Car ownership costs have increased. Boston mechanic says, "they're computers are on wheels today."
Drivers are feeling the impact of high gas prices across the country, but filling up the tank is just one of several factors making it increasingly expensive to own a car. From repairs and maintenance to insurance and fuel, the cost of vehicle ownership has climbed sharply in recent years.
According to a new AAA analysis, the average cost to own and operate a vehicle has climbed from around $805 per month five years ago to more than $1,071 a month today.
"Vehicle ownership is increasingly becoming something that's out of reach for a growing number of people because they are more expensive across the board," said AAA Northeast spokesperson Mark Schieldrop.
High repair, maintenance costs
John MacKenzie has been repairing cars as a trusty mechanic at his shop in Boston's Brighton neighborhood for half a century, while watching those costs rise firsthand.
"The cost of repairs are high. Oil changes are expensive, and also employment," MacKenzie said. "I've been looking for a mechanic for over two years now. Someone wants a job, come by."
He says over the past six months, he's especially noticed the rising price of supplies and parts coming into his shop.
"The same car I tuned up a month ago, the spark plugs were $22 apiece, and that's expensive. Now it's like $26 apiece for a spark plug," he explained, adding a decade ago spark plugs were a few dollars.
MacKenzie believes both routine maintenance and standard repair work have become more expensive, in part because modern vehicles are more complicated to service.
"They're computers are on wheels today. They're very difficult, and it's expensive to fix one of those cars today," he said.
Heather Long, chief economist for Navy Federal Credit Union, agrees with that assessment in its analysis showing car repair costs have increased 73% since January 2020.
"It's been like a straight line when your teacher in second grade draws a straight-line arrow up, that's pretty much what repair costs have been," Long said, attributing inflation and labor costs among other factors. "Good mechanics are hard to find, and they are able to command the prices that they want."
Economist says it's "the perfect storm"
Repair bills are only part of the increase. Rising insurance, maintenance and gas prices are also adding to the overall cost.
"It's sort of like the perfect storm for the cost of car ownership rising," Long added, noting the number of cars being "totaled" is rising along with it. "Much more tricky calculation for a lot of insurers about when to just consider a car totaled and unusable, or when to try to actually repair it at the moment."
Analysts say gas prices typically begin to decline around fall, but that is not happening right now, adding another expense for drivers already facing higher costs across the board.
The average price for a gallon of gas in Massachusetts was hovering around $4.36 per gallon Wednesday.
"There are a lot of things working against us if we're trying to be optimistic or look for signs that we might see some relief soon," Schieldrop added. "This is the time your prices typically go down and instead they're really climbing sharply."
