Repair or replace your car: the bill against what the car is worth
Type the value of your car, the repair quote, other repairs due within a year and the monthly payment of a replacement.
Repair bill as a share of the car's value
29 %
With the other repairs due: 42 % of its value
| Repair now | $1,740 |
| Other repairs within a year | $800 |
| Value of the car | $6,000 |
| Months of replacement payments | 4.6 |
Compiled by Radif Partners · How costs are estimated · automaker labor times, BLS technician wages, parts read October 20, 2026 · not a quote
Whether to repair or replace a car comes down to three comparisons, and the tool makes all three. The first sets the repair bill against what the car is worth today: a head gasket on an SUV, about $1,740 at the national shop rate, is 29 % of a car worth $6,000. The second adds the other work you already know is due within a year, $800 in the example, which brings the money going into the car to 42 % of its value. The third turns the total into months of payments on a replacement: at $550 a month it equals 4.6 payments. No fixed percentage decides for you. A repair that keeps a reliable car on the road for years can be worth more than its share of the value suggests, and a car with several faults waiting is a different case.
Why the value of the car is the first yardstick
A repair does not make a car worth much more than it was before the fault; it gives back the use of the car. Comparing the bill with what the car would sell for in working order tells you how much of that value you are buying back. If the repair costs a small share of the value, fixing it is rarely in doubt. If it costs most of the value, the question becomes whether the car will need more soon, and whether a replacement would cost less over the same period.
The value to type is what the car would fetch in its current condition once repaired, as a private sale or a trade in. Online valuation tools and listings of similar cars near you give an idea; this site does not publish values. Be realistic: high mileage, rust and a history of faults lower it.
Count the work already waiting
A single big repair is one thing. A big repair on a car that also needs tires, brakes and a timing belt within the year is another. The tool adds those known jobs to the bill, because they will be paid either way if you keep the car. Front pads and rotors on an SUV come to about $272 at the national rate, and the state comparison prices the other common jobs for your state. Only count work that is due, not every repair that could one day happen.
Your car, your quote
Repair bill as a share of the car's value
23 %
| Repair now | $1,800 |
| Other repairs within a year | $400 |
| Value of the car | $8,000 |
| Months of replacement payments | 4 |
Months of payments: the cost of the alternative
Replacing a car is not free either. A replacement brings a monthly payment or a large cash outlay, and usually higher insurance, sales tax and registration fees. Turning the repair bill into a number of monthly payments makes the two sides comparable: in the example, the head gasket and the other work equal 4.6 months of a $550 payment. If the repaired car can be expected to run well past that, the repair is the cheaper path, all else equal.
What the numbers cannot tell you
Reliability is the hard part. A car that has just had its head gasket replaced may go on for years, or the overheating that caused the failure may have damaged other parts. A mechanic who has seen the car is the best judge of its overall condition, and a second opinion is worth having before a very large repair. Safety matters too: a car with failing brakes or a cracked frame is not a candidate for saving money. Finally, a car you own outright costs nothing a month in payments, which counts in favor of repairing it, while a car with an outstanding loan carries its payments on top of the repair.
Questions to ask before deciding
Three questions settle most cases. First, is the quote itself in line: hours near the automaker's time, a rate in your state's band, a part near catalog prices? A quote that is too high makes a repair look worse than it is. Second, what else did the mechanic notice while looking at the car? Ask for a short list of anything worn or leaking, with an idea of when it will need attention, so that the other repairs line is based on facts rather than fear. Third, what would the replacement really be? Pricing a specific car, with its own payment, insurance and taxes, gives a firmer number than a general idea of what a newer car costs.
If after those three questions the repair still takes most of the car's value and more work is waiting, replacing the car is a reasonable choice. If the repair is a one off on a car that otherwise runs well, the numbers usually favor keeping it.
The biggest bills
Two repairs most often raise the question. A head gasket costs about $1,739 on an SUV at the national rate, before any machining of the cylinder head; the head gasket page gives the range by vehicle and state. A transmission takes about $793 of labor on an SUV, plus a transmission whose price depends on whether it is new, rebuilt or used, which is why the transmission page asks for your own part price. Before agreeing to either, the quote checker shows whether the hours and the rate are usual for your state.