There was a good post on the Wisebread blog recently about the author’s preference for things that wear out rather than fall out of fashion, break, or become technologically obsolete. He noted that people’s primary reason for replacing something used to be that it wore out, whereas today the main reason is more likely due to planned obsolescence.
A low price is not always synonymous with the best deal, especially if a more expensive item will last much longer. I have a pair of Timberland boots that I’ve had for well over 10 years with no sign of wearing out. My wife and I have also had good experiences with Honda and Toyota vehicles. I drove a Honda until it had over 180,000 miles on it and we kept a Toyota until had over 160,000 miles.
I will say, though, that a potential danger in keeping vehicles a long time is safety. We kept up with all the regular maintenance on the Toyota, and even used a Toyota dealer for all repairs. Still, the reason we had to part with the car is that a spring broke in the front suspension while I was driving through a parking lot, which then led to other cost prohibitive front-end damage. A mechanic told me that had it happened on the highway I probably would have lost control of the car. So, if you’re going to hang on to an old car, be extra vigilant about having mechanics check for safety-related issues.
What products have you discovered that stand the test of time?
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