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Victor Sheppard has put a lot of miles on his Toyota Tundra since buying it new in 2007 – one million, to be precise.

“My truck looks great, and, except for a few little dents, it’s almost like new,” said Sheppard in a statement from Toyota. “Even the seats look just as they were when I bought it. They’re not as clean, of course, but they’re not busted or worn out.”

Images provided by Toyota

For the past decade, Sheppard has been driving about 125,000 miles (201,000 kilometres) a year, regularly going from his home in Louisiana to North Dakota, Wyoming and Virginia for his job. The truck still has its original engine, transmission and paint job, but it has been at the dealership 117 times for service.

Related: How a Toronto-area Corolla is driven beyond 999,999 kilometres

His intention was to continue driving it, but Toyota had other plans. Company engineers believe the truck’s longevity can offer insight into future products.

“Having a million-mile truck in as pristine condition as this one with original parts is a truly rare find,” said Toyota’s chief tuck engineer Mike Sweers in a statement.

Victor Sheppard's truck earlier this year

So Toyota made Sheppard a deal. Toyota traded Sheppard straight up for a 2016 Tundra.

“Our team plans to tear down the entire truck, bumber-to-bumper, top-to-bottom to evaluate how the quality and safety we designed, engineered and built into the Tundra has held up to over one-million miles of real-world driving,” said Sweers.

Victor Sheppard with Toyota Tundra chief engineer Mike Sweers.

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