Gas vs. EVs: Which One Saves You More in Maintenance Over the Vehicle’s Lifetime?

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Everyone loves to argue about gas prices and charging stations, but while everyone is fighting over the cost to fuel the car, they are ignoring the budget killer that’ll drain your wallet more significantly over the years.

Consumer Reports found that on a per-mile basis, maintenance and repair costs for battery-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles average about 3 cents per mile, roughly half the 6 cents per mile that gas vehicles cost over their lifetime (about 200,000 miles).

Today, we’re breaking down how much you could save, not just at the pump, but in the garage, when you compare gas cars with electric vehicles over the long haul.

Why EVs Visit the Shop Less

A traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) is a complex machine of thousands of moving parts. It requires oil to lubricate pistons, spark plugs to ignite fuel, timing belts to keep the dance in sync, an exhaust system to vent the fumes and the list goes on.

Every one of those parts can wear out, leak, rattle or break, and every one is a bill.

An electric vehicle (EV) skips most of this. It may need maintenance in the future, yes, but it has far fewer moving parts overall. And it’s this simplicity that makes it cheaper to maintain. 

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) shows that scheduled maintenance costs for a battery-electric vehicle (BEV) average about 6.1 cents per mile, compared to 10.1 cents per mile for a conventional internal combustion engine vehicle (ICEV).

Argonne National Laboratory’s data estimates that EVs generally cost 40% less to maintain than gas-powered cars.

Lifetime Maintenance, Side by Side

Consumer Reports found that EV drivers pay about half as much as gas-car owners for maintenance and repairs over a vehicle’s lifetime, saving roughly $4,600 on average. AAA’s more recent Your Driving Costs research backs this up, noting that EVs now have the lowest maintenance costs of all vehicle types analyzed.

Suppose you drive 150,000 miles before you part ways with a car. Here’s what it might cost you:

Even if your personal mileage or service prices differ, which they can, depending on the state you’re in, the direction of the savings clearly shows that over a full vehicle life, EVs typically save you several thousand dollars in maintenance alone.

Do EVs Need Maintenance?

Of course, nothing on wheels is maintenance-free. EVs are heavier and deliver instant torque, which can mean faster wear and tear on your tires.

High-voltage batteries can also be expensive if replaced out of warranty (we’re talking several thousand dollars), but most manufacturers offer long battery warranties, and many owners sell or trade in before a replacement becomes an issue. The only reason why you’d need to replace an EV battery is after extensive, long-term use with significantly higher-than-average mileage, or if you get very unlucky.

So, Which Type of Car Is Cheapest to Own?

If the question is total cost of ownership, you’d also have to weigh purchase price, tax incentives, insurance costs, and electricity versus gas prices in your area. In most cases, EVs come out ahead.

If we’re just looking at maintenance, EVs are the cheapest.

Gas cars require constant financial feeding to keep their complex engines running; EVs simply don’t. Even if you burn through a set of tires a little faster, the thousands of dollars saved on engine-related repairs make EVs the clear winner.

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