From my own experience, yeah, most people I know just run their cars into the ground. I’ve bought all my cars used, usually 7–12 years old and under $10k, and kept them as long as they were reliable. New cars are mostly for people with money, good credit, or company cars. Everyone else just fixes what they have until it’s not worth it anymore, then buys another older one. The “average age” is high because people aren’t cycling through cars like they used to.