This Overlooked Toyota Model Has Surprisingly Low 10-Year Maintenance Costs

A huge part of Toyota’s popularity is built on a reputation for reliability and low maintenance costs, and indeed, the massive Japanese company is generally considered one of the least expensive brands to maintain. As one would expect, the list of Toyota models with cheap maintenance costs includes stalwarts like the Camry, Corolla, and Prius, all long known for their low overall ownership costs. 

Interestingly, though, the Toyota model with the lowest 10-year maintenance cost, according to CarEdge, is not one of the automaker’s ultra-popular hybrids or even one of its battery electric EVs. The Toyota with the lowest 10-year maintenance costs is the hydrogen fuel cell-powered Mirai sedan, at an estimated $3,179.

However, the Mirai’s low maintenance costs come with some significant barriers to ownership. Not only is it expensive, but it’s also hobbled by a serious lack of fueling stations, high fuel costs, and extremely poor resale value. Most challenging of all, though, is probably that you can’t actually drive the Mirai in most American states. In that sense, the Mirai’s low maintenance costs are less of a real-world selling point and more of a minor redeeming quality for a vehicle and fuel source that has otherwise struggled to find a footing in the market.

Electric vehicles are well known for their low maintenance costs, and indeed, the CarEdge list is filled with EVs. In many ways, that’s exactly what the Toyota Mirai is, so its placement on the list is unsurprising. The big difference is that the very fascinating Mirai, now in its second generation, gets its power from hydrogen tanks and a fuel cell rather than a plug-in battery. Unfortunately, that means it has also proven both difficult and expensive to own in the real world, where hydrogen fueling infrastructure is extremely limited.

For starters, California is basically the only American state with any hydrogen fueling stations. Even then, fueling up isn’t easy, with stations regularly shut down or closed for maintenance. This, of course, makes the Mirai extremely impractical for most drivers — especially those who want to go on road trips.

Toyota includes a $15,000 hydrogen fuel credit with each new Mirai sale, but that eventually runs out; when it does, drivers will find that hydrogen is drastically more expensive than gasoline. In other words, even if you happen to have easy access to hydrogen filling stations, the extra cost of fueling the Mirai will almost certainly wipe out any money you’d save from its low maintenance costs. 

Considering all the difficulties that come with hydrogen car ownership, the Toyota Mirai’s famously awful resale value, where it retains only about 23% of its original value after three years, isn’t much of a surprise. Low-mileage examples of the second-generation model, which starts at $51,795 (plus $1,295 destination), are regularly available for under $10,000. First-gen Mirai models, meanwhile, can be had for $5,000 or $6,000 all day long.

Given how expensive the typical used vehicle is these days, that might seem like an insane bargain for a modern, spacious, high-tech Toyota sedan that needs little maintenance. The reality is that the value is so low simply because the Mirai is such a difficult and pricey car to live with.

Given all of this, it’s not surprising that Toyota has more or less pulled the plug on further development of FCEV passenger cars, instead choosing to focus on commercial vehicle applications. Unless hydrogen vehicle infrastructure improves significantly, most drivers will find a car like the Toyota Mirai difficult or even impossible to own, regardless of how cheap it is to buy and maintain.