Age Vs Mileage, where is the sweet spot?

Adrian_Thompson said:

call me a pimpy Euro fag

So I know it's meant to be a joke, but can we not throw slurs around on here? Thanks.

Anyway, since I'm not just here to drag you through the muck, here's some thoughts as this is a fun exercise. I don't mind newer, higher mileage vehicles as the only way to get them that way in less time is highway driving. And highway driving gets everything up to temperature, generally doesn't involve slamming through potholes or heavy acceleration/braking, etc. A car that's only got 30k after 6-8 years may seem enticing, but did it do all of that distance slamming through city streets? And as others have said, how's all the rubber doing by then?

For your wife, I like the idea of a few years old, sub-50k-miles. You can run whatever you buy her to 100k with basic oil changes and maybe a set of brakes/tires, do the 100k services, and keep trucking.

For you... well, I had a L322 Range Rover and adored it. The LR3/LR4/L322 RR's are some wonderful trucks and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend one at all. But, they will not be the "every 50k miles" kinds of trucks to own. If you are okay with random, small things needing attention, get one of those or the Pepper wagon. My L322 was a 5.0L SC model and I sold it at 105k miles with no issues. 

Mileage doesn't scare me in general, it's just a number. My Range Rover came to me with 94k on it, but a full stack of service records with nothing neglected. I prepared a very clean, 21k-mile Mercedes 560 SEC AMG for sale and the "oh, low mileage!" queen needed almost $7k in work to make it sale-ready. Buy the owner, not the car.

Honestly, I dont go out looking for a specific brand or model, i shop based on what kind or class of car I'm looking for and choose the one that is the best deal, that has good CONSUMER reviews and has an owner that I believe took care of it. 

As in "SUV that can tow" eliminates all FWD based SUVs for me, I am an outdoorsman so 4x4 is needed too.  Then I shop 4X4 SUVs until I find one with the features, owner and price that I like, then I check what owners or former owners have to say about them, then go look at the car, paying special attention to the things that others have had issue with.  Like, we all want a BMW that has an all metal rad and puke tank and not owned by a female college student 1700 miles from home, or a mid 70s Honda twin with a headgasket that doesn't weep oil on your leg, or a redblock powered Volvo that has oil squirters, a Nissan 240 that's not lowered on ebay coilovers and owner by a 19 yr old male and on and on.  Mileage and age are really only a consideration for me AFTER I verify all the other boxes are checked