2010 Fleet Car Maintenance Costs Remained Flat Says GE Capital Fleet Services Report

Overall fleet car maintenance costs remained flat in 2010 compared to 2009, according to a study by GE Capital Fleet Services. Due to an increase in vehicle replacement in 2010, according to the company’s findings, maintenance costs balanced out.

The findings are derived from a survey of actual maintenance expenses incurred by more than 11,000 passenger cars from January 1 to December 31, 2010 and found that car maintenance costs fell from $61.22 to $59.77 per vehicle each month, on average.

Because of the increased rates of vehicle replacement certain maintenance costs, such as the changing of tires and an overall reliability due to vehicle quality, longer-lasting parts and equipment, were superseded.

At the same time, with the increasing cost of oil becoming a major factor, costs for oil changes rose slightly from the previous year, and has increased 10 percent, or $3.00 per, since 2008. The end result is that, while the new vehicles were less demanding in terms of standard maintenance issues, the rising price of oil impacted the equation enough to keep the costs relatively flat.

GE Capital Fleet Services noted that companies are being more strategic about their fleet replacement decisions while working to manage their maintenance cost bottom-line.

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