If you pull together every dollar owed by every person in Canada—all residential mortgages, credit cards, vehicle loans, and lines of credit—the grand total of Canadian household credit market debt sits at $3.25 trillion dollars.

If you took all $3.25 trillion in debt and divided it equally by every man, woman, and child in Canada, each person’s share is roughly $78,000.

When averaged across all households (including those who have entirely paid off their homes or choose to rent), the average total debt hovers just under the $200,000 mark.

According to recent credit bureau data from TransUnion and Equifax, the average outstanding auto loan balance for a Canadian borrower sits between $21,000 and $25,000.

The average new loan for a used car is roughly $26,000 to $27,000.

The average new loan for a brand-new vehicle typically ranges from $35,000 to over $43,000, depending on the province and vehicle type.

At the low-end vehicle debt is potentially 27% of an individual Canadian’s debt load, and 11% of a Canadian Household’s debt.

Keep in mind, this number represents a blend of everyone in the system—from someone who just bought a luxury SUV yesterday to someone who only has three months of payments left on a 10-year-old sedan. 

The median after tax household income in Canada is $73,000.

There is a major difference between household types. For instance, the median after-tax income for couples with children is roughly $113,700, while for unattached individuals, it drops to approximately $36,100.

The annual cost of vehicle ownership in Canada is between $10,000 and $16,000. At the high end that is 14% of the household budget. This average includes car payments for those that have them. 30% of Canadian households have incomes less than $36,000 a year. That tells you that a large segment of Canadians struggle to own and maintain a vehicle.

Now let’s use some real numbers according to the CAA cost of ownership calculator. The annual cost of operating a 2017 Volkswagen Tiguan is $7800. That is all fuel, insurance, repairs and maintenance and depreciation. The same calculation for a 2025 Tiguan is $15,000. Even though maintenance and repairs are less on a newer vehicle, the car payments and financing make it way higher. That is almost double. 

Now imagine the money a Canadian household could save if they kept the 2017 Tiguan for another 5 years. Car repairs would go up, but depreciation would go down. They could potentially save $36,000 by keeping a car for 14 years. (We currently own and drive a 2012 Tiguan, well maintained and going strong).

According to a study by MNP commissioned by AIA Canada it costs at least 20% more to take a vehicle to the new car dealer than an independent after-market shop. But that is just the beginning.   

Further evidence from the report shows that drivers can save up to 30 per cent or $500 on common repairs and up to 80 per cent for labour-heavy or complex repairs (when aftermarket parts are used) at reputable independent shops.

That means that we are adding $2,000 to $3,200 in repair expenses to a household a year. Rural drivers face higher repair costs, making local independent shops essential, especially where dealerships are hours away.

Now for my main point. 

1. We need National Right to Repair legislation: To lower vehicle repair costs for Canadians. You can already see how challenging it is for so many Canadians to have safe, affordable transportation. Why do we feel we need to buy a new car every 5 to 7 years when we can easily make them last 12 to 15. It is almost always less costly to maintain the car you have than to buy a new one.

2. We need National Right to Repair legislation: To ensure drivers can choose where their vehicles are serviced. One of the hallmarks of living in a country with rule of law and consumer protection, is the fight against monopolies. A good economy thrives on fair competition.  Limited access to repair data could cost independent shops up to $336 million in lost profit per year Canada wide.  

3. We need National Right to Repair legislation: To protect and create local jobs. Even more important for rural and remote areas. Our federal government is always very concern about unemployment. They spend a lot of money subsidizing vehicle manufacturing in order to create “good jobs”. The car manufacturing sector in Canada creates 130,000 direct manufacturing jobs. Indirect and employment: Including dealerships, logistics, and parts suppliers, creates another 128,000 positions. The automotive aftermarket currently has over 510,000 jobs. And we are still short many qualified technicians, service advisors and parts advisors. Just within the 100 shops we work with, there is a need for 10 advisors and 20 technicians or apprentices. That is 30%. Prorate that across 15,000 aftermarket shops. If our government is going to subsidize anything, it should be the aftermarket. The same amount of money will go a lot further and solve vehicle affordability issues for Canadians.

Closing comment on the environmental advantages of keeping cars for a long time. The estimated carbon footprint of driving my 2011 Toyota Tundra for a year in Canada, based on average figures, is approximately 4.89 metric tons of CO2. A reasonable estimate for the manufacturing phase of a new Toyota Tundra could be in the range of 10 metric tons of CO2. The estimated carbon footprint of driving a 2025 Toyota Tundra for a year in Canada, based on average figures, is approximately or 4.37 metric tons of CO2. I can drive my gas guzzling 2011 Tundra for 19 more years to catch up with the carbon footprint of manufacturing and driving a new one.