How many miles are too many for a used car?

I hear this question a lot from people looking at used cars for sale.

Generally, 15,000 miles a year is considered as an "average" number of miles per year. So a car that is 5 years old would have about 75,000 miles to be considered "average." Anything more, and a car is considered to be "high mileage." Anything less, and it's a "low mileage" car.

Does this mean you should avoid cars with "high" mileage? Are cars with high mileage a higher risk? Will they break down sooner?

In the last decade or so cars have become much more reliable than years ago when a car was looked at as junk when it reached 100,000 miles. Not so anymore. Many modern cars with 100K miles or more are in great condition and will easily go another 100K.

However, if a car has not been maintained properly and has been driven hard, it can be junk with only 50K miles on the odometer.

Therefore we can't judge a car's condition or its risk for problems by simply looking at it's mileage. It's an old rule-of-thumb that doesn't work well anymore. We can't simply say that a certain mileage is "too many."

What is more important than a car's mileage is its actual condition — as determined by a mechanic's inspection. A professional mechanic has the experience and equipment to not only determine a car's current condition and how well it has been cared for, but he can also judge if it is likely to have future problems. If you are considering buying a used car, an inspection might cost you $75-$100 but it can help you avoid a much more costly mistake.
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Remember, used cars are sold "as-is" which means you can't take them back if you find problems later — even if the seller lied to you. In many cases, a seller may not be fully aware of his car's problems or potential problems and can't tell you about them if he doesn't know himself. You should not completely rely on a seller's statement about the condition of the car he is selling.

Don't assume a car is in good condtion because it has "low" or "average" miles — or that it is in bad condtion if it has "high" miles. It just not that simple.

Therefore, the time to learn about a car's actual condition and risk of future problems is before you buy, not after.

One way to reduce your risk of expensive problems and breakdowns is to get an extended used-car warranty when you buy a used car. It's relatively cheap and can protect you from unexpected expenses.