How many kilometers should a car generally be driven before it needs to be replaced?
2 Answers
How long a private car should be used before replacement depends on the specific condition of the vehicle. If the car is in good condition, it can be used for 10 years before replacement. Generally speaking, a car needs to be scrapped after running about 1 million kilometers. If the car's age reaches 5-8 years, mechanical wear and tear will lead to a sharp increase in maintenance costs, and the depreciation rate of the car's value will also be higher. At this point, replacing the car is the best choice. In reality, the frequency of car replacement still depends on personal preferences for the car and financial capability. Methods to determine whether a car is new are as follows: 1. Check the manufacturing date: The manufacturing date of the vehicle should match the date on the certificate of conformity, and it is usually difficult to alter. If the manufacturing date exceeds 15 days, then it is considered an old car. 2. Inspect the brake discs: Most small passenger vehicles nowadays use disc brakes (at least the front brakes are disc brakes), and examining the brake discs is a very reliable method. Generally, after driving more than 200 kilometers, the brake pads will leave obvious marks on the brake discs. There is usually a distance of 1-2 mm between the brake pads and the outer edge of the brake discs. After driving a certain distance, a so-called "step" will form on the outer edge of the brake discs (the "step" on a new car is very low).
To be honest, this really depends on the car. My neighbor's old Crown has over 500,000 kilometers and is still running. Professionally speaking, most mainstream cars today can easily handle 300,000 kilometers without major engine issues - the key factor is maintenance costs in later years. I've seen some German cars that start needing repairs worth a set of new tires after just 150,000 km, while Japanese models might only need shock absorbers at 300,000 km. Stick to 5,000 km service intervals, don't skimp on full synthetic oil, and replace tires/brake pads when needed. Economically speaking, most family cars reach a point around 8-10 years or 200,000 km where maintenance costs exceed residual value - that's the smartest time to replace.
