Top 10 Least Expensive Car Brands To Maintain
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No driver wants a car from a brand that is known for high maintenance costs, especially if you plan to keep the car for a long time. You wouldn’t want to spend the bulk of your money on servicing and repairs when you could have simply gone for cars that are cheaper to maintain.
The truth is that there are quite a lot of car brands that provide cars that are cheap to maintain. Car brands like Toyota, Hyundai, Kia, Mazda, and Honda are among the east expensive car brands to maintain. Their low maintenance cost stems from their high-level durability, extended warranty coverage, access to replacement parts, and fewer system complexities.
To help you make better market decisions, this article highlights some of the least expensive car brands to maintain. Here we discuss tips for how to determine the maintenance cost of these car brands.
Table of Contents
Least Expensive Car Brands To Maintain
1. Toyota
There are no arguments that Toyota is one of the least expensive car brands to maintain. According to Repairpal, Toyota has an annual repair cost of $441. This is cheaper than the $652 average repair and maintenance cost across other car brands.
Toyota’s estimated maintenance cost over ten years is $5,500. The truth is that Toyota isn’t just one of the least maintenance car brands, but it has the lowest car maintenance costs.
With Toyota, you get economical cars like Toyota Prius, Tacoma, Corolla, Yaris, Highlander, and Camry. These car brands are very cheap to maintain.
Toyota’s cheap maintenance cost stems from its engineering principles. Their engines are easy to understand and work on, the cars are super reliable, and maintenance cost is very cheap. Compared to other car brands, Toyota spare and replacement parts are very affordable.
To sustain durability, Toyota doesn’t focus on producing high-output engines. There are fewer pressure demands on their engines, and there isn't any complexity in the components. Toyota’s driver assistance systems aren’t complex, they offer easy-to-understand designs.
2. Honda
Honda is another car brand with low maintenance costs. According to Repairpal, Honda has an annual repair cost of $428. Your Mechanic estimates that the cost of maintenance of Honda over ten years is $7200. Although this is higher than Toyota, it’s still quite good.
Honda’s warranty coverage is not as strong as what Hyundai offers, but Honda provides admirable reliability. With Honda’s level of reliability, you’ll only have to bother with standard routine maintenance, oil filter changes, servicing, brake changes, tire alignment, replacement, and rotations. As long as you maintain good driving conditions, Honda cars give you few reasons to spend a lot on repairs.
3. Lexus
Consider getting a car from the Lexus brand if you are concerned about repair and maintenance costs. According to Repairpal, Lexus has an annual repair cost of $551. Your Mechanic estimates that Lexus has a 10-year maintenance cost of $7,000.
This is cheaper than the maintenance cost of Honda, but Honda has a less frequent repairs. This doesn’t imply that Lexus cars are a bad choice.
Lexus cars have high standards of durability and reliability. Their cars aren’t prone to problems, and you can always expect them to last long. The Lexus brand is Toyota’s luxury division, so you get as much quality as what’s obtainable on Toyotas.
Repairs on Lexus vehicles are easy to identify and easy to complete. The parts are very affordable as well. You can even find cheap OEM replacement parts for Lexus vehicles. Tech is solid, the build quality is amazing, and unlike most car brands, Lexus doesn’t change the parts on its cars on every new model’s release.
4. Mitsubishi
Mitsubishi might not be as popular as Toyota and Honda, but we can’t deny the fact that they are very cheap to maintain. According to Repairpal, Mitsubishi has an average annual repair/maintenance cost of $535. You Mechanic estimates that Mitsubishi has a maintenance cost of $7400 over ten years.
Mitsubishi also offers a 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty, a 5-year/60,000-mile new vehicle limited warranty, and a 7-year/100,000-mile anti-corrosion warranty. The extended warranty coverage of Mitsubishi shields you from a whole lot of expenses as your years of ownership progress.
Mitsubishi is so cheap to maintain because of the reliability of the brand. With Mitsubishi, you have fewer reasons to visit a repair shop.
5. Mazda
Mazda cars might not be the best option if you are looking for stylish cars, but if there’s one thing that the brand gets right, it is maintenance cost. Cars from Mazda are very cheap to maintain and they require less maintenance servicing and checkups. With Mazda get the assurance of driving cars with great fuel economy.
There aren’t many complications in their designs, just go under the hood and you can easily figure out everything from there. Oil changes are very cheap, often between $45 - $75.
According to Repairpal, Mazda has an annual repair cost of $462. Your Mechanic estimates that Mazda has a 10-year maintenance cost of $7,500. This is cheaper than most brands.
6. Nissan
Nissan is one of the most underrated car brands. While some of their cars have a history of problems like sensor issues and problems with the catalytic converter, we can’t deny the fact that they offer low-maintenance cars.
The Nissan brand has an excellent reputation for producing reliable cars that last long, giving you fewer reasons to hit the repair shop. According to Repairpal, you can expect an annual repair cost of $500. Your Mechanic estimates that Nissan has a 10-year maintenance cost of $7,600.
7. Hyundai
Hyundais are one of the cheapest car brands to maintain. One of the major factors influencing Hyundai’s cheap maintenance cost is its warranty coverage. Just like Mitsubishi, Hyundai has one of the longest warranty coverage. You get 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty coverage, and a 5-year/60,000-mile bumper-to-bumper warranty coverage.
Aside from the long warranty coverage, Hyundais are also cheap to maintain.
According to Repairpal, Hyundai has an average annual repair cost of $468. Your Mechanic estimates that Hyundai has a 10-year warranty coverage of $8,200.
8. Subaru
The maintenance cost on Subaru is a mixed ball. However, overall, it’s considered a low-maintenance car brand. According to Repairpal, Subaru has an average annual repair cost of $617.
Your Mechanic estimates that Subaru’s maintenance is around $8200 over a 10-year span. This is higher than the maintenance cost of Toyota, Lexus, Honda, Mazda, and even Mitsubishi, but cheaper than Jeep, Chevys, Ford, etc.
One maintenance cost consideration is that Subaru produces mostly AWD vehicles. This means that whenever one tire wears, you must replace the entire four tires.
9. Kia
Kia is one of the least expensive car brands to maintain and also a great choice for drivers that want low-maintenance, stylish, and fun vehicles. According to Repairpal, Kia has an annual average maintenance cost of $474. Your Mechanic estimates that Kia has a 10-year average maintenance cost of $8,800.
Aside from the cheap maintenance cost, Kia vehicles also offer you fewer reasons to visit the repair shop. Its 10-year/100,000-mile warranty program is enough to cushion the cost of repairs and maintenance for a long time.
10. Buick
According to Repairpal, the average annual repair cost of a Buick is $608. Your Mechanic estimates that Buick has a 10-year maintenance cost of $8,600. This is not bad for a car brand.
Aside from the fact that Buick is a low-maintenance car brand, you get the assurance that they last long.
Car maintenance costs by brand
| Car Brand | Maintenance Cost |
| Honda | |
| Toyota | |
| Mazda | |
| Hyundai | |
| Kia | |
| Nissan | |
| Mitsubishi | |
| Lexus | |
| Buick | |
| Subaru |
What Car Brand Has The Lowest Maintenance Costs?
Toyota and Honda are car brands with the lowest maintenance cost. You get an average repair/maintenance cost of $428 on Honda, and $441 on Toyota.
However, Toyota beats Honda with a 10-year maintenance cost of $5500, while Honda has a 10-year maintenance cost of $7,200.
Factors that determine the maintenance cost of a car brand
- Durability
- Frequency of repairs
- Complexity
- Availability and affordability of parts
- Warranty Coverage
- Fuel Economy
Conclusion
Now you know the least expensive car brands to choose from. The maintenance cost includes the cost of repairs, but also the cost to keep them on the road.
However, you must know that maintenance cost varies across the different models of these brands. So it is important to carry out extensive research before making a decision.
Maintenance costs increase as the years of usage increase, so you shouldn’t worry if your Toyota car demands more maintenance as it gets older.
