What are the most expensive cars to maintain?
Emily Jackson, 4 years ago
5 min read
- Advice
- expensive
Owning a car is one thing. Maintaining it is quite another with so many potential pitfalls along the way, whether that’s repairs, breakdowns, accidents – you name it.
To help you gain a better understanding of the true costs of maintaining a car, we’ve analysed our date to reveal the most expensive cars to maintain in the following categories based on their average repair costs:
Hatchbacks
Saloons
SUV/MPVs
Hatchbacks
Top 5 Non-Premium Hatchback Models
| Car model | Average cost |
|---|---|
| Peugeot 207 | £208.37 |
| Hyundai Getz | £208.34 |
| Volkswagen Golf | £207.68 |
| Renault Clio | £201.48 |
| Peugeot 107 | £201.24 |
Top 5 Premium Hatchback Models
| Car model | Average cost |
|---|---|
| Audi A3 | £215.02 |
| BMW 1 Series | £213.79 |
| Volvo C30 | £186.97 |
| Mercedes A-Class | £185.45 |
| Audi A1 | £182.21 |
Saloons
Top 5 Non-Premium Saloon Models
| Car model | Average cost |
|---|---|
| Peugeot 407 | £230.15 |
| Vauxhall Vectra | £227.40 |
| Ford Mondeo | £227.07 |
| Volkswagen Passat | £221.17 |
| Vauxhall Insignia | £212.54 |
Top 5 Premium Saloon Models
| Car model | Average cost |
|---|---|
| Jaguar X-Type | £234.59 |
| Audi A4 | £221.18 |
| BMW 3 Series | £206.82 |
| Audi A6 | £206.50 |
| Lexus IS | £199.44 |
SUV / MPVs
Top 5 Non-Premium SUV/MPV Models
| Car model | Average cost |
|---|---|
| Toyota Rav-4 | £297.98 |
| Hyundai Santa Fe | £270.96 |
| Ford Galaxy | £254.68 |
| Volkswagen Touran | £253.97 |
| Ford S-Max | £243.25 |
Top 5 Premium SUV/MPV models
| Car model | Average cost |
|---|---|
| Land Rover Freelander | £271.64 |
| BMW X3 | £239.18 |
| Land Rover Discovery | £225.80 |
| Range Rover Sport | £205.03 |
| BMW X5 | £204.68 |
*Figures based on cars with over 1,000 total quotes on WhoCanFixMyCar
What do our statistics tell us?
The Toyota Rav-4, with an average repair cost of £297.83, was the most expensive in its SUV/MPV class, 9.6% more expensive that the most expensive premium SUV/MPV, the Land Rover Freelander with an average repair cost of £271.64.
Peugeot have two models at the top of the list in their respective classes with the Peugeot 207 owning the highest average repair bill in the hatchback category (£208.37) and the Peugeot 407 in the saloon category (£230.15).
It is the big non-routine jobs that push the expense of the Toyota Rav-4 to the top of the pile. Although it isn’t the most expensive across the board, it does sit in the top three spots for a lot of the big jobs.
A clutch replacement was quoted on average at £651.97, 52.2% higher than the national average of £428.26. The Ford S-Max was slightly more expensive at £668.67.
Head gasket repair is another big job that the Rav-4 is over £200 more expensive that the national average of £499.99, with an average quote of £700.25. However, the Kia Sportage came out more expensive for Head Gasket repair with an average quote of £794.03.
It is not all bad news for Toyota drivers though as no other Toyota model feature in our most expensive cars.
Peugeot have two models in the most expensive hatchbacks section including the top spot and they also have the top spot in the saloon category. However, the brand as a whole doesn’t appear to be overly expensive with it sitting in eighth position when including all models (excluding premium brands).
Arguably the most interesting insight is that the premium vehicles are not much more expensive to maintain on average when comparing them to the non-premium brands.
