Ford has experienced a mixed bag of results in recent Consumer Reports studies in regard to not only reliability, but also, repair and maintenance costs. In its most recent reliability study, CR ranked Ford 22nd among all 30 mass market brands with a score of 40 out of 100 possible points, though some models – like the Ford Edge – have also been praised by the consumer organization for presenting buyers with reliable models that are also quite affordable to maintain. Now, Consumer Reports has released its latest list of the most and least expensive automotive brands when it comes to maintenance and repair costs, and Ford fared better than most of its rivals.
As CR points out, maintenance and repair costs can quickly add up to considerable ownership expenses over the lifespan of a vehicle, and oftentimes, these things vary greatly by brand and model. As such, the organization looked at its 2023 Annual Auto Surveys to figure out what its members paid for total maintenance over the course of the past 12 months. Overall, it discovered that maintenance and repair costs tend to rise over time – significantly so when warranties expire – though some brands are far cheaper to maintain than others.
Among all automotive brands, Ford ranked fifth with a one-to-five year average maintenance and repair cost of $1,100, as well as a 10-year cost of $5,400 – the latter figure being what determined these rankings. That was good enough to place The Blue Oval behind only Tesla ($4,035 10-year average cost), Buick ($4,900), Toyota ($4,900), and its own luxury counterpart, Lincoln ($5,040). Ultimately, this is good news for Ford owners, as repair and maintenance costs can oftentimes represent a large percentage of ownerships costs in general.
“The difference to maintain a car on average between some brands can be thousands over a 10-year time frame,” said Steven Elek, Consumer Reports‘ program leader for auto data analytics. “Also, expensive luxury vehicles are often quite expensive to maintain as well over time. If you are considering a luxury model, it may be wise to purchase one from a domestic brand that may have lower maintenance and repair costs. For example, over 10 years, Mercedes-Benz models are more than double the cost to maintain and repair as those from Lincoln.”
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