The cars with the best & worst maintenance costs

February 28, 2023

There are so many factors to consider in whether a vehicle is right for you, from safety to practicality. A Statista consumer survey found that Americans prioritize fuel efficiency, safety and cost when it comes to the auto market, but what about reliability?

Consumer Reports’ annual data tests more than 300,000 vehicles a year and found that Lexus, Mazda and Toyota are the most reliable brands you can buy in the U.S. There are considerable advantages to owning a low-maintenance vehicle. You don’t have to worry about frequent breakdowns, and they are more likely to hold their value in the long run.

This is beneficial in a world where buying and owning cars is more expensive than ever. Since the Covid-19 pandemic, new car prices are reaching record highs, and the American Automobile Association (AAA) estimates that maintenance alone will cost the average driver $800 per year. To find out which new vehicles on the market offer the best value for money when it comes to repairs, ClunkerJunker analyzed data for 185 of the most common cars you can buy.

Image Credit: Depositphotos.com.

Key Findings

Toyotas are the cheapest to maintain in the long run, costing just 13.5% of their average worth over 10 years, while fellow Japanese brand Mitsubishi is the most expensive, with maintenance at 29.5% of the average car’s value.
Tesla’s long-term reliability makes them the cheapest luxury brand to maintain, costing just 7.1% of their value, while BMWs will cost you 25.3% of their price in upkeep over a decade.
The Toyota Land Cruiser is America’s cheapest non-luxury car to keep in working order — it will set you back just 7.3% of its original value over a 10-year span.
Tesla’s famous Model S is the cheapest luxury vehicle, with maintenance costing just 4.6% of its value in a decade.

Cars With the Best Maintenance Costs Relative to Their Value

Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.

5. Porsche

10-Year Maintenance Cost ($): 22,075

Avg New Car Price ($): 127,812

10-Year Maintenance Cost as % of Avg New Car Price: 17.27%

Image Credit: GearBrain.

4. GMC

10-Year Maintenance Cost ($): $8,429

Avg New Car Price ($): $58,873

10-Year Maintenance Cost as % of Avg New Car Price: 14.32%

Image Credit: GMC.

3. Toyota

10-Year Maintenance Cost ($): $5,996

Avg New Car Price ($): $44,714

10-Year Maintenance Cost as % of Avg New Car Price: 13.41%

Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.

2. Lexus

10-Year Maintenance Cost ($): $7,786

Avg New Car Price ($): $63,420

10-Year Maintenance Cost as % of Avg New Car Price: 12.28%

Image Credit: ClassicCars.com.

1. Tesla

10-Year Maintenance Cost ($): $5,867

Avg New Car Price ($):$82,790

10-Year Maintenance Cost as % of Avg New Car Price: 7.09%

Image Credit: GearBrain.

Cars With the Worst Maintenance Costs Relative to Their Value

The following are the cars with the worst maintenance costs relative to their value.

Image Credit: Depositphotos.com.

5. Chrysler

10-Year Maintenance Cost ($): $11,364

Avg New Car Price ($) $42,723

10-Year Maintenance Cost as % of Avg New Car Price: 26.6%

Image Credit: Depositphotos.com.

4. Jeep

10-Year Maintenance Cost ($): $11,476

Avg New Car Price ($): $42,324

10-Year Maintenance Cost as % of Avg New Car Price: 27.11%

Image Credit: Depositphotos.com.

3. Ram

10-Year Maintenance Cost ($): $16,802

Avg New Car Price ($): $60,534

10-Year Maintenance Cost as % of Avg New Car Price: 27.76%

Image Credit: DarthArt / istockphoto.

2. Hyundai

10-Year Maintenance Cost ($): $8,714

Avg New Car Price ($): $30,945

10-Year Maintenance Cost as % of Avg New Car Price: 28.16%

Image Credit: DepositPhotos.com.

1. Mitsubishi

10-Year Maintenance Cost ($): $7,787

Avg New Car Price ($): $26,425

10-Year Maintenance Cost as % of Avg New Car Price: 29.47%

Image Credit: bluebeat76 / istockphoto.

Methodology

To determine the cars with the best and worst maintenance costs relative to their value, The Clunker Junker reviewed data on 10-year maintenance costs from CarEdge for 185 of the most popular standard and luxury car models in the United States.

We calculated the 10-year maintenance cost for each model as a percentage of the average price of a new model. Data on the average price for new models came from the CarEdge loan calculator.

Average prices for brands were calculated using prices for all individual models within that brand. Fiat was excluded from the analysis due to the small sample size. CarEdge maintenance cost data is aggregated from millions of automotive data points from a variety of the auto industry’s leading data providers.

The data was gathered in September 2022.