‘My BMWs would never’: Woman crawls under Ford Bronco to change her oil. Then she takes a closer look at the oil pan

Over the years, car prices have increased substantially. While the market has cooled somewhat in the past two years, other costs associated with cars have gone up. As noted by Capital One, the auto industry experienced a 20.7% rise in average vehicle repair costs, a 16.6% hike in car insurance premiums, and a 10.5% increase in fuel prices from 2022 to 2023.

Some of this can be explained by technological improvements that cause car repairs to be more expensive. However, some expenses...