It’s easy to fill lists of “longest-lasting cars” with Toyotas. There are plenty of examples of Toyota Tundras and Camrys with millions of miles on them, but Toyota isn’t alone when it comes to building trucks, cars and SUVs that could live almost longer than a Galapagos tortoise.

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Cars with a million miles can come from any brand. Here are some of the most legendary.

As much as we all love Toyota and Lexus, Chevrolet, Volvo, Honda and Nissan also deserve praise for their durable powertrains. The 2007 Nissan Frontier in particular is a shining example of how far you can go with smart engineering and a little basic maintenance.

Nissan Frontier (model year 2025)

Engine in basic configuration

3.8 l V6 petrol

Basic drivetrain equipment

Rear-wheel drive

Basic transmission equipment

9-speed automatic

Performance in the basic configuration

310 hp

Basic trim torque

281 pound-feet

Brian Murphy’s 2007 Nissan Frontier with one million miles

When you read about a vehicle with a million miles on it, the least surprising part of the story is the fact that it’s a work vehicle. The story of Brian Murphy, owner of a 2007 Nissan Frontier, is no different in this regard. Murphy worked in the corporate world for much of his life before retiring to the road as an independent delivery driver. We can think of worse ways to stay employed.

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Discussion: Which cars are the most durable today?

If you want a car that will last, we recommend buying a Toyota. The brand has an excellent reputation when it comes to reliability and durability. Honda is another great choice if you want a car that you won’t have to replace anytime soon.

The 2007 Nissan Frontier’s V6 engine is known to be powerful, but Brian Murphy’s Frontier didn’t have a V6. Instead, it had the 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine he also had in the Nissan Altima. His job as a delivery driver would require many hours on the highway and short stop-and-go trips in the city, which amounts to an incredible 77,000 miles per year. To put that in perspective, the U.S. Department of Transportation estimates that a man Murphy’s age (he was 62 when he finally hit his first million miles) should drive about 15,859 miles per year. It took Murphy just thirteen years to max out the odometer at 999,999 miles.

Murphy explains how he’s kept his engine running for so long, saying he drives carefully and changes his own oil every 10,000 miles. The truck was still running on its original engine and transmission when Nissan gave him a 2020 Nissan Frontier with a V6 engine, but it had a handful of new parts here and there.

• 450,000 miles – new cooler
• 450,000 miles – new alternator
• 500,000 miles – new driver’s seat
• 700,000 miles – new timing chain (as preventive maintenance)
• 801,000 miles – new clutch

A look at the 2.5-liter i4 under the hood of the 2007 Nissan Frontier

The 2.5-liter four-cylinder in the base model King Cab RWD 2007 Nissan Frontier is known internally as the QR25DE and is a member of the Nissan QR engine family. It is an engine with an aluminum block and cast steel connecting rods and a bore and stroke of 3.5 x 3.94 inches.

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For the 2007 model year, the Nissan Frontier shared the QR25DE with other Nissans such as the Sentra, Altima 2.5, and Rogue, with the engine being tuned to suit the needs of each model. For example, in the 2007 Nissan Altima, the engine produced 175 horsepower with a six-speed manual transmission, while that model year’s Sentra got 177 horsepower out of the engine with a CVT transmission. The Frontier prioritized torque over horsepower, resulting in a relatively low power output of 152 horsepower.

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The incredible durability of the base model QR25DE engine is largely a testament to intelligent engineering and knowing its limits. As well as extensive use of high-strength aluminum, it was also built with plenty of external ribs to increase its durability without adding unnecessary extra weight.

The QR25DE was built for light and medium-duty work, so you’ll only find a turbo version of this engine in the garages of the craziest hotrod scientists. However, there was a supercharged version, the QR25DER, which was paired with an electric motor in the 2014 Infiniti QX60 and produced up to 250 horsepower.

Nissan has continued production of the QR25DE, but it has largely been phased out in favor of the MR20DE, better known as the Renault M4R, which still powers the new Brazilian Sentra, where it has been converted to a flex-fuel engine that runs on gasoline and ethanol.

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The V6 that has been named Engine of the Year more often than any other

Nissan’s V6 engine is reliable, powerful and durable enough to be used in a wide range of different vehicles, from trucks to sports cars.

As for the Frontier, the 2020 model was still part of the last generation, but introduced a new V6 engine that can also be found in the 2024 Frontier. The 3.8-liter V6 produces 310 horsepower and is paired with a new nine-speed automatic transmission. This new engine belongs to a completely different but equally popular Nissan engine family, the VQ series.

How to reach a million miles with your own border

2007 Nissan Frontiers with the larger 4.0-liter V6 engine have a known issue with the timing chain’s plastic guide wearing out, which can lead to transmission failure, meaning they may not be the best option for reaching a million miles. But the 2.5-liter four-cylinder that got Mr. Murphy’s pickup to a million miles has no such problem. However, we were able to find one complaint on RepairPal where a driver reported having to replace the engine at 153,089 miles after it wouldn’t start, which was due to an oil system issue that could be narrowed down to either the pump or the oil switch.

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What are the obvious signs that an oil change is needed?

Ideally, you should change your oil before your car shows signs that it needs it, such as the oil warning light coming on. A low oil level, dirty or contaminated oil, a burning smell, exhaust smoke, or unusual noises can all indicate that your car needs an oil change.

Given such a low frequency, it may be tempting to simply dismiss these concerns, but remember that there is no such thing as a completely problem-free engine. No matter what tests the automaker puts these things through, there will always be workmanship defects and imperfections, and the closest thing to a perfect engine is one where it takes a very long time for those imperfections to become a problem.

Ultimately, poor maintenance is the biggest engine killer and is usually due to delayed or neglected maintenance. Oil is the biggest engine killer and too little oil (or the wrong oil) in your engine could ruin any intention of hitting seven-figure mileage. In other words, if you plan on driving a million miles in a 2007 2.5 Frontier, keep your eyes, ears and nose open for signs of too little oil:

• Engine overheating
• Oil puddles under the truck
• Burning oil smells
• Knocking or grinding noises
• Lower fuel consumption
• Oil pressure warning light

The secret to reaching seven-digit mileage is not rocket science

Getting a million miles on the clock comes down to two main factors: choosing the right vehicle and taking good care of it. Almost any engine can do a million miles, but some will cost more to maintain than to replace after the first 200,000 miles.

Of course, this all goes without saying, but look at CarComplaints and RepairPal and count the drivers who drove 100,000 miles without a single oil change and then called their car a junk car when it finally broke down. It’s downright shocking how many drivers there are who have never even glanced at their maintenance schedule.

If Brian Murphy keeps this up, sometime in the next decade he’ll be celebrating his 75th birthday with his second million miles in a Nissan Frontier.

Sources:
RepairPal, Car Complaints, Nissan