Top five small passenger cars for servicing costs

Japanese and Korean brands have dominated a small-car service affordability study by AutoGuru, just like the company’s study for medium SUVs.

And prices from the most affordable to the small car rated at the fifth position range from a little over $2500 to no more than $3200 for 10 services – the effective working life of a small car.

Based on $135 million worth of business placed with workshops around Australia – amounting to 430,000 unique quotes – AutoGuru has assembled a large database from real-world experience to arrive at the findings.

Among small cars, the Honda Civic came out on top, followed by the Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia Cerato and Hyundai i30, in that order. The Civic will cost its owner $2567 for 10 services, according to AutoGuru.

That’s the theory, at least, although individual owners may experience different results, with the Civic and Mazda3 service intervals limited to 10,000km if the car travels that far and further within 12 months.

The other three vehicles are all subject to 12-month/15,000km intervals, which means country drivers who may be travelling further over the course of a typical year may find they rack up aggregated servicing costs sooner in the Civic and Mazda3.

The cost of keeping the Corolla on the road totalled $2700 for the 10 services, with the Mazda3 not far behind on $2792. Both the Korean cars cost over $3000 – $3082 for the Cerato and $3118 for the i30.

AutoGuru notes that the small car market segment is “hotly contested” with “little to distinguish when it comes to logbook servicing costs”. Illustrating how that works in practice, as little as $551 separates the cost of cheapest to most expensive among the top five, yet the jump from #5 spot to #6, the Volkswagen Golf ($3840), is over $700.

While the Civic is kindest to the household budget for regular servicing, some of the Honda’s parts can be dear, as AutoGuru noted. Replacing a clutch will cost $1263, which is more expensive than the other four cars. Front brake pads cost $391, which is second only to the Mazda3 ($414) for expense.

Within this group, the Mazda3 was most expensive for replacing a timing belt or chain, at $879. The Corolla was the most affordable, at $618.

Small car service costs (10 services):
Honda Civic – $2567
Toyota Corolla – $2700
Mazda3 – $2792
Kia Cerato – $3082
Hyundai i30 – $3118