1965 Ford Mustang GT Rolls Over One Million Miles

Think you’ve put a lot of miles on your car? Then have a talk with Bob Lucas of Santa Ana, whose 1965 Ford Mustang GT is not only Totally Hot, but Totally High Mileage. Compared to his cherished pony car, even most other classics are mere babies when it comes to their odometer. Just how many has Lucas put on the car since buying it new off a dealer lot in La Puente in 1964? Over 1 million.

That, of course, is Lucas’ best estimate, as the car’s six-digit odometer has turned over so many times. And that odometer, as with even the horn on the car, continue to work.

The car has been Lucas’ daily driver since he bought it, and it has never given him much trouble. He’s been through three engines in the vehicle since he’s had it, and each “went the distance before it was swapped out,” Lucas, 79, says.

The car features a 289-cubic-inch V-8 and a C4 three-speed automatic transmission, which is original, as far as Lucas recollects.

The only major modification Lucas has on the car is an Edelbrock intake and a 650 Edelbrock carburetor.

The car remains his only vehicle, and Lucas continues to rack up 20,000 to 25,000 miles a year on it. He may be retired from his career as an educator, but he remains a busy guy, he says, donating much of his time to the Connected Blessings food ministry to help the needy.

So what’s his secret to going a million miles in the same car?

Well, he doesn’t really have one.

“My car has not been babied or given special treatment,” he says. “It’s just good transportation.”

He does replace parts as they wear out, but even that all-important maintenance ritual – the oil change – he only does “conveniently.”

“It’s a terrible thing to say, but it’s the truth,” he says. Usually he gets to the oil every 5,000 to 7,000 miles.

The car still garners a lot of thumbs-ups from others, and Lucas regularly receives offers to sell the car, but as you can imagine, he has to decline. “I couldn’t find anything to take its place,” he explains.

So what advice does Lucas have for others to get the most from their cars? “Drive as steady as you can and make the signals,” he says.

“Many people sell their cars and get whatever is newer,” Lucas says. But for him, “this car still holds all the thrill and enjoyment of any car I have ever had. Thanks Ford, great job.”