This Car Brand Costs The Most To Maintain Over 10 Years, According To Consumer Reports

It seems that wherever you look and whatever you look at is getting more expensive by the second, including new cars and vehicle maintenance. According to the American Automobile Association (AAA), Americans spend $800 per year on average when it comes to vehicle maintenance. That includes oil changes, alignments, getting your brakes checked, and other routine vehicle maintenance. While the average may be $800, that just means that plenty of vehicles and brands have average maintenance costs that far exceed that. The team at Consumer Reports recently released research on which brands cost the most for maintenance and repairs over a one to five-year period, a six through 10-year period, and the total cost of the vehicle's maintenance and repairs at 10 years. 

The brand that Consumer Reports claims has the highest overall cost for maintenance and repairs over a 10-year period is Land Rover models. According to Consumer Reports, Land Rover owners spend an average of $3,700 on maintenance over the first five years of ownership, they spend an average of $13,750 over the second five years of ownership, and a total of $17,450 on maintenance and repairs over 10 years of ownership. Other luxury brands followed Land Rover with a high 10-year average, with Porsche owners spending $16,000, Mercedes-Benz owners spending $13,100, and Audi owners spending $11,050.

Land Rover builds off-road ready luxury SUVs that look perfectly fine on a muddy trail and in a grocery store parking lot. While the vehicles may have the highest average cost of repairs and maintenance costs, what does that mean about their reliability? According to Consumer Reports, Land Rover models have some poor predicted reliability numbers, with it not even coming close to the top 20 reliable brands.

Unfortunately, Consumer Reports does not have specific reliability information for the Land Rover lineup. The information they do offer shows that Land Rover's rough history on reliability is quite realistic. Yes, these vehicles can conquer rock gardens and steep, muddy hills, but they also require more repairs than many rivals. As mentioned earlier, Land Rover vehicles are more expensive to repair and maintain over a 10-year period than any other manufacturer. That remains true even when compared with other off-road-focused brands like Jeep. According to Consumer Reports, maintenance and repairs for a Jeep-branded vehicle will cost owners an average of $1,220 over the first five years and $5,250 over the next five years of ownership.

Although the most expensive car brands for 10-year repair and maintenance costs were all luxury brands, that doesn't mean that luxury brands are inherently more expensive to repair. The brand with the lowest 10-year total cost was America's luxury electric brand, Tesla. From years one to five, the average Tesla cost just $730 for repairs and maintenance. That number rises to $5,050 over 10 years, which is the lowest among any other brand according to Consumer Reports. 

After Tesla, the next two brands in the Consumer Report list are Lincoln and Buick, two more American luxury brands. Over 10 years, a Lincoln vehicle with run owners an average of $5,200 for maintenance and repairs. During that same period, a Buick vehicle will cost owners an average of $5,300 for maintenance and repairs.

One thing to keep in mind for repair costs is how long a vehicle's warranty runs. When a vehicle is under warranty, almost every repair cost will be covered. Most new-car warranties last a minimum of three years, meaning the first three-years of repair costs, if covered, won't cost you a thing. Granted, this doesn't cover driver error, such as a crash or fixing a flat tire because you ran over a nail. Because of that, vehicles with longer warranties will typically feature less repair costs. Nonetheless, be sure to check your manufacturer warranty coverage if you run into a problem.