I think the bigger manufacturers are now pushing vehicle platforms from 7 to 10 years; with mid-cycle refreshes hitting every 3-5 years. Full development inclu

I think the bigger manufacturers are now pushing vehicle platforms from 7 to 10 years; with mid-cycle refreshes hitting every 3-5 years. Full development includes a new platform / new engine. Mid-cycle refreshes are only updates to the exterior / interior, with some potential refinements to the platform and engines. Theres finally been a shift to modular platforms too - VW's MQB/MLB is the first that comes to mind and it covers pretty much their most popular sellers in the entire group (Skoda through to Audi). The smaller manufactures (Mazda, Suzuki etc) are definitely more aggressive, new models hitting every 5 years with a refresh every other or third year. It's also a bit more complex because the development of engines / platforms / vehicles isn't always synchronised; so what does happen very often is that a brand new vehicle is release, then some time later it comes with additional engine / transmission options, followed by a facelift, followed by a platform update, and so on; so you never truly get an "all-new from the ground up" vehicle that often.