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Many fans of Japanese cars by Honda, Toyota, or Nissan claim they just last longer than vehicles that hail from Germany or Detroit. But the truth is that when experts compiled a list of the makes and models with the longest potential lifespansā€“based on mileageā€“only one Nissan made it. The Nissan Titan full-size truck. Hereā€™s how the Frontier and Armada fell short.

First and foremost: how do you decide which cars have the longest potential lifespans? The folks at the iSeeCars website analyzed 20 years of car sales and registration data. They focused on the odometer readings of cars that were built for at least 10 of the past 20 model years. Then they ranked every car by the average mileage of the highest mileage 1% still on the road.

Using this method, the Toyota Sequoia comes in first. The average mileage of the highest mileage 1% of Sequoias is 296,509. Second place goes to the Land Cruiser, with 280,236 miles. If you think youā€™re sensing a pattern, youā€™re right. Toyotaā€™s took 10 spots in the top 20 of any vehicle segment.

Blue Nissan Titan pickup truck on a used car lot.
Used Nissan Titan | Althom via iStockPhoto

The Nissan Titan earned spot #18 on the list of the top 20 overall. The average mileage of the 1% of Nissan Titans with the highest mileage is 233,295. Remember this doesnā€™t represent the upper limit of a Titan, these trucks at that mileage are still on the road.

So what about the Armada? The highest mileage 1% of these SUVs still on the road have an average odometer reading of 220,172. Thatā€™s not too shabby, and earned it a #15 on the SUV-specific list. But it wasnā€™t quite high enough to earn a spot on the top 20 overall list.

And how about the Frontier? Nissanā€™s midsize pickup truck came in #9 on the list of the top 10 longest-lasting pickup trucks. The average odometer reading of the 1% of Frontiers still on the road with the highest mileage is 215,775.

Here are the top 20 vehicles, across all segments:

Make & ModelTop 1% Avg Mileage
Toyota Sequoia296,509
Toyota Land Cruiser280,236
Chevrolet Suburban265,732
Toyota Tundra256,022
GMC Yukon XL252,360
Toyota Prius250,601
Chevrolet Tahoe250,338
Honda Ridgeline248,669
Toyota Avalon245,710
Toyota Highlander Hybrid244,994
Ford Expedition244,682
Toyota 4Runner244,665
Toyota Sienna239,607
GMC Yukon238,956
Honda Pilot236,807
Honda Odyssey235,852
Toyota Tacoma235,070
Nissan Titan233,295
Ford F-150232,650
Toyota Camry Hybrid230,547

Next, find out whether the Nissan Titan XD is actually a heavy-duty truck, or listen to a mechanicā€™s take on the best Nissans to buyā€“and which to avoid: