander – 12.4%;
3. Toyota Tacoma – 11.6%;
4. Toyota Sienna – 11.5%;
5. Toyota Tundra – 11.3%;
6. Honda CR-V – 10.7%;
7. Honda Pilot – 10.4%;
8. Subaru Forester – 9.8%;
9. Toyota 4Runner – 9.4%;
10. Toyota Sequoia – 9.1%

The Best Crossovers and SUVs

1. Toyota Highlander – 12.4% of cars don’t change their first owner for more than 15 years;
2. Honda CR-V – 10.7%;
3. Honda Pilot – 10.4%;
4. Subaru Forester – 9.8%;
5. Toyota 4Runner – 9.4%;
6. Toyota Sequoia – 9.1%;
7. Toyota RAV4 – 8.7%;
8. Acura MDX – 7.9%;
9. Hyundai Tucson – 7.6%;
10. Subaru Outback – 6.8%.

Which Sports Cars Owners Don’t Want to Sell

1. Mazda MX-5 Miata – 7.6% of cars remain in one owner for 15 years or longer;
2. BMW Z4 – 6.7%;
3. BMW M5 – 4.9%;
4. Chevrolet Corvette – 4.3%;
5. Ford GT – 4.2%;