We keep cars for atleast 10 years.
This car served me really well for one and a half year after which the compressor went bust, and i would waste alot of time and money to get it fixed. It worked temporarily after which it would again cause problems.
I couldn't bother to fix it again and again in the 50 degrees June heat so I decided to get rid of it.
A lot of other jdm users have similar problems.
This time I wanted to buy a more powerful car and the best option was vitz. Which would cost me 15 lacs and yet still cause issues used cars have (no idea whether they're accidented or not, parts availability issue, no official mechanics who know what to do at every 5000 kms, etc) .
So this is why I opted for swift auto and i am really enjoying it. I'm sure it will be problem free for the next 5-6 years atleast.
My advice for everyone who wants a trouble free car to keep long term like me -
For a small students /single young professionals car : suzuki wagon r
To upgrade from that : swift manual /auto
Small family: honda city aspire. Proper family saloon :honda civic top of the line variant.
Anything beyond this ( which is unnecessary) should be bought brand new ie bmw, Mercedes, etc.