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New York Driver Approaches 3,000,000 Miles in His '66 Volvo

Irvin Gordon, of Long Island, is the current Guinness Book of World Records holder for High Mileage Vehicle.

By Joshua Condon Jul 9, 2012 7:54AM
Irv Gordon in his 1966 Volvo P1800. (Image courtesy of MSNBC.)We've told you here of Million Mile Joe, the Maine resident who kept his meticulously maintained 1990 Honda Accord running through a whopping 1,000,000 miles. And while Joe was getting plenty of media attention as he approached that milestone (and a brand new Accord from Honda once he passed it) a New York man was quietly racking up even more miles -- almost 3,000,000 -- in a beautiful red 1966 Volvo P1800.

Irv Gordon, of Long Island, bought the Volvo new in June of '66 for $4,150 (for some, a full year's salary at the time). Since then, Gordon, who has stated a lifelong love of travel, has been racking up the miles: it took 21 years to reach the first million miles, then another 15 to reach the two-million mark, according to MSNBC. Now, 46 years after purchasing the Volvo and already having driven the car the equivalent of 1,200 trips around the globe at the equator, Gordon is less than 40,000 miles from clicking "3,000,000" on the odometer.

And did we mention, since he failed to spring for the option back in '66, Gordon has done all this driving without an air conditioner?

Regular maintenance, oil changes and tune-ups are key to the vehicle's longevity, of course, and the Volvo still has its original engine (albeit rebuilt -- twice). Perhaps Gordon's connection to the car is the secret? The 72-year-old recently told the Associated Press "It’s just a car I enjoy driving.”

At nearly 3,000,000 miles -- a number Gordon expects to hit this year -- we think that may be a bit of an understatement.

(Image courtesy of MSNBC.)[Source: MSNBC.]

926Comments
Jul 9, 2012 9:18AM
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thats 65,217 miles a yr.  1254.18 miles a week! Yeah right,
Jul 9, 2012 9:18AM
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I still have a ax I bought 30 years ago. I replaced the head twice and the handle once. But its the best ax I ever owned.
Jul 9, 2012 9:18AM
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How many motors..trans....brake job,s...tires...A/c...Tires...rear end,s..water pumps...etc ..where is that info.....
Jul 9, 2012 9:18AM
Jul 9, 2012 9:17AM
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How many times did you lose the brakes when a line blew out with a single chamber master cyl.? 
Jul 9, 2012 9:16AM
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If my math is correct, 3,000,000 million miles is equal to 120 trips around the globe at the equator, not 1200.  (i.e. 3,000,000/25,000).  I caught this because I was just telling my kids the other day that my 2002 Ford F150 has 300k on it, equal to 12 trips around the world.  I told them the same thing, if you take care of a car and do simple maintenance, they will last and last.
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and every time auto manufactures hear that they TAKE a little more out of the ones being built today ...they can't sell him a new one he is still useing the one he bought in 1966!!
Jul 9, 2012 9:15AM
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An average of 180 miles per day, every single day for the past 46 years? Hm-m-mmmm! When does this guy eat or sleep?
Jul 9, 2012 9:14AM
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and that wells fargo bank car loan is ALMOST paid off!
Jul 9, 2012 9:14AM
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And to thonk, t's a car with better looks than most of the look-alikes of today!

Go Vul-vo!!

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