Lots of car consumers (carsumers™) are single-make buyers, steadfastly loyal to Toyotas or Fords or Hondas or whatever. No big deal there. Repeat model buyers are a rarer breed, but hardly uncommon. Yours truly owned not one but two Dodge Omnis (full disclosure, one was a Plymouth Horizon, but come on). My Dad was a Volkswagen guy for a good bit before going all-in on Toyotas. He started with a used Type 3 which (according to my Mom) made 2-year-old me cry because I saw it belch fire from the exhaust and I thought it was going to explode. That squareback was followed by two consecutive Beetles, but I only remember the last one–a red convertible Super with a black top. Now that was a car. Would Paul Newman lie to you? 
So tell us: which car models have you purchased more than once? Or enough times to extend to near-infinity, like whoever assembled that impressive fleet of Nissan Figaros in the top shot? What made you such a fan–or did you, like, just happen to end up getting two Honda Civics in a row? And FYI, it’s cool if your tale of multiple-models isn’t actually yourself but your mom, dad, brother, friend, weirdo on the outskirts of town … we’re not policing this thing.
To the comments!
First car I owned was a Vauxhall Magnum (Google -I’m old and a Brit). Had a super powerful 1800cc 4 cylinder (77 bhp when new – not what one I owned had left). Desperately wanted the bigger engine – a whole 2300cc of power, but insurance for a 18 year old made that impossible. Drove that thing hundreds of miles until the filler (bondo) fell out and it was consigned to the scrappers. Roll on 15 years and I need a temp car – buy the 2300cc Magnum. Every dream I had dashed – was a POS, didn’t stop, steer or get above 65 mph. Lasted 4 weeks before I capitulated, sold it and bought a modern (for the time) Ford Sierra. Still think about buying another one (generally after a lot of alcohol), but fortunately the cost of shipping over here (now in Florida) makes this highly unlikely…
Ford Edge, a 2008 and a 2011.
My partner bought a 2009 Honda Fit in early 2010. Great little car up until the point it intercepted a city transit bus in 2015. Some time later, a parent gets a 2010 Fit. Then, parent’s significant other likes it so much that they get another 2nd gen Fit. So now my one parent and their significant other have two 2nd gen Fits for cars.
I thought I did not have an answer, but realized I do. Honda Accord Hatchback, 82 and 85. I had an Accord wagon, but that doesn’t count, IMHO.
Things I have owned multiple examples of include 3 Leyland P76s, 5 or so Datsun 610s (both sedan and coupe versions, including a V8 swap and an FJ20ET swap), and LOTS of Datsun 510s – I’m not actually sure how many I have owned in total, I think I had 6+ in my possession at one point but had them stashed everywhere so I’m not actually sure!
Miata for me. I have had a 90, 90, 92, 92, 95, 96, 97, 99, 99 plus parts from two other 92s. Still have my original 96 and 97.
A 1999 Z3 2.3 and then a 2001 Z3 3.0. The 2001 is really the only car I have ever regretted selling.
More recently we had a 2015 Mazda3 that we swapped for a 2017. Fantastic decision.
I was stuck on Renaults for quite some time. I don’t know why. Possibly a brain aneurysm. Owned a 4CV, a Dauphine, an R10, an R12 (with which I fell in love with FWD in 1972), an R15, and an R17 Gordini. Oh, and back there in the beginning I had a 1961 Renault Caravelle that need a clutch that I never could find, so it stayed in the yard.
R17 Gordini! Not a name you hear every day.
I’ve owned three early 80s Corollas, ’80 lift back, ’80 2 door sedan, and an ’82. Lift back, all between 1985 and 1991. Then I had two CRXs, one of each generation, and ’86 Si and a ’90 DX. I would happily take another (or more) E34 525 though.
Triumph Spitfire (too numerous to count, both round tail and square tail)
Triumph TR6 (72, 72, 73, 75)
Triumph TR7 (78, 80)
Triumph 2000 Mk. 1 (65, 67 Estate)
Jaguar XJS (80, 84)
Jeep Grand Cherokee (96, 99)
Mazda Miata/MX-5 (03, 21)
MGB (67, 80)
Of those, two Spitfires (67, 71), two TR6s (73, 75) and the 2021 MX-5 are the only ones I currently own.
P.S. we are NOT counting parts cars…if we were, this list would be a LOT longer!
It’s boring, but we have leased 6 of the GM Lambda and then C1XX 3-row vehicles. Started with a 2009 Traverse, then a 2012 Acadia, 2015 Enclave, 2017 Acadia, 2000 Enclave, and now have a 2023 Acadia. I never felt comfortable buying one (I’m not a 3.6L GM engine fan), but with the GM Employee Family discount, they were all pretty cheap leases. They were good family haulers, but now 2 of our 3 kids are in College and we don’t need something big anymore. The 2023 is actually a lease for our oldest to take to college because it was the cheapest way to get him something Awd that can hold all his stuff to move back and forth to college. He goes to Michigan Tech, so they get a ton of snow and he’s often going to be driving 8 hours to/from home in very wintery conditions.
I owned a 2012 Chevy Volt. It was by far the best car I ever owned. I loved the electric mode and the ability to road trip on gas
I was so happy with it, I replaced it with a 2017 Gen 2 Volt when it got a bit long in tooth. I wish GM had stuck with the Voltec system, especially if they had put it on a truck. I’ll keep that Volt until the wheels fall off
I have owned two Camaros, three Challengers, and seven Mustangs. Two door cars are the best looking.
2011, I finally have enough cash for my first car. For some reason, I fell in love with the Peugeot 106. I didn’t know shit about cars back then but a good friend of mine who was a die hard gear head told me how good they were.
I bought a 1200€ ratty 1.1 gas 106. After 3 weeks, some ding ding in a Xsarra Picasso refused me the right of way in a parking lot and totals the car.
Being ever optimistic, I decide to use the insurance money for another 106, but this time a nice one. It had the 1.4 diesel and a lovely blue paint. As the shit young driver I was, I wrecked it after 2 weeks while driving through Romania.
I’d have gone for a third one but my grand father was selling his Renault Clio for a price I could not refuse, which broke the curse of wrecked cars. Still have this one to this day, but I still wanna buy a 106 for the lightweightness.
My wife is on her second F54 Mini Clubman (first was a 2016, now a 2024).
I’ve owned three E34 535i sedans (two ‘89s and one ‘92) plus a ‘95 525i wagon. Also four E30s: an ‘87 325is and three ‘84 318s (I paid a grand total of $400 for all of the 318s). Two E39s: a 528i sedan and a 525i wagon.
Cherokee XJ. I happened across a good 2001 over 10 years ago after my Crown Vic Interceptor had been totaled in an accident. (We’d been watching the Scifi show Eureka at the time, where the indestructability of the Sheriff’s Jeep was a running gag.) I had that one for about 3 years before it was totaled in turn. I snagged another from 1996 and have had it for 7-8 years now. It’s been my daily driver that entire time and is still going strong as it approaches its 30th birthday.
Since I graduated college, every car I’ve owned has been older than the last. (05 Explorer, 04 Focus, 03 Interceptor, 01 Cherokee, 96 Cherokee.) The problem is that, with the length of time that I’ve had this vehicle, I’ve crossed the line from clunker to classic, if I want to maintain the trend and I don’t think I’m going to get a Cherokee that I can drive every day for most of a decade for $2,500 again.
I’ve got two Chevy Prism chilling in the driveway right now. (exciting I know).
1st one I picked up pre pandemic for under $2000 with only 80k on the odo due to my MX6 and Ranger needing major repair work simultaneously (MX6 timing issues Ranger slave cylinder).
2nd one was also a cheap purchase of necessity when my wife’s Fiesta transmission started shitting the bed (good riddance).
We love them. Great city cars. Super reliable and parts are cheap.
Since they both have about the same mileage I just buy doubles of maintenance or repair items, do mine first and then when she sees that I did the work correctly she lets me do the same to hers.
I do want to swap her factory alloy’s for my steelies but I’m pretty sure she’d notice and get mad.
In the VAG family I’ve had 2 Coupe GTs, 2 A4s, 3 GTis (one a 16v), a MkV Rabbit, and a Rallye Golf.
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We had a 2002 Pontiac Aztek (shove it haters) and traded it in for a 2005 one. Same color. It was a good deal (because they were cheap with rebates on top). The first one was out of warranty and would need tires, brakes, etc. We kept the same payments and kept the car until 2012. Very useful vehicles.
My first car was a 96 NA 2.5L Mazda millenia that I loved for about 11-12 years before a mechanic wrecked the engine and I had to scrap it. Years later, while idly browsing craigslist, I found an 02 millenia with the factory 2.3L supercharged V6. I had heard of them but they were so rare I figured I’d likely never see one again, so I bought it. Other than the engine, it was the same car but was much better for those short merges on the east coast with all that power.
Had it for about a year before the reality of finding parts for a 20+ year old, weird engined, obscure car led me to sell it at a massive loss, even in the midst of used the car pricing madness of 2021. I eventually saw it pop up again for sale 6 months later on Facebook marketplace, and while I missed the surprised looks when this anonymous Japanese sedan made supercharger noises when passing on the highway, I let it go this time.
S30 Datsuns—240Z and 260Z, Subaru GLs—’84 auto wagon and ’83 manual sedan, Mk3 Focuses—’12 SE 5-speed and ’16 ST.
I was pretty sure I hadn’t done such a thing and then I remembered I had two consecutive Jeep Grand Cherokees (ZJ) in the 90s. In a very rare move for me I leased them because of how my company was handling car allowances and because the residuals were so high that the leases were incredibly cheap.
They still remain some of the most enjoyable rides I’ve ever had.
Two Rangers: a bare bones ‘97 regular cab XL short bed 2.3L 5-speed, and an ‘02 FX4 4.0L 5-speed.
Two Fusions: a ‘14 1.6L EcoBoost 6-speed, and a ‘17 plug-in hybrid.
Same.
Two Rangers: a bare bones ‘97 regular cab XL 2.3L 5-speed I bought in 2001 and a ‘98 Off Road 4.0L 5-speed. I bought 14 years later when the first one died.
I still have the second one but I’d gladly trade it for the first if it had an extended cab.
Sure, more power and 4×4 is nice but not worth what I pay at the pump these days. For a small truck the gas mileage is terrible. She spends most of her time in a shady spot in my work parking lot these days.
Yeah, definitely a gas mileage penalty. The ‘97 would get 30 MPG easy, and the ‘02 gets maybe 18. But being a 4×4 5-speed FX4 with manual transfer case more than makes up for the mileage penalty. And it’s not my daily anymore anyway.
Yeah, I miss my ‘97 for its abilities as a daily, but I didn’t put manual locking hubs on the ‘98 for nothing. The four wheel drive is rarely needed, but it definitely has been useful in a few situations.
Washed out forest service roads, getting a friend to the airport in a mean morning snowstorm, towing my $250 Mazda up the steep gravel driveway leading out of the seller’s yard. They are work horses.
At 240k mine still starts like a champ and chomps at the bit when I need to pull her out of the pasture and saddle her up for hard use. Great trucks.
Toyotas spread through my garage and family like viruses, but I’ve personally only repeated the Avalon – 2003 traded at 194k miles and a 2014 hybrid that has 132k. Inexpensive used, comfortable and sturdy vehicles.
I grew up riding in a 2001 Sienna that my brother then bought from my parents and then he bought a 2013 (deer collision) and has a 2017. I had a 2018 for a few years – great van, horrid transmission. Both brothers have Tacomas.
The parents fixed up and sold VWs in their early marriage-they flipped a series of 32 60’s and 70’s Beetles, but that’s a whole other sickness.
Two of the ‘facelift’ or MK3.5 Focus ST. The first one was a used ‘16, and my current one is an ‘18. Both are ST3 option level. The first one I bought used because I couldn’t afford a new one at $30k. Tried to find one in Kona Blue, but couldn’t find one, so settled on a black one.
Once 2018 rolled around and the end of production was announced, I started looking for one in the new Blue Metallic color. I found one and loved the color, so I traded in my black one for it. I am slightly bitter about Ford de-contenting some of the little details for the final model year (only one cargo light in the hatch, less LED ambient interior lighting and other details).
It’s been a great daily driver and quite reliable (minimal mods). I sure am going to miss the handling, MPG’s, Recaros and heated steering wheel when I sell if for a Bronco…