Fewer miles traveled by the average car and light truck should negatively impact aftermarket product volume, but that’s being offset by increasing odometer readings
Fort Wayne, Ind.—In 2025, the typical U.S. car and light truck traveled nearly 400 fewer miles than in 2019, the year before the COVID-19 2020 mileage decrease accelerated a years-long trend of weakening annual miles per vehicle.
In it’s latest Aftermarket iReport, Lang Marketing projects that miles per vehicle in 2026 will increase only a small amount at best, keeping average vehicle miles in 2026 well below 2019 levels. At the same time, car and light truck odometer readings reached an all-time high last year and are set to climb to a new record in 2026.
The following are highlights from Lang Marketing’s analysis.
VIO and Miles per Vehicle
Last year, the number of light vehicles in operation (VIO) increased at a slightly slower pace than total miles driven by cars and light trucks. As a result, the average car or light truck was driven moderately more miles in 2025 than in the previous year but remained significantly below 2019 levels.
Over a Trillion Miles Lost
Over the past six years (2019 to 2025), the nation’s light vehicle population increased by 4%. At the same time, the annual mileage of cars and light trucks in the U.S. increased by only about 1%.
As a result, there was a total “loss” of over one trillion light vehicle miles during those 6 years, based on the increased number of cars and light trucks on the road each year and their lower annual miles versus 2019.
Fewer Miles but Higher Odometers
Fewer miles traveled by the average car and light truck should negatively impact aftermarket product volume. However, while the average vehicle’s annual mileage has declined over the past six years, its average odometer reading (accumulated miles) has climbed steadily.
Since vehicles with high odometer readings use more aftermarket products per mile than cars and light trucks with lower accumulated mileage, the decline in annual miles by the average vehicle has been offset by the greater accumulated mileage on vehicles that generate more aftermarket product volume per mile traveled.
Six-Year Mileage Decline Per Vehicle
Average miles per light vehicle fell by 1,600 in 2020 as COVID-19 changed Americans’ driving patterns. Before 2020, average annual miles per vehicle declined at a more modest rate, by about 200 miles from 2015 to 2019.
Increasing Odometers
As the average age of cars and light trucks climbed rapidly between 2019 and 2025, adding more than a full year, the accumulated miles per vehicle, recorded by their odometers, reached historically high levels.
From 2019 to 2025, the average light vehicle odometer reading increased by about 10%. As accumulated mileage increases, cars and light trucks require more repairs per mile on average.
Continuing Average Annual Mileage Trend
Lang Marketing expects the average vehicle’s annual mileage to increase moderately in 2026 compared to last year. However, the average vehicle’s annual mileage in 2026 will remain far below the 11,600-plus miles recorded in 2019.
New Aftermarket Growth Dynamics
Older vehicles, with higher odometer readings, average more repair and maintenance product use per mile than newer cars and light trucks, which have accumulated fewer miles.
Lang Marketing expects the number of older vehicles in the U.S., particularly those over 15 years old, will continue to increase throughout the decade, increasing the average vehicle’s odometer level (accumulated mileage). This will help boost aftermarket light-vehicle product volume through the end of the decade, even though the average vehicle’s annual mileage will probably not reach 2019 levels.
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