Benjamin Franklin once said that the only things certain in life are death and taxes. Had he been born a couple centuries later, he definitely would have included car repairs in that statement.
At some point during the first five years of ownership, even the best-made vehicles with the highest quality ratings will likely have something go awry that requires repair. Unfortunately for some car owners, those repairs may not come cheap. So if you're planning to buy a car on a tight or specific budget, you might want to factor in–along with fuel and insurance–the cost of repairing a vehicle when the warranty expires.
At the top of our list of the most expensive luxury vehicles to repair are the Audi A8 and Mercedes-Benz G Class, both with five-year estimated repair costs of $1,640. Rounding out the luxury vehicles in the top five are the Jaguar XK,at $1,629; Land Rover Range Rover, at $1,600; and Mercedes-Benz CL Class, at $1,540.
To determine the average amount consumers might pay to keep their new cars in operating condition, we used 2008 repair estimates calculated over a five-year period by Vincentric, an auto-industry data-analysis company. Vincentric looks at the cost of zero-deductible, bumper-to-bumper extended-warranty claims to calculate the average cost owners can expect to pay for repairs. This estimate does not include maintenance, which Vincentric measures separately.
Owners of luxury and high-performance cars can expect to shell out more money for repairs over time not necessarily because these are lower-quality cars, but because labor and parts cost more for those vehicles, explains David Wurster, president of Vincentric. Wurster estimates that owners of these vehicles may pay $100 per hour for labor, while owners of normal cars may only pay $70.
Timothy Zilke, president of the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence, says that today's vehicles are “sophisticated and complex machines” and that “the average car has six to 20 computers that help manage everything from the sunroof to anti-lock braking system to the electronically controlled transmission.” Zilke says auto technicians face components repairs “virtually unheard of a generation ago,” and need to be “master diagnosticians well-versed in electronics.”
Audis, for example, according to an Audi technician in Los Angeles, have electronic sensors on their brakes, so replacing their brake pads is more complicated and takes more time. The hourly labor cost will vary, but such work on an Audi may be $250 without labor, compared with $150 on a non-luxury vehicle.
Similarly, the Dodge Viper, though not defined as a luxury vehicle, is a high-powered sports car that has a start price of $84,460. Dodge spokeswoman Kathy Graham says that technicians who work on Vipers have to take a special class to learn the nuances of repairing them. Dodge only makes 1,500 Vipers each year, so parts are scarce. Most owners like to race their Vipers on tracks, and to help the vehicle better handle such an environment, Dodge added a front sporter that hangs low on the car and is easily damaged if it scrapes a cement parking-lot block. The cost to replace it is $1,800, says Graham. Overall, the Viper has the highest estimated repair costs of any vehicle over a five-year period, at $1,641.
Workhorse vehicles powered by turbocharged diesel engines also require more skill to repair their complex mechanical systems designed for pulling and towing heavy loads. The super-duty Ford F450 has a five-year estimated repair cost of $1,295. Other large trucks such as the Dodge Ram 3500 and the Chevrolet Silverado 3500 clocked in at $1,282 and $1,094, respectively, for their five-year repair costs.
The high repair costs, in part, are due to greater wear and tear, compared with a BMW or Mercedes-Benz.
Also on our list of the most expensive non-luxury cars to repair are the Hummer H2, at $1,484; Hummer H3, at $1,244; Ford Mustang, at $1,201; Mini Cooper Convertible, at $1,093; Subaru Impreza, at $1,006; and GMC Yukon and Chrysler Pacifica, at $970 each.
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On the bright side, repair costs are a mere ripple when compared with the total cost of ownership, which includes maintenance, fuel, depreciation, insurance and interest, says Wurster. “In most of these vehicles, the cost is 3% or less than the five-year total cost of ownership.”
Additionally, quality improvements and improved warranties have helped lower repair costs over time. Manufacturer “bumper to bumper” warranties cover many different types of repairs during the first three years or 36,000 miles of ownership, like brakes, air conditioning units and power systems like windows and door locks. Power trains are typically covered for an additional 12 to 24 months beyond the bumper-to-bumper warranty. Typically, you won't begin to incur significant repair costs until the final two of the first five years of ownership.
“As the quality goes up, the repairs go down,” says Wurster. “That could be bad news for parts and services in dealerships.”
But that's good news for consumers who don't want to spend more than expected to keep their new rides running smoothly.
