Driving a car into the ground is rarely the best financial move or the best approach from a risk perspective.

As cars age, the likelihood of unexpected failure goes up and the cost of repairs goes up. Unless you like missing work, or having unexpected $5,000 bills on a $3,000 car, it’s good to replace your car before it becomes a high risk.

This is the same thing as Terry Pratchett’s boots theory. Poor people are forced to spend more to cycle through shitty cars while people with some money can buy decent cars which will cost them less in the long run.

I personally sell my cars before they hit the 10-year mark. At that point resale prices plummet. And I buy used ones around the 5-year mark, as that’s another price sweet spot. But of course, ymmv.