A typical new car practically lasts way longer than a car built 30-50 years ago, early 2-3x the value there. Account for significant reduction in chance of death, MPG improvements, and these numbers make complete sense.
Yeah but compare it to a truck in the late 90s not really a huge difference in economic value. Bit more luxury but a 1/2 ton truck is still a 1/2 ton truck it can do about the same amount of work but it can go 0-60 a bit faster
That is how it is supposed to work, yes, but those numbers are questionable - I'd be curious to see if that data actually can be shown to pan out, esp as certain vehicles have systemic issues which cause them to not last as long as the claimed lifetime.