I haven't written a post on brand loyalty in some time. As I was driving yesterday, I happened to hit the button to see what my mileage was on my 2013 Toyota Highlander. I hadn't looked in some time as I'm not the one that gets the oil changed and I rely on the alert reminders that it's time to change the oil so that's my excuse for having no idea what it would read. 94,790! I was astonished and I'll tell you why.
This SUV was purchased in El Paso, Texas after it was briefly used by Air Force pilots to drive during an air show at Ft. Gordon. This SUV has been around the block and then some! It went a couple of times from El Paso to Augusta, Georgia as my oldest found out she had ovarian cancer and needed to surgery. It has went numerous times to Indiana to see my family, namely my father. It was also present for my father's funeral a couple of years later.
It also has seen a lot of fun and participated in making memories on many different road trips. Our biggest road trip outside of back and forth to Augusta, was starting in Texas, moving up through New Mexico to Colorado as I had to stop and see where Peyton Manning played given how much I love that man! No, I'm not a stalker! I also wanted to see the playground built in memory of a sweet little girl who was murdered. Her name was Jessica Ridgeway. After Colorado, it was onward to see the Crazy Horse Memorial and Mount Rushmore in South Dakota. From there, we went to Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming and eventually stayed at a ranch in Idaho. On our way home, we continued down Utah and Arizona until back again in Texas.
This Toyota also went from El Paso to Virginia a couple of times crossing many more states. Another time, it visited Gettysburg, PA to pay our respects to the men of the Civil War. It also visited many many Civil War battlegrounds. It's been to Florida several times and visited cool places like Ft. King George and many more.
Needless to say, this Toyota Highlander has probably seen more states than many people in our country. Obviously with 97,000+ miles! The big deal about this is that this vehicle has NEVER been in the shop. I've never had any issues with it with the exception of maybe a minor recall for a part. It's now nearing the time where it needs a visit as it sounds like I'm almost driving a diesel now. The brakes are starting to get a little loose but stop on a dime. It won't be long though. I did replace the tires once. I've owned quite a few new cars throughout my life and none have ever had such a great driving history as this Toyota. I'm amazed and couldn't be happier!
My son-in-law works at a Toyota plant which I'm pretty proud of because Toyota is about quality. Last weekend, I was able to see the new Toyota Highlander in our local parade and it looks amazing! I don't hear much about people giving others grief about buying American but I can tell you living in a town that has a big facility, buying a Toyota does support America. I see the vast number of employees parked at their facility and I see all the feeder businesses that cater to them. Buying a Toyota is buying American. What can I say other than I love my Toyota!
