Keep, Repair or Replace Calculator
A big repair quote on an aging car? Compare the real monthly cost of fixing and keeping it versus replacing it with a used or new car — and see the repair spend that flips the decision.
Should I repair my car or replace it?
Compare monthly costs, not sticker prices. Repairing spreads the repair over the months you'll keep the car plus running costs; replacing is the loan payment on price minus trade-in and down, plus running costs. On this tool's defaults — a $3,500 repair kept two years versus a $22,000 used or $34,000 new car at 7.5% — repairing and keeping is usually the lower-cost monthly path.
Your numbers
Lowest monthly cost
$346
Repair & keep
Repair & keep — monthly
$346
Replace (used) — monthly
$481
Insight — Repairing and keeping your car is the lower-cost path on these numbers, at about $346/mo. It stays the better deal until further repairs over the period exceed roughly $3233 — track your repair spend against that line.
Data behind the defaults
- 7.47%·Editorial estimate· as of 2026-07-17· medium confidence
These defaults are starting points from the sources above — every field is editable, and results are estimates, not quotes. All data sources →
What if Repair quote changes?
| Repair quote | Lowest monthly cost |
|---|---|
| $1,000 | $242 |
| $2,500 | $304 |
| $4,000 | $367 |
| $6,000 | $450 |
| $9,000 | $481 |
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For context: at this tool's defaults — a $3,500 repair kept 24 months against a $22,000 used or $34,000 new replacement at 7.5% — repairing and keeping the car is usually the lower-cost monthly path until future repairs pile up past the break-even line shown above.
How this calculator works
This is a modeled monthly-cost comparison. Keep-and-repair monthly = the repair quote divided by the months you'd keep the car, plus current insurance and expected upkeep. Each replacement monthly = the amortized loan on (price − trade-in − extra down) at your APR and term, plus that car's insurance and upkeep. The tool then names the lowest of the three and computes the break-even: the extra repair spend over your keep-it period that would make replacing cheaper.
Formula
Keep = repair ÷ keep-months + insurance + upkeep. Replace = loan_payment(price − trade-in − down, APR, term) + insurance + upkeep. Recommendation = min(keep, used, new). Break-even extra repairs = max(0, (lowest-cost replace − keep) × keep-months).
Worked example
A $3,500 repair kept 24 months: keep monthly = $3,500 ÷ 24 + $110 + $90 ≈ $346. A $22,000 used car with a $6,000 trade-in and $2,000 down financed at 7.5% over 60 months ≈ $279/mo + $150 + $50 ≈ $479. Here repairing wins until further repairs exceed about ($479 − $346) × 24 ≈ $3,200.
What affects your result
- →The repair quote and how long you'd keep the car after it
- →Your current insurance and expected future upkeep
- →Replacement price (used or new), trade-in value and down payment
- →Financing APR and term on a replacement
- →Insurance and upkeep on the replacement
What this estimate includes
- ✓Monthly cost of repairing and keeping the car
- ✓Monthly cost of replacing with a used or new car
- ✓The lowest-cost recommendation
- ✓The break-even future-repair amount
What it does not include
- ×Depreciation and resale differences over the long term
- ×Reliability risk and the value of avoiding breakdowns
- ×Taxes and fees on a replacement (use the Car Tax & Fees tool)
- ×Sales-tax trade-in credit nuances by state
Good to know
Clear, practical answers about the keep, repair or replace calculator.
How do I decide whether to repair or replace my car?＋
Compare the true monthly cost of each path, not the sticker prices. Repairing spreads the repair bill over the months you'll keep the car plus insurance and upkeep; replacing is the monthly loan payment on the price minus your trade-in and down payment, plus its insurance and upkeep. The lowest monthly cost is usually the better financial call.
What is the break-even repair amount?＋
It's how much more you'd have to spend on repairs over your keep-it period before replacing becomes cheaper per month. Under that number, keeping and repairing wins; over it, replacing wins. It turns a gut decision into a clear threshold to watch.
Does a trade-in change the answer?＋
Yes. Your current car's trade-in or sale value reduces what you'd finance on a replacement, which lowers the replacement's monthly cost. This calculator nets the trade-in against the replacement price so the comparison is fair.
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How MotorCrunch estimates are made
Every calculator on MotorCrunch runs on transparent, documented formulas — the same standard financial math a lender, insurer or actuary would use. The loan payment is the amortization formula P × r × (1+r)^n / ((1+r)^n − 1). Depreciation follows compounding curves calibrated to published used-car value data by vehicle class and age. Running costs — fuel, charging, insurance, maintenance, registration — are modeled from per-mile and per-period cost studies published by government agencies (AAA, DOE, ONS, ABS, etc.) and industry sources, refreshed as those reports update.
Where a precise public figure is not available for a specific market or vehicle, the calculator uses a clearly labeled conservative estimate derived from the nearest comparable published data. Every assumption is visible and editable on screen — you can replace any default with your own quoted number to get a result that reflects your exact situation. No figure is hidden, rounded into a "score" or collected from readers.
The calculators are built to decide, not to rank. Each formula is unit-tested in the MotorCrunch codebase, and every data source traces to a typed registry of official publications listed in the Sources & Assumptions sidebar on each page. Results are educational estimates — not financial advice, not a binding loan offer, and not an insurance quote. For decisions specific to your personal finances, speak to a qualified, regulated professional.
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