What Maintenance Costs, and How to Budget It
The bill does not arrive monthly, which is exactly why it sinks people. It accrues every mile and lands in one lump.
What the data says
From ATRI's Operational Costs of Trucking, 2026 edition, covering 2025:
| Line | Change on the year |
|---|---|
| Repair and maintenance | +8.6% |
| Tires | +6.4% |
| All-in operating cost per mile | $2.336 (+3.4%) |
| Operating cost per mile excluding fuel | $1.854 (+4.2%) |
Maintenance rose considerably faster than the overall figure. A budget built on last year's maintenance spend is already behind.
The mistake that causes the damage
Treating maintenance as something that happens occasionally rather than something that accrues constantly.
A set of drive tyres does not become a cost on the day you buy them. It becomes a cost across every mile you ran them. Same for the clutch, the injectors, the aftertreatment system and the overhaul. If you only account for maintenance when you pay it, your cost per mile looks excellent for months and then catastrophic for one.
The fix is a per-mile accrual. Pick a figure, set it aside every week into a separate account, and pay repairs out of it. Whether your figure is right matters less at the start than having one at all — and after a year of records you can replace the guess with your own number.
This is also what makes your cost per mile honest. A calculation that includes only what you happened to spend this year understates what the truck actually costs to run.
Preventive versus reactive, in money terms
The argument for preventive maintenance in a one-truck operation is not mainly about repair cost. It is about the two costs that dwarf it:
- Downtime. A truck in a shop earns nothing while the payment and insurance continue. Fixed costs do not pause.
- Where it breaks. A planned repair happens at your shop at your rate. An unplanned one happens 400 miles away, at whatever the nearest place charges, with a tow and a hotel.
That second point is why the same job can cost three times as much depending only on when you chose to do it.
What to keep, and why it is not optional
A systematic inspection, repair and maintenance programme with records is one of the six areas examined in a new entrant safety audit. "I fix it when it breaks" is not a programme.
Keep, per vehicle:
- A record of every repair and service: date, mileage, what was done, by whom.
- The annual inspection documentation, with the copy on the vehicle.
- Driver vehicle inspection reports and repair certifications where they apply.
Those records serve three purposes at once: the audit, your Vehicle Maintenance BASIC, and the resale value of the truck. The same folder does all three jobs.
Where the maintenance line hides in your numbers
Put your accrual, not your spend, into the maintenance and tyre lines of the calculator. If your figure is well below the industry pattern, the likely explanation is not that you are efficient — it is that a cost is sitting in the future rather than in the spreadsheet.
Frequently asked questions
How much should I budget for maintenance per mile?
Use your own records once you have a year of them. Before that, set any deliberate accrual and refine it. ATRI's data shows repair and maintenance rising 8.6 percent and tyres 6.4 percent in 2025, so last year's figure is a floor rather than a target.
Why does my cost per mile look good until something breaks?
Because maintenance accrues per mile but is paid in lumps. Accruing weekly rather than accounting when you pay removes the illusion.
What maintenance records must I keep?
Records of systematic inspection, repair and maintenance for each vehicle, plus annual inspection documentation. These are examined in a new entrant safety audit.
Related
Sources
- Operational Costs of Trucking — ATRI, 2026 edition.
- 49 CFR § 396.17 — Periodic inspection.
General information, not legal advice. Regulations change; confirm current requirements with the agency before acting.