Tesla cars are more likely to hit 250,000 miles than nearly every other car brand that exists
Published on Jun 18, 2026 at 8:08 PM (UTC+4)
by Ben Thompson
Last updated on Jun 18, 2026 at 8:08 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Mason Jones
A study has come away with one clear conclusion – Tesla cars are more likely to hit 250,000 miles than those from virtually any other brand.
More than 174 million passenger vehicles were analyzed to determine the likelihood of car brands overpassing 250,000 miles on the odometer.
Among US brands, Tesla was tied for the highest ranking spot in the listing.
Which brands did Tesla beat out – and which ones did it lose the top spot to?
Tesla scored very well among cars hitting 250,000 miles
The study was carried out by iSeeCars, and laid out the odds of vehicles from various brands making it to 250,000 miles.
Of EV-only brands, Tesla was the sole contender in the listing.
Tesla cars had a 4.6 percent chance of making it to a quarter of a million miles, placing slightly below the industry average of 4.8 percent.
Overall, it tied in sixth place alongside GMC.
Despite only placing sixth, Tesla still came out ahead of 26 other brands.
Which car brand came out on top?
At the top of the list was Toyota, with a 17.8 percent chance of hitting 250,000 miles – 3.7 times higher than average.
Lexus followed up with a considerable gap at 12.8 percent, followed up by Honda (10.8 percent) and Acura (7.2 percent).
The list includes a mix of luxury and non-luxury cars, with many of the former camp not reaching the higher rankings.
However, a representative of iSeeCars noted this wasn’t a reflection on the quality of builds.
“It should be noted that the reduced likelihood of a luxury car hitting 250,000 miles is more a reflection on how their owners use them, which is less aggressively than mainstream vehicles, versus being a reflection on how well they are, or aren’t, built,” iSeeCars Executive Analyst Karl Brauer said.
Top car brands for reaching 250,000 miles
- Toyota (17.8 percent)
- Lexus (12.8 percent)
- Honda (10.8 percent)
- Acura (7.2 percent)
- GMC (4.6 percent)
- Tesla (4.6 percent)
- Chevrolet (4.5 percent)
- Cadillac (4.5 percent)
- Mazda (3.6 percent)
- Ram (3.5 percent)
- Lincoln (3.4 percent)
- Ford (3.1 percent)
- Dodge (2.5 percent)
- Nissan (2.4 percent)
- Subaru (2.3 percent)
- Volvo (2.2 percent)
- Infiniti (2.1 percent)
- Mercedes-Benz (1.7 percent)
- Jeep (1.3 percent)
- Mitsubishi (1.1 percent)
- Kia (0.6 percent)
- Hyundai (0.6 percent)
- Buick (0.6 percent)
- Porsche (0.5 percent)
- Chrysler (0.5 percent)
- BMW (0.4 percent)
- Volkswagen (0.4 percent)
- Audi (0.3 percent)
- Land Rover (0.1 percent)
- MINI (0.0 percent)
- Maserati (0.0 percent)
Hitting 250,000 miles is a big deal – and many cars have gone further than that
We’ve seen plenty of vehicles exceed 250,000 miles on their odometers.
Remember the German man who drove his Model S for more than 1.6 million miles?
And even that’s not knocking some of the other big hitters off their pedestal.
One Greek taxi driver racked up an astonishing 3 million miles over the course of 23 years, whilst a Canadian cabbie hit 1.6 million over 35 years.
Sometimes it’s not so much the car, it’s the driver – are they willing to put in the work it takes to get those high miles?
Ben joined Supercar Blondie in February 2025 after being published by international organizations including LADbible, The Sun, the New York Post, and the Daily Mail. He covers supercars, rare and collectible vehicles, aviation, luxury assets, and the fascinating people behind them. His reporting has explored everything from seven-figure supercars and historic Ferrari collections to unusual aircraft adventures and extraordinary automotive discoveries from around the world. Ben has also gained first-hand insight into vehicle craftsmanship and customization, including visiting specialist workshops to see bespoke vehicles up close.
