Car maintenance costs

Car maintenance costs are often underestimated. Because in addition to the purchase, there are annual expenses for fuel, insurance, taxes and maintenance. We calculate the cost of the car.

Using a car has many advantages, but it also comes with regular costs. Here you can find out how the costs are made up and how you can save:

These are the costs you have to expect for your car
What are the purchase costs?
How high are the fuel costs??
How much does car insurance cost??
What does the car tax cost?
How much is the depreciation?
What are the maintenance costs?
Car maintenance costs at a glance
What are the most expensive& cheapest cars?
The five cheapest small cars
The five cheapest cars in the lower middle class
The five cheapest mid-range cars
The most expensive cars
Maintenance costs of electric cars and natural gas cars
When is an electric car worthwhile??
When is a natural gas car worthwhile??

Summary of the most important facts

The maintenance costs for a car consist of purchase costs, fuel costs and costs for vehicle insurance, taxes, depreciation and maintenance costs.
Type class, equipment, your age, your accident risk and your region play a role in the level of costs.
For a small car or one of the lower middle class you can calculate on average with 200 to 400 euro.
The larger and more powerful your car, the higher the maintenance costs will usually be.

These are the costs you have to expect for your car

acquisition costs
Fuel costs
car insurance
taxes
depreciation
Maintenance costs

There is, of course, no general figure for how much a car will cost you per month. Depending on type class, equipment, your age, your accident risk and your region you will have to pay different amounts of money. Roughly speaking, you can expect to pay 200 euros per month for the maintenance of a small car, and often twice as much for a mid-range car.

To help you estimate the costs of your own dream car, we have compiled a rough cost breakdown for a used vw golf v before. Because this model is one of the most popular cars among Germans.

How high are the purchase costs?

A new car is usually more expensive than a used car. It also has a much higher depreciation. For a used car used car fuel consumption, repair risk and insurance costs usually higher. Even with safety, manufacturer’s warranties and the latest technical standards, used cars can’t score points.

Nevertheless, you usually drive cheaper with a used car: but before buying, you should have all the important points checked by an expert and with the help of our car-buying checklist. Otherwise, repair and MOT costs can quickly become expensive.

Car checked by an expert when you buy it

Take an expert with you when buying a car to avoid making a bad purchase. © gettyimages/lux_e

For a rough idea of the price, you can use the adac’s list (PDF) of average prices for used cars in 2018 as a guide. In addition, you should also consider the costs for vehicle registration and license plates. At around 30 to 50 euros, however, they are not very high overall.

acquisition costs for the VW golf V: golf V models differ depending on equipment, engine and mileage. They range from 2.000 and 18.000 euro, on average you can expect to pay about 6.000-7.000 euros.

What are the fuel costs??

Whether gasoline or diesel, there is no clear winner here. The fuel costs alone are more favorable with the diesel. Purchase value, taxes and insurance are cheaper with gasoline-powered vehicles. Depending on how much and which model you drive, you have to weigh up: are the lower diesel fuel costs in relation to the higher other costs??

Generally speaking: the smaller the vehicle and the fewer kilometers driven, the more likely it is that a gasoline-powered vehicle is worthwhile. You can also save a lot while you’re driving, for example by using an app or website to find the cheapest gas stations nearby.

Current fuel costs: the average cost of gasoline in 2018 was around 1.43 euros per liter. The median diesel price in 2018 was around 1.28 euros. If you assume for example 7 l / 100 km and 15.000 km per year, in 2018 that would be roughly 1.500 euro fuel costs respectively 1.340 euro diesel fuel costs have been.

How much does car insurance cost??

How much car insurance costs per year depends on many factors. These include type class, no-claims bonus, driver group, kilometers driven per year and registration district.

As a novice driver, you pay considerably more because your accident risk is much higher. You can save money by transferring the no-claims bonus, agreeing to a deductible or insuring the car as a second vehicle.

The motor vehicle liability insurance is required by law and covers damages caused by the operation of your vehicle. Partial and fully comprehensive insurance, on the other hand, are voluntary: both insurances pay if your own vehicle is damaged. For example, damage caused by a wild animal accident or a fire.

The partial coverage insurance covers the most common damages. The fully comprehensive insurance also pays for damage such as vandalism or self-inflicted accidental damage to the car. With the latter you are on the safe side, but not necessarily on the cheap side. You can check the amount of insurance you can expect directly in our car insurance calculator.

With the right insurance, you can save yourself a lot of money in the event of damage to your car. © gettyimages/daisy-daisy

car insurance for the VW golf V: to give an exact number is not possible because of the many points that influence the issue. Costs can range from 100 to over 1.000 euros a year. Assuming partially comprehensive insurance and a four-year no-claims class, you can roughly expect to pay 500 euros per year.

What does the car tax cost??

The government uses the revenue from the vehicle tax to improve the infrastructure and preserve the environment. The car tax depends on the size of the engine capacity, the pollutant emissions and the date of first registration. The less pollutants your car emits, the lower your car tax will be. This is why diesel cars are subject to higher vehicle tax and electric cars to (almost) no vehicle tax at all.

Vehicle tax for the VW golf V: depending on the first registration, engine type and engine capacity, the car insurance can be between 100 and 300 euro per year.

How much is the depreciation?

The loss in value of a new car is enormous. In the first year, its value drops by about 25 percent. Over the years, it levels off at five to six percent. The depreciation depends on various factors such as the type of vehicle, the image of the manufacturer, the condition compared to the age of the vehicle, the number of kilometers or the marketability. With good care and maintenance you can counteract the loss of value positively.

depreciation for the VW golf V: the older the car, the lower the loss in value, of course. A VW Golf V from the years 2008/2009 has a current loss in value of about 500 to 1.000 euros per year. But this always depends on the model and therefore on the new price.

Good maintenance is important to reduce the loss of value of the car. But you will have to pay for maintenance. © gettyimages/ensup

What maintenance costs are incurred?

Don’t underestimate maintenance costs: every two years if your car has to be inspected at the main inspection, you will have to pay about 100 euro for this. Furthermore once a year you can also expect to pay up to 100 euros for an oil change.

Wear parts like alternator, brakes, exhaust or tires you have to replace over time. Electronic problems are among the most expensive. unexpected marten damage, hail damage or car theft are all costs that are not covered by every insurance policy or may require a deductible.

Maintenance costs for the VW golf V: depending on the model, the mileage and the absence of unusual incidents, if you assume about 30 euros per month, that’s 360 euros a year in maintenance costs.

Car maintenance costs at a glance

All in all, you can expect these maintenance costs for a used VW golf V: 200 – 300 euro per month (2.400 – 3600 euro per year), if you have 15.000 kilometers per year.

Our infographic gives you an overview of the costs involved in buying and maintaining your own car.

An overview of car maintenance costs. © allianz direct

What are the most expensive& cheapest cars?

The maintenance costs can be calculated on many websites on the internet. A reliable source for the costs involved is the ADAC (German Automobile Club). The automobile club also compiles an annual list of the cars with the lowest maintenance costs.

The most expensive cars

Whether you drive a subcompact, compact, midsize, or expensive luxury car has the greatest impact on how much you pay for your car each month.

Because a bigger and more powerful car always cost you per month and per kilometer driven more than a smaller car. For example, a heavy off-road vehicle or SUV consumes more fuel than a lighter car model. With a luxurious sports car you have to pay high costs for your car insurance and for the car tax. In addition, workshop and maintenance costs can be higher overall for higher-quality models, because an expensive car usually also contains more technology.

The expensive luxury cars therefore also cause the most costs on an ongoing basis. In some cases, they even cost more than 1.000 euros for monthly maintenance costs.

Powerful car with high maintenance costs

Maintenance costs for electric cars and natural gas cars

Electric or natural gas cars score with environmental friendliness. From a cost point of view, however, they are not always a favorable alternative.

When is it worth buying an electric car??

electricity costs less than the conventional fuels. Of course, this always depends on the price of electricity.
vehicles registered between 2016 and 2020 are 10 years exempt from car tax.
Some insurance companies offer discounts for electric cars to. Because the cars are quite new, it is almost always advisable to have fully comprehensive insurance, which in turn is more expensive.
To depreciation it is not yet possible to say too much, because the number of electric cars is still quite small.
The maintenance costs are lower, because there are hardly any wear parts and few moving elements. No need to change oil and filters.

If you drive a lot, the additional costs of an electric car will be worth it after a few years. For many, however, an electric car only becomes profitable when its production costs become cheaper.

When is a natural gas car worthwhile??

Even a natural gas car is significantly more expensive in terms of purchase or conversion costs. Natural gas is not only more environmentally friendly, but also cheaper than gasoline, diesel or autogas. Keep in mind, however, that the network of gas stations offering natural gas is still quite small. Especially abroad, you should therefore plan your trip well.

As a rule you can any car with gasoline engine retrofit. But this is not cheap. Roughly speaking, it can be said that a conversion from about 50.000-60.000 kilometers driven worthwhile.

Save on maintenance costs

Calculate before you buy, what would be your monthly costs.
Check the car, before you buy it. Because bargains do not necessarily remain bargains in retrospect.
Drive environmentally friendly, this is also easy on your wallet. There are also some tricks to save fuel, as you can read in our guide.
Take advantage of insurance discounts like the transfer of the no-claims bonus.
Always compare fuel prices.

If the maintenance costs for a car still seem too expensive to you, you can alternatively carry out a leasing calculation.

We wish you a safe journey! Your allianz direct