Ford Maintenance Cost

Ford’s maintenance cost is more expensive than many other brands. It’s even more expensive than other American brands like Dodge and Chevy. When you add repair and maintenance costs together, drivers spend about $775 per year on their Fords, according to RepairPal.

We’ll get into the details of Ford maintenance costs, using the True Cost to Own calculator from Edmunds.com for data on five-year ownership costs and RepairPal for its Ford service cost calculator.

Fortunately, you don’t have to foot all the repair bills by yourself. Third-party extended car warranties offer coverage after your manufacturer’s warranty has expired. Having coverage can keep you from paying for a $1,000 or $2,000 repair out of the blue. We researched many of the best extended car warranty providers around and ranked the best ones. All you need is some basic information about your car, and you can compare quotes from our recommended providers below.

Ford doesn’t offer a free maintenance period, but it does offer a prepaid option called the Ford Protect Premium Maintenance Plan. Coverage can last from two to eight years. Within those time periods, you can also choose whether you want to cover less mileage or more.

For example, you could choose 8 years/60,000 miles or 8 years/150,000 miles. The coverage pays for as many scheduled services your car needs, whether services happen every 5,000, 7,500, or 10,000 miles.

Here’s what the Ford Protect Premium Maintenance Plans include:

• Full synthetic or conventional oil changes
• Replacement of normal wear items like wiper blades and filters
• Multi-point inspection
• Tire rotation
• Brake pads
• Spark plugs
• Engine belts
• And more

That’s a lot of stuff, but you wouldn’t need all of those changed at every service, of course. Prices aren’t published on Ford’s website, but we did some digging around on forums and dealership websites. It seems that Ford service costs are priced at around $100. So, a maintenance plan that includes 10 services would be about $1,000.

Recommended Car Maintenance Schedule

Below is an example maintenance schedule for Ford vehicles. Modern vehicles come with computerized maintenance notifications, so follow those or the maintenance schedule in your owner’s manual if different than what you see here.

According to RepairPal, the annual cost of a Ford maintenance plan is $775, which is about $65 per month. However, this average cost will depend on your location,  vehicle make and model, and the type of car engine.

General Ford Maintenance Cost

Maintenance is all about taking care of your vehicle ahead of time so that fewer things go wrong later. If you don’t follow a good maintenance schedule, there’s a higher chance you’ll have to pay for expensive repairs down the road. Also, it can be harder to sell your car if you can’t provide a good maintenance history. Lastly, regular maintenance is often required to keep a factory or extended warranty valid.

So, now we know why we need to do it, but how much does it cost? Let’s look at a few standard maintenance items you can find with different Ford models.

Nothing out of the ordinary here. Tire rotations are pretty cheap. Oil changes can also be more affordable than what you see above if you go to a chain or even change your own oil.

Next, let’s compare five-year Ford maintenance costs for a few different models. We’ll compare models from 2016, so you can see what maintenance costs for older cars are like. When you get a brand-new vehicle, you shouldn’t have to deal with high maintenance costs. But as cars age, different things like brake pads and engine belts will start to wear out. In this comparison, we’re looking at what you would pay to maintain a 2016-model Ford for the next five years.

We used the True Cost to Own calculator on Edmunds.com for this information. Keep in mind that the calculator uses localized data. We used a zip code in Portland, Oregon to get these results, but you’ll probably see different prices if you use the calculator yourself. The calculator also assumes that people drive 15,000 miles per year. That’s pretty close to the national average, but you may drive a lot more or a lot less. That also affects maintenance costs.

One interesting thing to note is that most of these Ford maintenance costs are in a pretty similar range over the five-year period. But let’s not forget to account for the value of each car. You can see that the 2016 Ford Focus maintenance cost is much higher compared to its value than the F-150 or the Mustang.

Common Ford Repair Costs

Repair costs are another big part of the total Ford maintenance cost. The difference with repairs is they are generally unpredictable. Now, if you’ve been driving with your engine light on for the past three months, you know you have to fix something. But normally, repairs come out of the blue. Here are a few repairs that you might encounter with Ford:

Repair prices are also dependent on the area you live in and the shops available to you. Going to the dealer for repairs will typically cost more than going to an independent repair shop. Not only that, but independent shops often have quicker turnaround times. When looking for a shop, you want to ensure that it employs ASE-certified mechanics. If you find a reputable shop, you can expect the same level of quality as a Ford dealership.

Here’s where things get interesting. Below, we will compare seven of the top Ford models and their annual average repair costs. This data comes from RepairPal as well, and it includes maintenance in the overall cost.

We saw earlier that the Ford Focus had considerable maintenance costs compared to other models. However, when you add repairs into the mix, you can see that bigger and more powerful models cost more overall. Remember that this is an average cost that includes many years. Since repairs are unpredictable, you might go years without paying for anything and then get surprised by a $1,500 bill. Some people can also get lucky and pay much less than these average costs.

How does Ford stack up against other brands? Let’s take a look:

Toyota repair costs are right on par with Honda, and these two brands often vie for the most reliable car brand. The Kia maintenance cost is right in the same neck of the woods. Dodge and Chevy maintenance costs are a little cheaper than Ford’s, but not by a whole lot. We included BMW, which has some of the highest maintenance costs on the market to give you an idea of the scale of repair costs. Overall, Ford’s maintenance cost is one of the most expensive out of all non-luxury brands.

If you don’t want to write a giant check to cover an unexpected repair, you should look into some third-party extended warranty options. Also known as vehicle service contracts, these plans can extend coverage for your Ford long after the Ford factory warranty expires.

Extended warranties repair parts after a failure during normal use. They won’t cover modified parts or misuse. Plans range from bumper-to-bumper warranties to basic powertrain coverage, and they can be a lifesaver when an expensive repair pops up. Many people buy them for the peace of mind that their car (and budget) is taken care of.

Our team surveyed 1,000 customers who had extended warranties on their vehicles. Of those who used warranty coverage, about 92 percent said the warranty covered some or all of the cost.

The best extended warranty companies will give you time to go over the whole contract and make sure you understand everything. Here’s what you can expect to find from the top providers on the market today:

• Coverage up to 250,000 miles
• Repair shop is paid directly by the warranty company
• Choice of any certified repair shop you want
• Low or $0 deductibles per visit
• Perks like roadside assistance and rental car benefits

All of our recommended providers performed well in areas like customer service, industry reputation, and coverage options. Compare quotes from them right here: