How Long Until My Car Needs Replacement?

Well you're one of these guys that lives all over the USA and has no town so I don't know where you are are you in the real rust belt or what I used to live in Western Massachusetts cars there 3:00 to 5 years and the strut towers are rusting out and your front tires are cambering negative positive while driving down the road. Quite unsafe so there's always that now I live in North Carolina where cars can last my whole life I've got three generations two that will outlast me My daughter will be driving them when I'm expired I don't have the rust problem here so all you have to do is look at other people's vehicles and read and you'll find out generally how long vehicles of your size and welded unit construction will last in your area It's pretty documented it's not rocket science I could tell you if I knew where you were more than likely making 10,000 more miles on some rust around the rocker panels in the door seals oh God you'll go to 250 probably unless you never drive in the car just sits If it takes you to get to 250 to 2031 well then yeah the car may be gone. But rocker panel and door silll and and lower edge of door damage oh you're good to go for another 5 years easily generally speaking unless you're strut towers and suspension mount points are starting to rust any company that sells tires and does front end alignments will tell you very quickly You should make the 200k without any issue to be honest about it.

 

it's impossible to know without clear and detailed examination and pictures.
you could easily last another 50-100k.

 

Rust like that is potentially dangerous because it will have substantially reduced the strength of the structure.

It's fine for driving around and getting your groceries and stuff, the problem is if you're in a crash: it isn't going to protect you anywhere near as well as it once could have, because the metal literally isn't there anymore.

A car with 20 years of salt treated road service just mushes into dust when you hit it.

So... I think it's likely you can hit your odometer goal, but it is clearly time to budget and schedule the next car.

 

I'd be more concerned with the "under-pinning" of the car. If something is going to break lose or cause it to be unsafe to operate. Then there's the other concern about crash protection. It one thing to take chances with your own life - but when you place someone else's life in danger, that changes the calculus of things.

 

Rust is like cancer

 

It would be remarkable if your car matched any "best/worst of" on YouTube.

It's pretty normal for a Toyota to last about 15 years on salted Northern roads. Nothing special about the Prius in that regard.

Yours is definitely not done yet, but it's clearly the right time to start the early research, take a fresh evaluation of your current and upcoming driving needs and then factor it into your budget.