Car maintenance cost comparison – Part 2: Premium and Executive Sedans

Carrying on from Part 1 of our Maintenance Cost Comparison, we bring you Part 2, which deals with the Premium and Executive Sedan segments. Be sure to check out our criteria and methodology for this detailed study from the link above.

Thanks to the ever-growing popularity of the SUV, the higher-end sedan segments, namelypremium and the executive sedans, consists of very few players. The former category is made up of just two – the Skoda Superb and the Toyota Camry, while the latter is comprised of the Honda Civic, Hyundai Elantra and, though it’s a far more expensive CBU import, the Skoda Octavia RS245, which we’re including in the survey. Just how much does the overall maintenance for these cars cost over 60,000km? Read on to find out.

• Maintenance costs calculated over 60,000km
• Premium and Executive sedan maintenance costs compared
• Factors in service parts & life, labour rates and service intervals

Premium sedan maintenance costs

• The premium sedan segment consists of just two models and both are offered in petrol avatars, with the Camry being a hybrid.
• Over the course of 60,000km, the Camry Hybrid has six periodic services, whereas the Skoda has only four, but it’s the Camry that costs less to maintain.
• In addition to the standard replacement parts, the Superb also requires its drivebelt and spark plugs to be replaced, which isn’t the case with the Camry. Higher labour and parts costs make the Skoda much more expensive to maintain.

Executive sedan maintenance costs

• The executive sedan segment has dwindled down to merely the Honda Civic and the Hyundai Elantra. The third car in the segment, the fully imported Skoda Octavia RS245, isn’t exactly a direct competitor due to its price and performance.
• The Hyundai Elantra is much cheaper to maintain than the Honda Civic, costing a little more than half of what the Civic does per kilometre. Interestingly, Hyundai also charges for labour from the 40,000km service onwards at a flat Rs 2,855 for each service.
• Driving up the Civic’s costs a bit more are coolant and brake fluid replacements, which aren’t necessary for the Elantra, as well as higher labour charges applicable from the 20,000km service onwards.
• In the Skoda’s case, the engine oil itself costs Rs 5,472 during each service, plus additional items like spark plugs, fan belt/drivebelt, transmission/transaxle oil and brake fluid further add to its total costs. Also, higher labour costs of over Rs 5,700 for the 30,000km and 45,000km service, and over Rs 6,500 for the 60,000km service, makesthe Skodathe costliest to maintain.

Did you find this maintenance cost comparison helpful? Tell us what you think in the comments section, and stay tuned for more maintenance cost comparison surveys of other segments that are coming soon.

Also see:

SUV maintenance cost comparison – Part 1: Premium and Executive SUVs