BMW M3 Costs $0 to Maintain Over 40,000 Miles — but There's a Catch
D.Novikov
Car and Driver tracked scheduled service costs over 40,000 miles. The BMW M3 came out at $0, while the Porsche 718 Cayman GTS 4.0 topped the chart at $3,200.
Car and Driver compared the scheduled maintenance costs of its long-term test cars in the US over 40,000 miles, or roughly 64,000 km. The tally excluded tires, brakes, and unscheduled repairs — only routine dealer visits counted. The result is telling: even without breakdowns, some cars rack up bills fast, while others barely touch your wallet.
The priciest was the Porsche 718 Cayman GTS 4.0. After three paid visits following the complimentary first service, the editors shelled out $3,200. Service every 16,000 km and a spark-plug change at 48,000 km did the damage. The Porsche Cayenne lived up to the brand's reputation too, with scheduled maintenance totaling $2,677.
The BMW M3, on the other hand, ended up among the cheapest — and not because the sports sedan is easy to service. The reason is simpler: BMW throws in free scheduled maintenance for 3 years or 36,000 miles. In the Car and Driver test, that meant $0. The same logic applied to the BMW i4. An important detail for buyers: sometimes an expensive car is cheaper in the early years thanks to brand policy, not engineering.
Among mass-market models, the Honda Civic Si stood out at just $383. The Honda CR-V Hybrid came in at $476, the Ford Maverick Hybrid at $593. At the other end of the scale — the Mazda CX-90, with $1,593 for scheduled maintenance, more than the Toyota Grand Highlander, Kia Telluride, or Subaru Ascent from the same family-class segment. The Toyota Tundra Hybrid also surprised at $1,413, largely thanks to a costly 48,000 km service with fluid changes in the differentials and transfer case.
EVs proved a simple advantage: fewer consumables means lower baseline costs. The Kia EV9 required just $355, the Rivian R1T — $405, the Tesla Model 3 — $432. But that doesn't mean an EV is always cheaper to own: tires, body repairs, insurance, and a possible battery swap weren't part of these numbers.
Sometimes the most important line on the price sheet isn't the cost of the car itself — it's who pays for the first three service visits.
