What is the average life span for this car?

There is no answer to your question. How much money do you want to spend to keep the car on the road? How much rust can you stand to look at? How many little problems are you willing to ignore?

My '88 Grand Caravan is over 25 years old, very rusty, but very reliable. It has cost me so little to keep running well and safely that I refuse to give it up.

A friend just hauled his four-year-old Chevy to the junk yard because it had transmission problems and serious engine problems. Your car will need to have the steering and suspension systems inspected at a minimum of once a year, and when you hear any clunks or rattles. Fords are famous for separating ball joints that lead to loss of control and crashes. You don't want to ignore any such noises. Ford also left off critical alignment adjustments so expect to buy new tires often.

There's nothing that magically breaks or wears out at a certain mileage. Anything that wears out can be repaired or replaced. Most people make those decisions based on the cost of repair vs. The value of the car. First of all, that value only applies to someone who is selling the car. If I liked my car and it was typically reliable, if it needed a $1000.00 repair, it wouldn't matter to me if some book said it was worth 500 bucks or $20,000.00. If a $1000.00 repair would get me back on the road, it would be worth it. On the other hand, if I had a car that needed that $1000.00 repair, and I suspected it would need another one within a year, I'd get rid of it even if it was worth $20,000.00.

I know my descriptions aren't real clear. The point I'm not doing a good job of making is people get rid of their cars when the cost of keeping them up to their level of performance exceeds what someone else has determined they could sell it for. Some people can put up with duct tape holding the headlight housing in place. Some people won't own a car long enough to wear out the original tires.

If you take a Ford, a GM, and a Chrysler, all '94 models, the Ford will be off the road a lot sooner than the other two. If you take a '94 Ford and a 2004 Ford, the older one will cost a whole lot less to keep it operating like new, meaning all the systems work as designed without being cobbled. The newer the car the more insane computers it will have to do things computers were never needed for before.