The world of automotive records has a new, seemingly unbeatable benchmark, thanks to one American man and his trusty classic car. Irvin “Irv” Gordon, a retired school teacher from Long Island, New York, has officially secured the Guinness World Record for the Highest Certified Mileage Driven by the Original Owner in a Non-Commercial Vehicle, with his 1966 Volvo P1800S.
By the time of his passing in 2018, Gordon had logged a staggering over 3.25 million miles on the car’s odometer—a distance equivalent to traversing the globe over 130 times, or driving to the moon and back more than six times. In metric units, this incredible feat translates to over 52 lakh kilometers.
Gordon purchased the cherry-red Volvo coupé in 1966 and immediately fell in love, reportedly driving 1,500 miles (about 2,400 km) in the first weekend alone. His daily commute and passion for long road trips across North America helped him quickly amass the miles. He hit his first million miles in 1987, reached two million in 2002, and officially crossed the three-million-mile mark in 2013 in Alaska.
The record is a testament not only to the robust Swedish engineering of the Volvo P1800S but also to Gordon’s fastidious maintenance routine. He often credited his success to following the owner’s manual religiously, changing the oil every 3,000 to 3,500 miles, and performing his own basic upkeep.
In an often-quoted quip that highlighted the car’s incredible value and his attachment to it, Gordon had previously joked about an offer he made to the manufacturer. He reportedly told Volvo he would sell the record-holding vehicle back to the company—but only for $1 per mile accumulated.
With the odometer reading past the 3.25 million-mile mark at his passing, that humorous offer would have priced the classic Volvo at over $3.25 million, a price tag Volvo politely declined to meet, though they did present him with new Volvo models at his previous million-mile milestones.
The legendary P1800S, which has since been acquired by Volvo, continues to be a symbol of longevity and dedication, cementing Irv Gordon’s place in automotive history.
