Should You Repair Your Car Or Replace It? Bankrate Caret RightMain Menu Mortgage Mortgages Financing a home purchase Refinancing your existing loan Finding the right lender Additional Resources Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Bank Banking Compare Accounts Use calculators Get advice Bank reviews Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Credit Card Credit cards Compare by category Compare by credit needed Compare by issuer Get advice Looking for the perfect credit card? Narrow your search with CardMatch Caret RightMain Menu Loan Loans Personal Loans Student Loans Auto Loans Loan calculators Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Invest Investing Best of Brokerages and robo-advisors Learn the basics Additional resources Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Home Equity Home equity Get the best rates Lender reviews Use calculators Knowledge base Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Loan Home Improvement Real estate Selling a home Buying a home Finding the right agent Additional resources Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Insurance Insurance Car insurance Homeowners insurance Other insurance Company reviews Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Caret RightMain Menu Retirement Retirement Retirement plans & accounts Learn the basics Retirement calculators Additional resources Elevate your Bankrate experience Get insider access to our best financial tools and content Advertiser Disclosure
Advertiser Disclosure
We are an independent, advertising-supported comparison service. Our goal is to help you make smarter financial decisions by providing you with interactive tools and financial calculators, publishing original and objective content, by enabling you to conduct research and compare information for free - so that you can make financial decisions with confidence.
Bankrate has partnerships with issuers including, but not limited to, American Express, Bank of America, Capital One, Chase, Citi and Discover. How We Make Money
The offers that appear on this site are from companies that compensate us. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site, including, for example, the order in which they may appear within the listing categories. But this compensation does not influence the information we publish, or the reviews that you see on this site. We do not include the universe of companies or financial offers that may be available to you. SHARE: On This Page
Nitat Termmee/Getty Images July 19, 2022 Rhys has been editing and writing for Bankrate since late 2021. They are passionate about helping readers gain the confidence to take control of their finances by providing clear, well-researched information that breaks down otherwise complex topics into manageable bites. Bankrate logo The Bankrate promise
At Bankrate we strive to help you make smarter financial decisions. While we adhere to strict editorial integrity, this post may contain references to products from our partners. Here's an explanation for how we make money. Bankrate logo The Bankrate promise
Founded in 1976, Bankrate has a long track record of helping people make smart financial choices. We’ve maintained this reputation for over four decades by demystifying the financial decision-making process and giving people confidence in which actions to take next. Bankrate follows a strict , so you can trust that we’re putting your interests first. All of our content is authored by and edited by , who ensure everything we publish is objective, accurate and trustworthy. Our loans reporters and editors focus on the points consumers care about most — the different types of lending options, the best rates, the best lenders, how to pay off debt and more — so you can feel confident when investing your money. Bankrate logo Editorial integrity
Bankrate follows a strict , so you can trust that we’re putting your interests first. Our award-winning editors and reporters create honest and accurate content to help you make the right financial decisions. Key Principles
We value your trust. Our mission is to provide readers with accurate and unbiased information, and we have editorial standards in place to ensure that happens. Our editors and reporters thoroughly fact-check editorial content to ensure the information you’re reading is accurate. We maintain a firewall between our advertisers and our editorial team. Our editorial team does not receive direct compensation from our advertisers. Editorial Independence
Bankrate’s editorial team writes on behalf of YOU – the reader. Our goal is to give you the best advice to help you make smart personal finance decisions. We follow strict guidelines to ensure that our editorial content is not influenced by advertisers. Our editorial team receives no direct compensation from advertisers, and our content is thoroughly fact-checked to ensure accuracy. So, whether you’re reading an article or a review, you can trust that you’re getting credible and dependable information. Bankrate logo How we make money
You have money questions. Bankrate has answers. Our experts have been helping you master your money for over four decades. We continually strive to provide consumers with the expert advice and tools needed to succeed throughout life’s financial journey. Bankrate follows a strict , so you can trust that our content is honest and accurate. Our award-winning editors and reporters create honest and accurate content to help you make the right financial decisions. The content created by our editorial staff is objective, factual, and not influenced by our advertisers. We’re transparent about how we are able to bring quality content, competitive rates, and useful tools to you by explaining how we make money. Bankrate.com is an independent, advertising-supported publisher and comparison service. We are compensated in exchange for placement of sponsored products and, services, or by you clicking on certain links posted on our site. Therefore, this compensation may impact how, where and in what order products appear within listing categories. Other factors, such as our own proprietary website rules and whether a product is offered in your area or at your self-selected credit score range can also impact how and where products appear on this site. While we strive to provide a wide range offers, Bankrate does not include information about every financial or credit product or service. Your car requires regular investments to keep it running. At some point, however, you will question whether it’s wise to keep putting money into an old set of wheels. Should you pay for a major fix, or would it make more sense to put that cash toward a new vehicle? To determine the answer, find out how much the repair will cost, and compare that figure to how much your car is worth as well as how much you would need to spend to drive off the lot with a replacement. Looking at all these numbers can help you see more clearly whether making more repairs is a losing investment. Benefits of repair vs replacement
Fixing a car or both come with big financial implications. As you crunch the numbers of a repair bill or a new auto loan, consider the benefits of either move. Benefits of repairing your car
You can avoid paying record-high prices. Matt Degen, senior editor at Kelley Blue Book, suggests that it may be wise to hold off on buying a new car if the repair is only a couple hundred dollars. “With the prices of new cars right now, you’re looking at a monthly payment of $600 or $700.” You’ll have one bill instead of a new set of monthly responsibilities. If you can cover the repair and avoid getting locked into a new auto loan, you can keep in good shape. “Even if you had a high repair bill of a few thousand dollars, that would only be enough for a down payment on a new car,” says Ronald Montoya, senior consumer advice editor at Edmunds. “Then, you’d still have to contend with the monthly payments for another five to six years or so.” You can keep your insurance costs in check. Since a used car tends to be cheaper to replace, an insurance policy for your old car will likely be more affordable than covering a brand new one. Benefits of replacing your car
You can stop worrying about every noise your old car makes. The obvious benefit of a new car is the ability to sleep at night without worrying about dealing with another repair next week. New cars come with warranties that usually cover issues for the first three years or 36,000 miles, and some parts of the vehicle may have extended coverage up to 100,000 miles. You might be able to save in other areas. There are some issues that can’t be repaired — such as your car’s gas mileage — something to keep in mind in a time when the price of a gallon of gas is topping $5 in some markets. “If you’re driving something that is draining your wallet,” Degen says, “it might be time to consider a hybrid or electric model.” Buying new will cost big right now
Like the cost of many other expenses that have been impacted by inflation, the price-tag of new cars has been skyrocketing. According to Kelley Blue Book, the average price of a car in May 2022 was $47,148, which was 13.5 percent — or $5,613 — higher than one year earlier. In fact, May’s average prices were the second highest on record, Kelley Blue Book reported. For all of 2022 thus far, dealers have been selling new vehicles well over the manufacturer’s sticker price. The good news is the price increases are showing signs of slowing down and may even decline in the coming months if you can hold off on buying a car. How to tell if it s time to replace your car
In some cases, there isn’t much debate over replacing versus repairing. If any of these signals apply to your situation, it’s probably time to look for a new vehicle. The numbers don t add up
“If you have a car worth $5,000 and you’re looking at a repair for $4,000, it’s probably time to start looking for a new car,” Degen says. For a car that you still owe a balance on, you may want to look into selling it before you end up . The issues are causing major headaches in your daily life
Montoya points out that if the car’s issues are creating hiccups in your daily routine — making your kids late to school or you late to work — you probably need to consider a replacement. This is especially true when said hiccups end up causing financial strain. You have a serious safety concern
If the car can’t pass a state smog inspection test, you’re going to need to address a major issue. And if the car presents any kind of danger, start browsing. “You can’t put a price tag on safety,” Degen says. “If your car presents a threat to you or other drivers, it’s time for a new one.” 3 tips to make your car last longer
Are you trying to squeeze some extra life out of your current car? Rather than rush to the dealer to buy a new one, there are a few simple steps to follow to feel good when you start up your current engine. Follow the regular service schedule. Think of your car the same way you think of your body — it helps to get regular checkups to identify potential issues before they become huge problems. Do the same with your car. Get regular oil changes, replace the air filters and flush the fluids. Pay attention to alerts. Sure, that check engine light might seem like an annoyance, but it’s trying to tell you something. When your car’s system issues a warning, don’t delay — go get it checked out by an expert. Give it a new shine. Cosmetic clean-up can do a lot. Degen points out that paying for a good detail of your old car can make a significant difference. “It really does something for you psychologically,” he says. “Just getting into a car that looks clean and smells clean can make you think twice about the immediate need for a new one.” The bottom line
Cars don’t last forever. If you’ve exhausted every repair to keep your vehicle running, it may be time to start shopping. But before you do, there is some good news: You might be able to get a good chunk of cash to help cover part of your replacement. “Even older used cars with higher mileage are still getting record trade-in value,” Degen says. “So, that old jalopy that you have might be worth a lot more than you think it is.” Look at your car’s current value and compare it with an estimate for the repair bill. Seeing those two numbers next to each other should give you a good idea whether it makes more financial sense to repair or replace it. Learn more
SHARE: Rhys has been editing and writing for Bankrate since late 2021. They are passionate about helping readers gain the confidence to take control of their finances by providing clear, well-researched information that breaks down otherwise complex topics into manageable bites. Related Articles