Tips to budget for car maintenance costs

Vehicle ownership requires more than the ability to operate a car; it requires a keen sense of budgeting and maintenance. Every vehicle needs upkeep for safety and performance reasons. That is why understanding your car's routine maintenance cost is so essential. Having finances budgeted and prepared for regular care will save you from future headaches and struggles.

Thankfully, Kijiji Autos can help you understand and prepare for the average cost of car maintenance to keep you ahead on the finances and your car driving on the road.

Regular vehicle maintenance costs

The first step to establishing a car maintenance cost is to evaluate your vehicle's needs. Generally, all cars require routine investments in things such as oil changes, tire rotations, fluid top-ups, air filter changes and wiper blade replacements. Additionally, your vehicle's model, condition and year will significantly impact your average car maintenance cost per year. Assuming you avoid accidents or severe damage to the car, it is not unreasonable to budget for regular upkeep.

Average vehicle maintenance cost per year

How much does car maintenance cost? Well, a brand-new car could average an annual cost as low as $500. At or around the ten-year mark of a vehicle, the average annual cost could range around $1,500. After this, as your car ages, maintenance costs continue to rise and could reach more than $2,000 per year. Additionally, how much the vehicle is in use plays a significant part in costs. Although it is assumed that a car performing over 20,000 kilometres of travel per year will range around $1,500 in maintenance costs.

Average car maintenance cost per month

Using the average car maintenance cost per year of $1,500, it would be safe to assume that the average cost of car repairs per month would be between $100 and $125. Although, it should be taken into consideration that some months the vehicle will have no additional costs. In contrast, other months could be a more extensive repair bill. Reserving a monthly budget for these costs will leave you prepared and avoid an unexpected significant investment.

Calculating car maintenance costs

Again, multiple variables go into a car routine maintenance cost. It is important to consider the model, year and condition of your vehicle. Find a listing of car maintenance costs by brand, as luxury and sports vehicles will have a higher repair bill. Additionally, suppose you have owned your vehicle for some time. In that case, it could be helpful to add all previous costs together and divide it by year and month to uncover its unique average price.

Tips for vehicle maintenance budgeting

Here are some final tips for helping you to establish your average maintenance costs. Do the research of your vehicle's make, model and year. Set aside your monthly budget to prepare for unforeseen expenses. Increase the funding annually as your car ages. And create a vehicle expense account to track the average costs. 

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