Forget those million milers flying around in airplanes, sitting back and letting the pilots do all the work — we’re pretty amazed that one man has had the time and desire to drive not one million, not just two million, but almost three million miles in the last 46 years in a single car. He and his trusty 1966 Volvo are only 34,000 miles from crossing the three-million mile threshold together. That’s a lot of road trips.

Irvin bought the Volvo P1800S for $4,150 at the age of 25, which was a big investment back then, he tells the Associated Press — a whole year’s salary. He’s made sure to get the most bang for his buck since then, nabbing the Guinness World Records title for High Mileage Vehicle in 2002. It took him 21 years to hit a million miles and another 15 for two million — so what’s his secret to racking up enough miles to circle the globe 1,176 times?

“It’s just a car I enjoy driving,” he said.

He’s the only one who drives it and makes sure to keep good care of it. He started taking road trips when he was young, and continued driving his family on vacations in the car until they outgrew the two-door vehicle. Now that he’s divorced he still takes trips, with drives to Montreal, Texas and Michigan from his home in Long Island in only the last month.

“I have had coffee in every state,” he said. “I am my own travel channel.”

He adds that his car will not only hit three million miles, but he thinks it will outlast him as well. And he won’t be parting with it anytime soon.

“Why would I want to get rid of it?” he asked. “Kind of like a good woman.”

LIer’s ’66 Volvo nears 3 million miles [Associated Press]

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